“Republicans turned to a Delaware businesswoman, Sher Valenzuela, who is also a candidate for lieutenant governor. Valenzuela and her husband built an upholstery business that now employs dozens of workers. “Valenzuela presumably was picked to speak so that she could thunder at Obama for disdaining capitalism,” with his assertion that every business is built on foundations laid by others. “Oops. It turns out that Valenzuela relied not only on her entrepreneurial skills but also on — yes, government help. Media Matters for America [has] documented $2 million in loans from the Small Business Administration for Valenzuela’s company, plus $15 million in government contracts (mostly noncompetitive ones). “In a presentation earlier this year, Valenzuela described government assistance as an entrepreneur’s “biggest ‘secret weapon.’ ” " Rugged individualism at work. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/29/opinion/kristof-the-secret-weapon-all-of-us.html?ref=nicholasdkristof
“Make “gas mileage” irrelevant, time to get rid of that relic called the internal combustion engine, full electric now.”-For most, that’s not an option yet. While I relish the idea of electric cars for all, there are drawbacks for a variety of drivers. People living in rural areas need more than 40 miles to commute (I used to put a minimum of 120 on my truck a day), people who use their vehicles for hauling more than just themselves need trucks that can’t benefit from the electric’s light weight, and I’ve yet to see an electric in my price range (if there was one, I’d have it). So lets continue to work on it, and bring “full electric” closer, sooner.
I LIKE Big Oil. Big Oil makes this stuff that you can run a Dodge Hemi on. No crazy plugs, no waiting six hours to go to the supermarket, no electrical fires, no praying that you’ll make it up a hill, or through a blizzard. Just put some in your tank, and WHAM! — You’re at work!
Here is a long read, but good, on the electric auto in Europe, where the autos have the governments behind them instead of the oil companies pushing against them as here.
Sorry, my site didn’t come through. Drive the autobahn some day and tell me what you think. about the common folk having cars. There the middle income is expanding rather than shrinking as here in the US.http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1960423,00.html
144 Cents said, “If the loan is paid off and the contract requirements are met, then Valenzuela owes the government NOTHING.”
Doughfoot’s point was that she ran to the gubbermint (the same one you’re trying to take down) for start-up money and business. No gubbermint = no riches. Not hard to understand. BTW She owes the gubbermint interest for the loan and taxes for operating in American Soil.
“Make “gas mileage” irrelevant, time to get rid of that relic called the internal combustion engine, full electric now.”
I agree with you, except for the last word – “now.” The juxtaposition with Armstrong is appropriate. For the better part of a decade, we deliberately trained our collective sights (and knowledge, and resources) towards the goal of putting a man on the moon, and we did it. Of course, when we made it all we really got were the bragging rights and a few interesting rocks, but still we did it in the face of people shouting “You’ll never make it.” What if we made a concerted and coordinated effort to make fossil fuels irrelevant, on a national scale? If it took 10 years or 20 years or 50 years it would still be worth it, no matter how many false starts and dead ends we encounter along the way (and at the very least, like the Moon Project we’d probably get all sorts of nifty spin-off technology).
Whoever figures out how to make a nation COMPLETELY oil-free is not only going to earn the bragging rights but also the spoils (patents, manufacturing, etc.), and there’s no reason it couldn’t or shouldn’t be us. And more importantly, it’ll free us from being held hostage by a bunch of backwards-looking religious fanatics in weird hats who hate American freedom and want to destroy our way of life (by which of course I mean “Texans”).
Fairportfan2: Of 25 sources of energy, three are hypothetical, three are fossil, which leaves 19 which can be used to generate electricity, if not power a vehicle directly.
Justice 22: I too favor electric cars and have one that is half electric now. However, I am also out in the boonies and beyond the electric car’s range. Denmark is small, flat, and have good mass transit. That is a major advantage.
Night Gaunt: I have a picture of it. It was shown at a world’s fair in Cairo and heated a boiler for a steam engine that ran the press. Now we have photovoltaics which can power one directly.
ahab: For that matter, Lovins has grown bananas in a passive (nothing but solar) greenhouse in the ski resort part of New Mexico.
Murphy224 over 11 years ago
The free market seemed to do fine with the Prius. If there’s a market, it will be built.
Editer63 over 11 years ago
That “free market” included big tax credits.
Doughfoot over 11 years ago
“Republicans turned to a Delaware businesswoman, Sher Valenzuela, who is also a candidate for lieutenant governor. Valenzuela and her husband built an upholstery business that now employs dozens of workers. “Valenzuela presumably was picked to speak so that she could thunder at Obama for disdaining capitalism,” with his assertion that every business is built on foundations laid by others. “Oops. It turns out that Valenzuela relied not only on her entrepreneurial skills but also on — yes, government help. Media Matters for America [has] documented $2 million in loans from the Small Business Administration for Valenzuela’s company, plus $15 million in government contracts (mostly noncompetitive ones). “In a presentation earlier this year, Valenzuela described government assistance as an entrepreneur’s “biggest ‘secret weapon.’ ” " Rugged individualism at work. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/29/opinion/kristof-the-secret-weapon-all-of-us.html?ref=nicholasdkristof
CasualBrowser over 11 years ago
“Make “gas mileage” irrelevant, time to get rid of that relic called the internal combustion engine, full electric now.”-For most, that’s not an option yet. While I relish the idea of electric cars for all, there are drawbacks for a variety of drivers. People living in rural areas need more than 40 miles to commute (I used to put a minimum of 120 on my truck a day), people who use their vehicles for hauling more than just themselves need trucks that can’t benefit from the electric’s light weight, and I’ve yet to see an electric in my price range (if there was one, I’d have it). So lets continue to work on it, and bring “full electric” closer, sooner.
Justice22 over 11 years ago
Check out what the Danes have done with electric cars..
144 Cent over 11 years ago
I LIKE Big Oil. Big Oil makes this stuff that you can run a Dodge Hemi on. No crazy plugs, no waiting six hours to go to the supermarket, no electrical fires, no praying that you’ll make it up a hill, or through a blizzard. Just put some in your tank, and WHAM! — You’re at work!
Justice22 over 11 years ago
Here is a long read, but good, on the electric auto in Europe, where the autos have the governments behind them instead of the oil companies pushing against them as here.
Justice22 over 11 years ago
Sorry, my site didn’t come through. Drive the autobahn some day and tell me what you think. about the common folk having cars. There the middle income is expanding rather than shrinking as here in the US.http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1960423,00.html
d_legendary1 over 11 years ago
@Chump Change
144 Cents said, “If the loan is paid off and the contract requirements are met, then Valenzuela owes the government NOTHING.”
Doughfoot’s point was that she ran to the gubbermint (the same one you’re trying to take down) for start-up money and business. No gubbermint = no riches. Not hard to understand. BTW She owes the gubbermint interest for the loan and taxes for operating in American Soil.
joe vignone over 11 years ago
BUILD IT!
fritzoid Premium Member over 11 years ago
“Make “gas mileage” irrelevant, time to get rid of that relic called the internal combustion engine, full electric now.”
I agree with you, except for the last word – “now.” The juxtaposition with Armstrong is appropriate. For the better part of a decade, we deliberately trained our collective sights (and knowledge, and resources) towards the goal of putting a man on the moon, and we did it. Of course, when we made it all we really got were the bragging rights and a few interesting rocks, but still we did it in the face of people shouting “You’ll never make it.” What if we made a concerted and coordinated effort to make fossil fuels irrelevant, on a national scale? If it took 10 years or 20 years or 50 years it would still be worth it, no matter how many false starts and dead ends we encounter along the way (and at the very least, like the Moon Project we’d probably get all sorts of nifty spin-off technology).
Whoever figures out how to make a nation COMPLETELY oil-free is not only going to earn the bragging rights but also the spoils (patents, manufacturing, etc.), and there’s no reason it couldn’t or shouldn’t be us. And more importantly, it’ll free us from being held hostage by a bunch of backwards-looking religious fanatics in weird hats who hate American freedom and want to destroy our way of life (by which of course I mean “Texans”).
hippogriff over 11 years ago
Fairportfan2: Of 25 sources of energy, three are hypothetical, three are fossil, which leaves 19 which can be used to generate electricity, if not power a vehicle directly.
Justice 22: I too favor electric cars and have one that is half electric now. However, I am also out in the boonies and beyond the electric car’s range. Denmark is small, flat, and have good mass transit. That is a major advantage.
Night Gaunt: I have a picture of it. It was shown at a world’s fair in Cairo and heated a boiler for a steam engine that ran the press. Now we have photovoltaics which can power one directly.
ahab: For that matter, Lovins has grown bananas in a passive (nothing but solar) greenhouse in the ski resort part of New Mexico.