Six Words about fuel economy

you might have had a valid point however your sucky attitude precludes one from any empathy.

You are a real man. Don't need no stinkin' cd player, airbag, or none of those fancy schmancy sissy boy things.

I don't want empathy I want agreement - or to gain some understanding that would make paying people to tell me what to do and give me BS reasons why I should like it something I could live with if such a thing is possible. Or to take on whoever thinks my car is their business in open debate.

As for my attitude - it is what it is - I don't see a pleasant side to this and I'm not going to lie back and think of England while my capability is passed around among politicians from both parties like a two-dollar-whore. My language isn't academic but it's not wanton either - if I were to sugar coat it any further my sincerity would be at risk.

That said, please forgive me if I squared your vibe. I don't want to displease anyone who is not of a strongly dissenting opinion.

life in a society has trade-offs. Ralph Nader wrote "Unsafe at any Speed" about 40 years ago and that single book changed the way cars are made or imported into this nation. Pissed me off really because the car he wrote about was the Corvair and I had my heart set on a Corvair Monza. But in reality the car was unsafe, the end result was that many cars were no longer available such as many fine european sports cars. There is currently a law set to go into effect that essentially bans "normal" light bulbs mandating low wattage light bulbs. This obviously reduces my "freedom" to buy the light bulb of my choice etc etc etc. Yes we citizens continually lose individual rights sometimes for good reasons sometimes just out of knee-jerk reactionary politics. However, the good of society surpasses individual preferences and liberties very often as society becomes more and more complex. I drive a Porsche 911 Carrara that has zero air bags but as long as I meet emission standards, have good brakes and safety conditions I may continue to drive my car. Rules and regulations may very well be the bane of individual freedoms and many of them are no doubt inane they are all a part of the life we live in the society we live in.

There's only two ways I know of to increase fuel economy - either reduce the weight of the car, add hybrid technology, or some combination of the two.

Yes, hybrid technology will save the average motorist somewhere around the $700 to $1,000 per year posted by hanno, but adds somewhere around $10,000 to $15,000 to the sticker price of the car. Hardly an attractive economic investment at today's gas prices.

I have no problem reducing the weight of the car, just as long as everyone understands and accepts the additional fatalities this will result in.

I wish I had some reason to believe our Masters in Washington understood these points when they voted on their new requirements, but I just can't see many of our lawmakers having much experience with the real world.

Here's what I'm not getting about the thread. Nobody's going to force you to buy a brand new car. You can always drive older cars, as long as they pass inspection.

are you waiting for someone to put a gun to your head to cry foul?