It was about two months after Obama’s 2009 inauguration when I started noticing that there was already a lot of potential for Screwing The Pooch in the new administration.
And now, those of us still driving smaller cars are at increased risk against those huge trucks & SUVs surrounding us and hurtling down the road.
Also let’s not forget another mistake Obama made when he appointed Larry Sommers as Director of the National Economic Council. As if Sommers hadn’t done enough damage in the Clinton administration, Obama gave him another shot at skewing economic advantage toward the top.
All of this underscores what a good president Joe Biden has been. He’s far more progressive and clear eyed than those two youngsters.
Yes indeed. When I am driving, and I am around an SUV or a suburban van, I always expect something stupid on the part of the driver and drive defensively, and too often I am not mistaken. (that and expecting Beemer drivers to be moronic entitled assholes)
Tesla's are the Official Car of White Progressive Southern Californians, you can throw a stick down any street in Encino Park (where I live) and hit ten of the damn things. Elmo's Tinny toy.
I don't think this was always so. and, like Tom, the idea of offending owners of vehicles made by this wretched company is, if anything, an attractive proposition for me.
and yeah, Teslas are ugly. but my saying this doesn't mean I have any real knowledge of what's out there because I just can't bring myself to CARE. but then again, I've never bought more than one car. all the rest were hand-me-downs and I can't drive any more, so I REALLY don't care about them, except to the extent that I think those tank-like things are a menace. if a car gets me to where I'm going, that's all I can bring myself to care about. and it was ever thus.
I hear you, David. I could never afford to care about anything beyond “What’s the monthly payment?” Although, the last time I bought a car, my son introduced me to another important criterion: Do you want to climb into it, or fall into it? I happily chose the latter. 😉😂
when I was working as a chauffeur for private people's cars in '83, I got to drive a whole variety of expensive cars. for NYC driving, a Lincoln has every other car beat, at least in terms of giving a less bumpy ride. the cars I hated the most were those fucking Beemers. they might be great on the Autobahn, but they're bumpy as hell. my sister, whom I despise, would be VERY unhappy if she couldn't lease those two fully-loaded 5 Series Beemers every two years. she uses hers to drive to lunch and (maybe) the gym. her husband (a sick fuck) is retired in Boca, so they can be near my useless nephew, who spent seven years in college to become a packager of funerals (as opposed to an actual funeral director, who has actual TASKS to perform). my nephew is a middleman. seven years of college, changing majors from, say Leisure to Resort Management to god knows what else.
with my various infirmities, just getting into one of those fucking tanks is a significant ordeal. I hate them.
It's the Land Rovers you have to watch in Sarasota for entitled driving. I had two of them stopped in a downtown street last night, one behind the other and I had to go around them.
Because they needed to stop and they're far too important to take the time to find parking; besides, they might have to walk 50 feet and we can't have that!
Indeed, let's not even talk about a 'business man's qualifications.' As a friend once, "...the difference between the private sector and the public sector is that in the private sector they can take a minimal 'problem,' and overwhelm it with resources, while in the public sector one is faced with enormous issues and given minuscule resources with which to solve it." The friend worked at a high level in each sector.
Naming Rahm Emmanuel as his Chief of Staff was one of Obama's bigger mistakes. President Biden has made much better choices for his staff and cabinet for the most part (not so fast, Merrick Garland).
That said, one reason SUV sales increased was a policy by the GWB administration that gave a $100,000 tax break for businesses that purchased a vehicle of 6,000 lbs. curb weight or greater. I did relief for a DVM who was driving a Ford Expedition, which his small animal practice absolutely didn't need, but nonetheless purchased for the considerable tax break. (Same DVM also had Fox News going in his office. We didn't talk politics for obvious reasons.)
At the same time the relatively paltry tax deduction for buying hybrid vehicles --$2,000--was raised only to $3,400 in 2005, and then only for vehicles purchased after Dec. 31st, 2005. Currently the maximum tax credit available for purchasing an electric vehicle is $7,500. With the new emissions standards being put in place by the Biden administration, a lot more is going to have to be done in this area to drive electric vehicle sales.
Indeed. This was not solely an Obama era fuckup, and frankly, they (the administration) and the EPA at the time thought they were being too cute by half in their regulation changes.
There are no clean hands, and I would expect Trump to fuck it up even more if he should win in November.
What if the Biden Administration brought back the $100,000 tax credit for large vehicles, except this time they would be electric? It might drive sales for these vehicles, which is the whole point of where they want to go with electrification. Better incentives for people to buy personal electric vehicles would be great as well.
Being a Californian I noticed the inclusion of larger and larger passenger vehicles on our highways before Obama. Back when we had good ol' Arnie as gov. He drove a "Hummer" so it seemed everyone in Sacramento had to buy one of those monstrosities.
An aside: While I admire the sleek lines of Lamborghinis and Ferraris my preferred cars to drive have always been small :VW beetle, VW bus, Honda Civic, Subaru, and finally Toyota Prius - I look on cars as something that can get me from here to there with the least amount of gas and the least maintenance.
In short, I don't see my vehicle as an extension of me.
When I was younger (under 30) I drove chevy's because way back in the 50's and early 60's American cars were well made and easy to maintain. Then they switched and became the worse cars on the road. I did my own maintenance in those days - which was why I switched to Japanese, easy to repair on my own. I continued until I married my second husband who objected to his wife having black greasy hands and smudges on her face.
I loved my 1975 Honda Civic. It met the environmental requirements without a catalytic converter, using the design for a 1937 light airplane engine. Also had a 5-speed stick. I spent $10 buying the telephone book-sized owner's manual, which was completely illustrated with pictures with arrow pointing at the thing you were going to work on for that part of the project; following the manual, I did a ring and valve job on it in 1979. And it got 40mpg in two and 50 on the road and four 6 footers could fit inside closely but comfortably. It was the best car I ever owned. And I had a 1969 VW before that that my wife loved so much she demanded taking it with her when we split up.
Your second husband didn't know how lucky he was! :-)
Mine was a 1977 I had to replace the whole motor - thank goodness for torque wrenches my upper arm strength is no match for a man's - but then I decided the reason it blew out was the toy radiator in it. So, I searched a junk yard and found a sunbeam full size radiator that fit the width of the Honda instead of the toy size it came with - the Honda lasted another two years. My best car (although I couldn't work on it myself) was the Prius - great mileage, very low maintenance. I gave my last to to my granddaughter when I quit driving in 2017. She still has it.
My first how-to manual was the Compleat Idiot for the VW bus - long story
My favorite car that I've owned is my '08 Civic (5 speed stick). Drives like a sports car. The only thing I've done myself on it was to change the spark plugs. I used to do tuneups when you could still do that on cars.
I loved every one of my four-on-the-floors because they made me more engaged with the driving process, more alert, and ultimately a safer driver. It's all automatics now because drivers have to have their hands free to mess with their phones, their interior accoutrements, etc. Some of my cars aged out and died of all kinds of things except for tired transmissions.
Oh, geez! I remember when I was looking to buy a used Integra. I would call people who had 'em and ask why they were selling the car. This one woman told me she wanted something she could work on and she was buying an old truck for that purpose ('60s, I think; this was the early '90s). For some reason I crossed her Acura off the list, but then it occurred to me, as a single guy, that she sounded great--in large part because of her wanting to do her own repairs, but I'd lost the phone number. Damn!
I was more aware of what a disaster Salazar was because of my advocacy for Wild Horses. He and his buddies did more damage to the numbers of Wild Horses - far more sent to slaughter at that time with no oversight. MY take!!
Emmanuel? I remember reading other articles regarding his "competency" or lack of.
All these GD pickups & suvs now used to drive to a grocery store or take the kiddies to school?
Yeah, easy to believe someone (many someones) really screwed up.
The EPA should be ushered into the current time of climate change & start correcting their leniency!!
Raises the point of an interesting comparison of the appointments of the youthful, eloquent and vigorous to those by the seasoned, slightly speech impaired and wise. As Wille said, "old and and treachery always overcomes youth and 'skill...'
It does indeed! I like Obama, but never ever again will I vote for a presidential candidate whose "resume" is a year registering voters: (the lowest level of "community organizer"), 2 years in the state legislature and 3 years in the Senate. That's about enough time to find out where the bathrooms are.
I voted for someone else in the primary. The trouble is, I was for several someone elses before Obama was nominated, beginning with Gore, and probably going through Clinton. Funny, I realized Gore didn't have a chance when, in Harvard Square one night I saw a Peugeot, a 504 I think. I am fond of Peugeots so I went to the car, which had two occupants. When they told me they were leading the Gore effort in Massachusetts, I thinkI realized Gore was not going anywhere, because the heads of the Gore effort were an LGBTQ couple, who drove a Peugeot!
Indeedy do. During that era, I was acquainted with a number of local CEOs because of the work I did. Never will forget the rants of theirs about Rahm Emmanuel. He would call them up for support of something or other and would scream at them for a good 5-10 minutes. What a way to gain love for your boss, party, and country. What a jerk.
I'm driving my pick-up off topic here and heading in reverse to jury duty some years ago. Veteran jurors will know there is always periods of dead time where we are sequestered because of some court room argument. This is when the reading takes place. I once found myself with a book, The Library Book (which I highly recommend), and found all the other jurors with their phones (unlocked from wherever they kept them). I came upon a word I did not know and because I'm a jerk I started poking the word on the page with my finger, but nothing happened. Finally another juror looked it up for me.
I do so enjoy clicking on a word to have the definition appear out of nowhere. Today's story was brought to you by the word FAKAKTE.
(And for the record I always though Rahn\m Emmanuel was an insufferable prick.)
Thanks TC! I've been aware of this, and it pisses me off no end. Among other things, the EPA has made the roads much more dangerous, especially for those of us in relatively small cars. 4,500 lb cars are now common, and due to the weight of batteries, many EV cars now weigh as much as 5,500 lbs, more than twice the weight of my '08 Civic (stick). Some EV pickups weigh north of 10,000 lbs.
When I was first driving, in the early '70s (got my license in January 1970), it was possible to see what traffic was doing a couple of hundred feet ahead, because you could literally look through the windows of the cars ahead of you. Now you can't see over (or through) the first SUV ahead.
And the damned pickups are so light that their drivers can't see small children in the road directly in front of them, and people hit by those trucks are much more likely to be killed or severely injured.
I can't help wondering if there's any way for a group of citizens to sue EPA to force them to change all this in such a way as to incentivize smaller, lighter cars and trucks.
That issue of added weight on the electrics is going to have its day because many parking structures and perhaps some bridges may fail under the new heavyweights.
There is no more regretful administration than Obama's. With the goddamned Emmanuel, they threw away the congressional majority in 2010, the most crucial electoral failure in modern US history, since we are still climbing out of that hole and may not make it (back when Democrats had 30 state legislatures) because they limited support to "sinnable" candidates rather than keep the 50 state plan, and tanked Obama for America just when the Republicans switched on the "Tea Party" With Howard Dean in charge, the Democratic majorities would have been defended, and think what could have been done the past 12 years.
Certainly a better candidate than Kerry turned out to be. I admit I was for Kerry, having met him at the GI antiwar movement demonstrations in DC back in 1971. But the Mark I 1970 model Kerry was far different from the Mark 5 2004 model.
I drive a half-ton pickup, and I am hauling/towing something somewhere every 3-4 days. I dislike the body style because the hood is so flipping high I can’t see what is on the ground 10’ in front of me.
I saw my first Tesla “truck” on the hoof (so to speak) yesterday. It is not only ugly, but it looks as though a Prius trunk can hold more than the “bed” of that “truck”. It looks like an escapee from a DeLorean factory.
Here in the heartland of all things auto the roadways are dominated by so many black SUVs and F-150s that you'd think the POTUS was coming into town with his black SUV entourage. Of course, Ford employees, retirees, and family and friends get price breaks which help them sell. And then there's my grandson's insistence that large vehicles are necessary because you never know when you might have to live in your vehicle.
Good lord, thank you for putting the albatross around the right neck. I had no idea. On Friday, I tried to park in a parking garage that had so many giant pickups that it was very hard to squeeze my way through. I hate them. I had no idea that Rahm was such a ball and chain for Obama until he left. Not soon enough, it seems.
I am as loathe to vote for a Repub these days as any Repub in Texas is willing to vote Dem. Sad state of affairs, placed solidly at the clay feel of Rupert Murdoch. Well, I’ll add Rush because he was the one my B-I-l quoted when giving me hell about Dem policies. The Rupert part of the equation took longer to become clear, but the purpose was the same - divide and conquer…
It seems to me the relentless message from those two and their compatriots was that white guys (gals added later) were the real victims in the social changes occuring with the civil rights and women's rights movements. They teed up the Tea Party that Dick Armey godfathered. That "gift of white victimhood" from Limbaugh and Murdoch is what allowed the wingers to accept the propaganda of two men they would normally have despised.
I'm sure there is a connection, but can't see it described here, why Americans would WANT to buy bigger cars just because emission standards were lower? Increase advertising pushing the biggies? Certainly the reduced standards couldn't have made them CHEAPER than compact cars for the consumer. I've always thought the turn to larger cars was a combination of a)cognitive dissonance after the gas crisis of the 70s (it can NEVER happen again!) and (b) many feeling that ALL cars were less polluting as time went on and c) fashion, combining to fill others with the need to drive something more approaching a tank once the roll got started.
My daughter is actually scared of going anywhere in my Honda Fit, though I've never had an accident. I will say that my already narrow street, basically one lane even when the parking was of smaller vehicle, is now much harder to navigate. I've had my mirror knocked off TWICE by people simply misjudging how much room there is to drive past. And any large truck (garbage truck, moving van) completely blocks the street if not at the curb, and mostly blocks it if simply drawn up next to the house.
I think it's mostly "C". I had a screenwriting partner who bought a Chevy Blazer 4WD, which cost extra for insurance. When I pointed out that he hadn't gone within 20 miles of any place he would need 4WD in the time I had known him, so why was he paying extra insurance for something he would never do, he replied, "Hey, it's cool."
The only biggish car I've even owned after the 56 Plymouth my dad gave me after college was a Honda Element. Tall, but not long. For a while I commuted twice a year between homes in Seattle and NC with two cats and a dog, so I needed the space.
Unless they've restarted them Honda stopped making them a long time ago. Hence my piece of luck. Despite my continental commute, I only had about 30K miles on it after 10 years. (I worked from home, so had no other commutes). And those were almost all highway miles. That plus the fact that they ARE good cars and were no longer available meant I got a trade-in on it almost as must as I'd paid for it new 10 years earlier. Made the Honda Fit much more affordable.
Dislike SUVs very much. Would never drive one. Sloppy handling and most are not particularly comfortable (Grand Waggoner being the exception that proves the rule, but still sloppy handling).
And now, those of us still driving smaller cars are at increased risk against those huge trucks & SUVs surrounding us and hurtling down the road.
Also let’s not forget another mistake Obama made when he appointed Larry Sommers as Director of the National Economic Council. As if Sommers hadn’t done enough damage in the Clinton administration, Obama gave him another shot at skewing economic advantage toward the top.
All of this underscores what a good president Joe Biden has been. He’s far more progressive and clear eyed than those two youngsters.
Yes indeed. When I am driving, and I am around an SUV or a suburban van, I always expect something stupid on the part of the driver and drive defensively, and too often I am not mistaken. (that and expecting Beemer drivers to be moronic entitled assholes)
I have found that first Audi's and now Tesla's are the biggest douchebag drivers these days
Yes. In California if the Beem,er driver is under 40, he (it's always "he") is still highly competitive, but the Tesla wins for either men or women.
Teslas are also wicked ugly.
TC, "Beemer" refers to the motorcycles, "Bimmer" to the cars.
Shows how much I know or care about them.
Tesla's are the Official Car of White Progressive Southern Californians, you can throw a stick down any street in Encino Park (where I live) and hit ten of the damn things. Elmo's Tinny toy.
Incidentally, go down to the last Car-toon, which demonstrates the proper use of "Beemer"
https://motorlegends.com/cartoons.php
I don't think this was always so. and, like Tom, the idea of offending owners of vehicles made by this wretched company is, if anything, an attractive proposition for me.
and yeah, Teslas are ugly. but my saying this doesn't mean I have any real knowledge of what's out there because I just can't bring myself to CARE. but then again, I've never bought more than one car. all the rest were hand-me-downs and I can't drive any more, so I REALLY don't care about them, except to the extent that I think those tank-like things are a menace. if a car gets me to where I'm going, that's all I can bring myself to care about. and it was ever thus.
Someone once referred to those huge and ugly beasts as "urban assault vehicles." That is an image that stuck in my head.
I hear you, David. I could never afford to care about anything beyond “What’s the monthly payment?” Although, the last time I bought a car, my son introduced me to another important criterion: Do you want to climb into it, or fall into it? I happily chose the latter. 😉😂
when I was working as a chauffeur for private people's cars in '83, I got to drive a whole variety of expensive cars. for NYC driving, a Lincoln has every other car beat, at least in terms of giving a less bumpy ride. the cars I hated the most were those fucking Beemers. they might be great on the Autobahn, but they're bumpy as hell. my sister, whom I despise, would be VERY unhappy if she couldn't lease those two fully-loaded 5 Series Beemers every two years. she uses hers to drive to lunch and (maybe) the gym. her husband (a sick fuck) is retired in Boca, so they can be near my useless nephew, who spent seven years in college to become a packager of funerals (as opposed to an actual funeral director, who has actual TASKS to perform). my nephew is a middleman. seven years of college, changing majors from, say Leisure to Resort Management to god knows what else.
with my various infirmities, just getting into one of those fucking tanks is a significant ordeal. I hate them.
It's the Land Rovers you have to watch in Sarasota for entitled driving. I had two of them stopped in a downtown street last night, one behind the other and I had to go around them.
Because they needed to stop and they're far too important to take the time to find parking; besides, they might have to walk 50 feet and we can't have that!
You'd think since they could afford a Land Rover that they could also afford parking, but nooo......
Voting for Democrats for the sole reason they're not Republicans has been my M.O. since 2016. Like you, I hate it. But I hate the GOP more, so...
Yep.
Indeed, let's not even talk about a 'business man's qualifications.' As a friend once, "...the difference between the private sector and the public sector is that in the private sector they can take a minimal 'problem,' and overwhelm it with resources, while in the public sector one is faced with enormous issues and given minuscule resources with which to solve it." The friend worked at a high level in each sector.
He was definitely right.
Naming Rahm Emmanuel as his Chief of Staff was one of Obama's bigger mistakes. President Biden has made much better choices for his staff and cabinet for the most part (not so fast, Merrick Garland).
That said, one reason SUV sales increased was a policy by the GWB administration that gave a $100,000 tax break for businesses that purchased a vehicle of 6,000 lbs. curb weight or greater. I did relief for a DVM who was driving a Ford Expedition, which his small animal practice absolutely didn't need, but nonetheless purchased for the considerable tax break. (Same DVM also had Fox News going in his office. We didn't talk politics for obvious reasons.)
At the same time the relatively paltry tax deduction for buying hybrid vehicles --$2,000--was raised only to $3,400 in 2005, and then only for vehicles purchased after Dec. 31st, 2005. Currently the maximum tax credit available for purchasing an electric vehicle is $7,500. With the new emissions standards being put in place by the Biden administration, a lot more is going to have to be done in this area to drive electric vehicle sales.
Indeed. This was not solely an Obama era fuckup, and frankly, they (the administration) and the EPA at the time thought they were being too cute by half in their regulation changes.
There are no clean hands, and I would expect Trump to fuck it up even more if he should win in November.
Yes, my accountant bought a truck for this reason. You know, alll those heavy flinancial floppy discs.
What if the Biden Administration brought back the $100,000 tax credit for large vehicles, except this time they would be electric? It might drive sales for these vehicles, which is the whole point of where they want to go with electrification. Better incentives for people to buy personal electric vehicles would be great as well.
Being a Californian I noticed the inclusion of larger and larger passenger vehicles on our highways before Obama. Back when we had good ol' Arnie as gov. He drove a "Hummer" so it seemed everyone in Sacramento had to buy one of those monstrosities.
An aside: While I admire the sleek lines of Lamborghinis and Ferraris my preferred cars to drive have always been small :VW beetle, VW bus, Honda Civic, Subaru, and finally Toyota Prius - I look on cars as something that can get me from here to there with the least amount of gas and the least maintenance.
In short, I don't see my vehicle as an extension of me.
When I was younger (under 30) I drove chevy's because way back in the 50's and early 60's American cars were well made and easy to maintain. Then they switched and became the worse cars on the road. I did my own maintenance in those days - which was why I switched to Japanese, easy to repair on my own. I continued until I married my second husband who objected to his wife having black greasy hands and smudges on her face.
I loved my 1975 Honda Civic. It met the environmental requirements without a catalytic converter, using the design for a 1937 light airplane engine. Also had a 5-speed stick. I spent $10 buying the telephone book-sized owner's manual, which was completely illustrated with pictures with arrow pointing at the thing you were going to work on for that part of the project; following the manual, I did a ring and valve job on it in 1979. And it got 40mpg in two and 50 on the road and four 6 footers could fit inside closely but comfortably. It was the best car I ever owned. And I had a 1969 VW before that that my wife loved so much she demanded taking it with her when we split up.
Your second husband didn't know how lucky he was! :-)
Mine was a 1977 I had to replace the whole motor - thank goodness for torque wrenches my upper arm strength is no match for a man's - but then I decided the reason it blew out was the toy radiator in it. So, I searched a junk yard and found a sunbeam full size radiator that fit the width of the Honda instead of the toy size it came with - the Honda lasted another two years. My best car (although I couldn't work on it myself) was the Prius - great mileage, very low maintenance. I gave my last to to my granddaughter when I quit driving in 2017. She still has it.
My first how-to manual was the Compleat Idiot for the VW bus - long story
You sound wonderful!
My favorite car that I've owned is my '08 Civic (5 speed stick). Drives like a sports car. The only thing I've done myself on it was to change the spark plugs. I used to do tuneups when you could still do that on cars.
I loved every one of my four-on-the-floors because they made me more engaged with the driving process, more alert, and ultimately a safer driver. It's all automatics now because drivers have to have their hands free to mess with their phones, their interior accoutrements, etc. Some of my cars aged out and died of all kinds of things except for tired transmissions.
I feel the same way about the second husband. (see my comment above yours)
Oh, geez! I remember when I was looking to buy a used Integra. I would call people who had 'em and ask why they were selling the car. This one woman told me she wanted something she could work on and she was buying an old truck for that purpose ('60s, I think; this was the early '90s). For some reason I crossed her Acura off the list, but then it occurred to me, as a single guy, that she sounded great--in large part because of her wanting to do her own repairs, but I'd lost the phone number. Damn!
I was more aware of what a disaster Salazar was because of my advocacy for Wild Horses. He and his buddies did more damage to the numbers of Wild Horses - far more sent to slaughter at that time with no oversight. MY take!!
Emmanuel? I remember reading other articles regarding his "competency" or lack of.
All these GD pickups & suvs now used to drive to a grocery store or take the kiddies to school?
Yeah, easy to believe someone (many someones) really screwed up.
The EPA should be ushered into the current time of climate change & start correcting their leniency!!
Raises the point of an interesting comparison of the appointments of the youthful, eloquent and vigorous to those by the seasoned, slightly speech impaired and wise. As Wille said, "old and and treachery always overcomes youth and 'skill...'
It does indeed! I like Obama, but never ever again will I vote for a presidential candidate whose "resume" is a year registering voters: (the lowest level of "community organizer"), 2 years in the state legislature and 3 years in the Senate. That's about enough time to find out where the bathrooms are.
I voted for someone else in the primary. The trouble is, I was for several someone elses before Obama was nominated, beginning with Gore, and probably going through Clinton. Funny, I realized Gore didn't have a chance when, in Harvard Square one night I saw a Peugeot, a 504 I think. I am fond of Peugeots so I went to the car, which had two occupants. When they told me they were leading the Gore effort in Massachusetts, I thinkI realized Gore was not going anywhere, because the heads of the Gore effort were an LGBTQ couple, who drove a Peugeot!
Indeedy do. During that era, I was acquainted with a number of local CEOs because of the work I did. Never will forget the rants of theirs about Rahm Emmanuel. He would call them up for support of something or other and would scream at them for a good 5-10 minutes. What a way to gain love for your boss, party, and country. What a jerk.
I'm driving my pick-up off topic here and heading in reverse to jury duty some years ago. Veteran jurors will know there is always periods of dead time where we are sequestered because of some court room argument. This is when the reading takes place. I once found myself with a book, The Library Book (which I highly recommend), and found all the other jurors with their phones (unlocked from wherever they kept them). I came upon a word I did not know and because I'm a jerk I started poking the word on the page with my finger, but nothing happened. Finally another juror looked it up for me.
I do so enjoy clicking on a word to have the definition appear out of nowhere. Today's story was brought to you by the word FAKAKTE.
(And for the record I always though Rahn\m Emmanuel was an insufferable prick.)
Thanks TC! I've been aware of this, and it pisses me off no end. Among other things, the EPA has made the roads much more dangerous, especially for those of us in relatively small cars. 4,500 lb cars are now common, and due to the weight of batteries, many EV cars now weigh as much as 5,500 lbs, more than twice the weight of my '08 Civic (stick). Some EV pickups weigh north of 10,000 lbs.
When I was first driving, in the early '70s (got my license in January 1970), it was possible to see what traffic was doing a couple of hundred feet ahead, because you could literally look through the windows of the cars ahead of you. Now you can't see over (or through) the first SUV ahead.
And the damned pickups are so light that their drivers can't see small children in the road directly in front of them, and people hit by those trucks are much more likely to be killed or severely injured.
I can't help wondering if there's any way for a group of citizens to sue EPA to force them to change all this in such a way as to incentivize smaller, lighter cars and trucks.
I wish!
I do too!
That issue of added weight on the electrics is going to have its day because many parking structures and perhaps some bridges may fail under the new heavyweights.
That and higher incidence of death and disability from crashes.
Damn. What might have been.
There is no more regretful administration than Obama's. With the goddamned Emmanuel, they threw away the congressional majority in 2010, the most crucial electoral failure in modern US history, since we are still climbing out of that hole and may not make it (back when Democrats had 30 state legislatures) because they limited support to "sinnable" candidates rather than keep the 50 state plan, and tanked Obama for America just when the Republicans switched on the "Tea Party" With Howard Dean in charge, the Democratic majorities would have been defended, and think what could have been done the past 12 years.
Dean would have been a fine POTUS. The cause of his exclusion was ridiculous.
Certainly a better candidate than Kerry turned out to be. I admit I was for Kerry, having met him at the GI antiwar movement demonstrations in DC back in 1971. But the Mark I 1970 model Kerry was far different from the Mark 5 2004 model.
I also voted for him even though I suspected the stuffings had already been knocked out of him by the evil swiftboaters.
I drive a half-ton pickup, and I am hauling/towing something somewhere every 3-4 days. I dislike the body style because the hood is so flipping high I can’t see what is on the ground 10’ in front of me.
I saw my first Tesla “truck” on the hoof (so to speak) yesterday. It is not only ugly, but it looks as though a Prius trunk can hold more than the “bed” of that “truck”. It looks like an escapee from a DeLorean factory.
Teslas are all ugly. I wouldn't want one in my driveway.
Here in the heartland of all things auto the roadways are dominated by so many black SUVs and F-150s that you'd think the POTUS was coming into town with his black SUV entourage. Of course, Ford employees, retirees, and family and friends get price breaks which help them sell. And then there's my grandson's insistence that large vehicles are necessary because you never know when you might have to live in your vehicle.
Good lord, thank you for putting the albatross around the right neck. I had no idea. On Friday, I tried to park in a parking garage that had so many giant pickups that it was very hard to squeeze my way through. I hate them. I had no idea that Rahm was such a ball and chain for Obama until he left. Not soon enough, it seems.
I am as loathe to vote for a Repub these days as any Repub in Texas is willing to vote Dem. Sad state of affairs, placed solidly at the clay feel of Rupert Murdoch. Well, I’ll add Rush because he was the one my B-I-l quoted when giving me hell about Dem policies. The Rupert part of the equation took longer to become clear, but the purpose was the same - divide and conquer…
It seems to me the relentless message from those two and their compatriots was that white guys (gals added later) were the real victims in the social changes occuring with the civil rights and women's rights movements. They teed up the Tea Party that Dick Armey godfathered. That "gift of white victimhood" from Limbaugh and Murdoch is what allowed the wingers to accept the propaganda of two men they would normally have despised.
Gift of white victim hood, yep. A gift and a curse. BTW, Dick Armey’s son ran for office recently and was defeated.
I'm sure there is a connection, but can't see it described here, why Americans would WANT to buy bigger cars just because emission standards were lower? Increase advertising pushing the biggies? Certainly the reduced standards couldn't have made them CHEAPER than compact cars for the consumer. I've always thought the turn to larger cars was a combination of a)cognitive dissonance after the gas crisis of the 70s (it can NEVER happen again!) and (b) many feeling that ALL cars were less polluting as time went on and c) fashion, combining to fill others with the need to drive something more approaching a tank once the roll got started.
My daughter is actually scared of going anywhere in my Honda Fit, though I've never had an accident. I will say that my already narrow street, basically one lane even when the parking was of smaller vehicle, is now much harder to navigate. I've had my mirror knocked off TWICE by people simply misjudging how much room there is to drive past. And any large truck (garbage truck, moving van) completely blocks the street if not at the curb, and mostly blocks it if simply drawn up next to the house.
I think it's mostly "C". I had a screenwriting partner who bought a Chevy Blazer 4WD, which cost extra for insurance. When I pointed out that he hadn't gone within 20 miles of any place he would need 4WD in the time I had known him, so why was he paying extra insurance for something he would never do, he replied, "Hey, it's cool."
The only biggish car I've even owned after the 56 Plymouth my dad gave me after college was a Honda Element. Tall, but not long. For a while I commuted twice a year between homes in Seattle and NC with two cats and a dog, so I needed the space.
The Element is a nice car. If I needed the space, I might go for that. (I have a Civic.)
Unless they've restarted them Honda stopped making them a long time ago. Hence my piece of luck. Despite my continental commute, I only had about 30K miles on it after 10 years. (I worked from home, so had no other commutes). And those were almost all highway miles. That plus the fact that they ARE good cars and were no longer available meant I got a trade-in on it almost as must as I'd paid for it new 10 years earlier. Made the Honda Fit much more affordable.
Oy vey on his reply
Dislike SUVs very much. Would never drive one. Sloppy handling and most are not particularly comfortable (Grand Waggoner being the exception that proves the rule, but still sloppy handling).