3 ms·

yes - wouldn't it be lovely to see governments uninvolved in these sorts of market decisions? If the government discounts cars by 25% - that's one thing. But

yes - wouldn't it be lovely to see governments uninvolved in these sorts of market decisions? If the government discounts cars by 25% - that's one thing. But let's not forget too that the greater part of the cost of running a car (the fuel) is mainly made up by tax on the fuel - it itself is an artificial price. Nothing about transport is reflective of the underlying reality. Its simply a governmental chess board, and could be shifted at any time by new legislation, eg if a tax is introduced to add 50% tax on the electricity used for cars. Regardless of the worthiness of this or that cause - its most interesting that none of this the free market in action. Its also licensing, government grants, taxes... in all honesty what is the difference between this and communism - where the government overtly controls the actions of the masses?

thelastgallon 3y ago
> yes - wouldn't it be lovely to see governments uninvolved in these sorts of market decisions? I agree. It should start with stopping all fossil fuel subsidies, 7 trillions/year and growing. And ethanol subsides, subsidizing ethanol production on 40m acres, just in US. And have fossil fuel companies pay for their own military to protect their 6 million assets and 16 million transportation flows[2]. It should be determined by the companies themselves (free market) if these are worth protection, instead of having Govts protect these worldwide. Solar, on the other hand, will not require there protections, it does not depend on the exploration, extraction, shipping, processing, burning, waste output of any fuel. Solar is distributed, on every roof and field, nearly impossible for anyone to invade and destroy. [1] Global Fossil Fuel Subsidies Reached $7 Trillion in 2022, an All-Time High: https://e360.yale.edu/digest/fossil-fuel-subsidies-2022 https://e360.yale.edu/digest/fossil-fuel-subsidies-2022 [2] https://github.com/Lkruitwagen/global-fossil-fuel-supply-chain https://github.com/Lkruitwagen/global-fossil-fuel-supply-cha...
- verisimi 3y ago
  Is there a story to your username? Do you think we're down to the last few gallons of oil or something..?
greenyoda 3y ago
> the greater part of the cost of running a car (the fuel) is mainly made up by tax on the fuel That may be true in Europe, but not here in the US. In the US, the federal gasoline tax is currently about $.18 per gallon, and state taxes range from about $.09 to $.58 per gallon[1] (with the median around $0.27). The average price of gasoline in the US has been around $3.00 per gallon[2] ($0.79 per liter), so the total tax would range from about 9% to 25% of the cost, depending on the state. The price of gas in most European countries is much higher, with Norway paying over twice the US average (US $7.87 / US gallon).[3] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_State... [2] https://www.finder.com/gas-prices https://www.finder.com/gas-prices [3] https://www.globalpetrolprices.com/gasoline_prices/Europe/ https://www.globalpetrolprices.com/gasoline_prices/Europe/

thelastgallon 3y ago

> yes - wouldn't it be lovely to see governments uninvolved in these sorts of market decisions? I agree. It should start with stopping all fossil fuel subsidies, 7 trillions/year and growing. And ethanol subsides, subsidizing ethanol production on 40m acres, just in US. And have fossil fuel companies pay for their own military to protect their 6 million assets and 16 million transportation flows[2]. It should be determined by the companies themselves (free market) if these are worth protection, instead of having Govts protect these worldwide. Solar, on the other hand, will not require there protections, it does not depend on the exploration, extraction, shipping, processing, burning, waste output of any fuel. Solar is distributed, on every roof and field, nearly impossible for anyone to invade and destroy. [1] Global Fossil Fuel Subsidies Reached $7 Trillion in 2022, an All-Time High: https://e360.yale.edu/digest/fossil-fuel-subsidies-2022 https://e360.yale.edu/digest/fossil-fuel-subsidies-2022 [2] https://github.com/Lkruitwagen/global-fossil-fuel-supply-chain https://github.com/Lkruitwagen/global-fossil-fuel-supply-cha...

verisimi 3y ago
Is there a story to your username? Do you think we're down to the last few gallons of oil or something..?

greenyoda 3y ago

> the greater part of the cost of running a car (the fuel) is mainly made up by tax on the fuel That may be true in Europe, but not here in the US. In the US, the federal gasoline tax is currently about $.18 per gallon, and state taxes range from about $.09 to $.58 per gallon[1] (with the median around $0.27). The average price of gasoline in the US has been around $3.00 per gallon[2] ($0.79 per liter), so the total tax would range from about 9% to 25% of the cost, depending on the state. The price of gas in most European countries is much higher, with Norway paying over twice the US average (US $7.87 / US gallon).[3] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_State... [2] https://www.finder.com/gas-prices https://www.finder.com/gas-prices [3] https://www.globalpetrolprices.com/gasoline_prices/Europe/ https://www.globalpetrolprices.com/gasoline_prices/Europe/