Changes for America 1

The Liberal 'Wants' list:


1. Green Energy

2. Stimulus package

3. Small, high mileage cars

4. Jobs

5. Get out of Iraq

6. Get Ben Laden

7. Close Gitmo

8. Impeach Blagojevich

9. Gay Marriages

10. Unfettered abortions

11. Higher taxes for the rich

12. Open borders

13. Amnesty for the undocumented in this country

14. Degrade the values of morality (right and wrong)

15. Socialized medicine

16. More money for a broken school system

I am sure there are more like putting Bush and Cheney on trial for something, but the 16 I have listed will do. This article will only address three of the items with the others in successive writings.

My Comments on the 'List' Article 1

Green Energy: Okay, let's have green energy, but not unless it is has been thoroughly thought out. The ethanol from corn was an unmitigated disaster that almost caused worldwide hunger because the staples that depended on corn got so expensive that many could not afford them. I only want those who plan for our green energy to be mindful that our energy cost can rise so high that we can no longer compete. Countries with cheaper petroleum based economies would be in a stronger position to compete in the global economy, effectively blunting our competitive edge.

The loss of a strong economic backbone could propel us into becoming a third world economy. Nothing would kill this country faster than sitting arrogantly on our clean expensive energy with nothing to trade because we can no longer afford to manufacture products competitively. Just because we stop using oil for energy, oil will not disappear. Oil will only become cheaper because we stopped using it, which will open the door for that cheap energy for other countries to use.

Stimulus Package: Experts say that World War 2 is what ended the 'Great Depression'. That is probably true. The war economy (excluding the war itself) was one gigantic government stimulus. However, there was a big difference how the government spent money then, and what is proposed and happening today. During the war, the government did not just start throwing money to bail out failing institutions. The economy was stimulated because the government bought the products of our industries. It killed several birds with one stone. Buying the industrial products also created jobs. Manufacturers retooled for production and updated their facilities to meet the customer demand. (Tanks, Ships, Ammunitions, etc.) The government did not have to take over the auto industry to force a product to the market. As a customer, the government was able to get the specific products that they wanted without resorting to taking over our industries. If the government wants the auto-industry to make a bunch of putt putts, all they have to do is order them. Then they can show us all how to sell them. Maybe they know something that the marketing people at GM and Chrysler don't know. I would rather see a stimulus package that purchases the products of our industries instead of taking them over. One more thing on this subject, after the War was over the government destroyed most of the surplus equipment to prevent it from flooding and destroying our domestic markets.

Small High Mileage Cars: I believe that the markets will sort out this one. Demand for smaller cars is the key to getting them on the streets. My only concern is allowing Liberal elitists to plan for such undertakings. Poor planning usually lands us in the messes that we find ourselves. Those electric cars touted today only have enough energy to go to work and back. But what if you want to be cool and comfortable during the daily commute on hot days? Do you think that air-conditioning is included? Or, is being comfortable while commuting just another one of those sacrifices we are going to have to make? At my home, we are already making small sacrifices in the way we live. For example, we are already losing a part of our way of life because of this countries failure to find and develop our domestic energy. My electric bill is so expensive, my wife and I can no longer afford to cool our house in the summer. Instead, we bought small window units to cool just the rooms we use the most -- the rest of the house stays hot. And, we are not alone. Expensive energy puts our way of life at risk. When fuel prices went to $4.00/gallon, people drastically cut back on car travel. The motel/hotel industries, the airline industry and the trucking industry suffered. Again, we have had to lower our standard of living because of our failure to find and develop our domestic energy supplies. Now, small cars will further erode our standard of living. A family outing where one SUV used to be sufficient will give way to the new smaller autos. The smaller vehicles will mandate that a family exceeding four persons take two vehicles. And good luck on finding convenient parking for both autos.

But there is more to the leftist's plan. They actually plan on making it illegal to drive into the metropolitan areas and force everybody to ride 'light-rail' instead. (Another costly boondoggle) I am not totally against the proposal if the people have a say so in the matter. And by a say-so, I mean deciding on the whole plan, and not sneaking their grand plan in piecemeal proposals of building one route at a time. Because after building enough of the light rail lines, then we will get the abolition of traffic to the downtown areas. The liberals are not being honest about their enthusiasm for the light rail concept. I would much prefer abandoning the monuments to egos, namely those high-rise buildings that cause so many people to have to travel to the downtown area. Instead, I would prefer the 'donut' approach to city planning. Turn the city centers into large areas for hospitals, zoos, and city/county government. By eliminating the need for the large crush of people to commute to the downtown area, it would spread out the commuter traffic and be much more manageable. It is unfortunate that city skylines have become iconic and ingrained into our psyche of what a city should look like as well as a projection of a city's success. Those tall buildings, if scattered about the circumference of a city would create much less of a traffic snarl. (And still give us the freedom to commute as we see fit.)

The type of cars we will develop is also in play for the planners of our future. Hydrogen powered cars seem to hold a promise of good clean energy. However, the byproduct of hydrogen power is water. Just use your imagination and you can see all of our vehicles dribbling water out of their exhaust. Will the roads become permanently wet? Water vapor is more of a greenhouse gas than CO2. I can visualize on a cold morning what the morning commute will look like with everybody exhausting steam from their cars. Of course, none of the problems associated with hydrogen power is insurmountable, but I would prefer that we deal with potential problems before we rush headlong into a scheme that is supposed to solve all of our problems. The 'gotchas' of poor planning just causes more pain for everybody.

Look for volume 2,

Cheers,

-Robert-