A Forum for Grinches and Ho-Ho-Hoes

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
Think of tolls as the libertarian's gas tax. With tolls, you can impose a rationally-based, per-mile user fee, without the coercive "buy an efficient car" impact of the gas tax.

Since we all should be able to agree that there are externalities associated with the consumption of gas (defense spending, etc.), surely even most libertarians should be able to agree that it makes sense to discourage gas consumption.

I tend to do more driving on city streets than interstates, so a switch from the gas tax to tolls would presumably benefit me. But I find stopping at tolls so irritating that I would rather pay at the pump.

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

Originally posted by Spanky
I will go along with that as long as we tax those stupid Harleys 10 dollars a mile for all the noize they make.

2.

Plus the asswipes who pull up next to you with the bass pounding loud enough to sterilize frogs at 100 yards. The only comfort there is their hearing is going, going, gone.

[Spanky]

Originally posted by ltl/fb
That's their property and they can use it however they like, dammit.

Is it OK if I exercise my property rights by buying a Humvee and running over them all on the highway. I would even be willing to pay a usage tax for every Harley I run over, for the extra burden on the sanitation department for the cleanup.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Since we all should be able to agree that there are externalities associated with the consumption of gas (defense spending, etc.), surely even most libertarians should be able to agree that it makes sense to discourage gas consumption.

I tend to do more driving on city streets than interstates, so a switch from the gas tax to tolls would presumably benefit me. But I find stopping at tolls so irritating that I would rather pay at the pump.

Look at gas milages that were puffed during Carter after the "gas crisis." The milages were 30-40 MPG. Now with the advanced technology of hybrids we get? That's right. The advanced tech let's us have bigger cars is all.

[Spanky]

Originally posted by Sexual Harassment Panda
2.

Plus the asswipes who pull up next to you with the bass pounding loud enough to sterilize frogs at 100 yards. The only comfort there is their hearing is going, going, gone.

Amen to that. You know I heard all the amphibians were disappearing. Now I know why. Those poor frogs. Having you sex life ruined by Tupac.

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Look at gas milages that were puffed during Carter after the "gas crisis." The milages were 30-40 MPG. Now with the advanced technology of hybrids we get? That's right. The advanced tech let's us have bigger cars is all.

Amazing what happens when you don't try.

[Spanky]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Look at gas milages that were puffed during Carter after the "gas crisis." The milages were 30-40 MPG. Now with the advanced technology of hybrids we get? That's right. The advanced tech let's us have bigger cars is all.

The market in this country (and the rest of the world for that matter) is severly distorted by all the pollution externalities. You have to pay to have your trash disposed of but you can dump all this stuff in the air and not have to pay for it. Its crazy. There should be some cost associated with dumping all this stuff into the public domain. If people don't want to pay for it they can just put big ballons on the end of their exhaust pipes, and take that crap back to their house - and keep it indoors.

[ltl/fb]

Originally posted by Spanky
The market in this country (and the rest of the world for that matter) is severly distorted by all the pollution externalities. You have to pay to have your trash disposed of but you can dump all this stuff in the air and not have to pay for it. Its crazy. There should be some cost associated with dumping all this stuff into the public domain. If people don't want to pay for it they can just put big ballons on the end of their exhaust pipes, and take that crap back to their house - and keep it indoors.

Um, isn't this the gas tax? Tax on the pollution?

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Spanky
The market in this country (and the rest of the world for that matter) is severly distorted by all the pollution externalities. You have to pay to have your trash disposed of but you can dump all this stuff in the air and not have to pay for it. Its crazy. There should be some cost associated with dumping all this stuff into the public domain. If people don't want to pay for it they can just put big ballons on the end of their exhaust pipes, and take that crap back to their house - and keep it indoors.

When I was at the PTO, a guy invented this propulsion system where a motor turned this vane and the vane whipped ball bearings at a belt. The belt was fixed to a vehicle frame, and so the vehicle would go! The vane was supposed to catch the ball after it hit the belt and reuse it. It would have been pollutionless cars and fast. He couldn't work out the "catch part." (it would violate thermo laws if he did).

But anyway he said" 20 years from now you'll all be driving these." See if that had proven true there'd be ball bearings- big-assed ones- flowing out the back of cars and you'd need to go fill up with them at "BB stations,"

Roads would be full of these used ones and it would be a real mess, and slippery and just really unpleasant to move through. Sort of like the PB when SS is posting lots.

[Spanky]

Originally posted by ltl/fb
Um, isn't this the gas tax? Tax on the pollution?

Sort of but not really. It does not take into account how efficiently the gas is used. Different engines put out a different amount of exhaust per gallon. In addition, a lot of other products produce pollution and have no tax on them.

[Spanky]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
When I was at the PTO, a guy invented this propulsion system where a motor turned this vane and the vane whipped ball bearings at a belt. The belt was fixed to a vehicle frame, and so the vehicle would go! The vane was supposed to catch the ball after it hit the belt and reuse it. It would have been pollutionless cars and fast. He couldn't work out the "catch part." (it would violate thermo laws if he did).

But anyway he said" 20 years from now you'll all be driving these." See if that had proven true there'd be ball bearings- big-assed ones- flowing out the back of cars and you'd need to go fill up with them at "BB stations,"

Roads would be full of these used ones and it would be a real mess, and slippery and just really unpleasant to move through. Sort of like the PB when SS is posting lots.

Yes but at least I wouldn't have to breath them.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
When I was at the PTO, a guy invented this propulsion system where a motor turned this vane and the vane whipped ball bearings at a belt. The belt was fixed to a vehicle frame, and so the vehicle would go! The vane was supposed to catch the ball after it hit the belt and reuse it. It would have been pollutionless cars and fast. He couldn't work out the "catch part." (it would violate thermo laws if he did).

But anyway he said" 20 years from now you'll all be driving these." See if that had proven true there'd be ball bearings- big-assed ones- flowing out the back of cars and you'd need to go fill up with them at "BB stations,"

Roads would be full of these used ones and it would be a real mess, and slippery and just really unpleasant to move through. Sort of like the PB when SS is posting lots.

Following on all of their success with the federal budget, I understand that Congressional Republicans are planning to amend the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Spanky
Yes - I see a few problems - but I just want to get rid of the loud Harleys. I love the idea, in theory, of a noise tax.

I would like to heavily tax rap groups, as they annoy me.

And butterless popcorn. We should tax the hell out of that.

If these effin' people want to engage in shit that doesn't please me, make 'em pay, I say! I have rights, too!

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Following on all of their success with the federal budget, I understand that Congressional Republicans are planning to amend the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

You mean the "If we all pray hard enough this should work..." rule. Yet I've read that one.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Following on all of their success with the federal budget, I understand that Congressional Republicans are planning to amend the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

They took that lesson from Kerry, who tried to overturn the First Law with his "tax the rich" philosophy.