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You've heard of the Cars for Clunkers incentive program that the White House has instituted, right? It's aim is to get us into newer, more fuel-efficient vehicles. The end result is supposed to be saving the planet. Getting gas-guzzlers off the highways and replacing them with small, hybrid cars sounds great, right?
But how are they accomplishing this?
Simple. Blow up the engines of the trade-ins. Crush them. Send them to China.
Huh?
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. That mantra has been fed to us for a couple of decades now. So how does Cars for Clunkers line up with that? Frankly, it doesn't.
Here, in a nutshell, is how the program works. Joe American takes his "clunker" down to his local participating car dealer to trade it in for an approved new vehicle. Joe gets a $3,500-4,500 discount on his purchase. Now Mr. Dealer has a clunker he can resell, right? Wrong. In order to be reimbursed for the discount, he must render the vehicle unusable. He must follow specific instructions laid out by the government to blow up the engine so that it cannot be used again. When he can prove its worthlessness, Mr. Dealer will get paid.
What part of this is good for the environment? It's definitely not reused or recycled!
The White House claims this is boosting the economy. I'm not an economist, but I am fairly bright, and I can't see how this is helping the economy. The $3,500-4,500 is provided by the government. Where does the government get any of their money? Taxes. So all taxpayers are paying for a few people to get a discount on their new car.
What part of paying more taxes is good for the economy? (This is a concept that progressives can't wrap their brains around.)
The Cars for Clunkers program used up its budget in 4 days. FOUR DAYS. So now the White House wants to pour a couple billion more into it. Where will they get a couple billion more? You, if you're a taxpayer.
I don't know about you, but I don't need a smaller car. I also don't need a bigger tax bill.
If you're concerned about the environment, you should be concerned about this program.
To sum up: We, the taxpayers are purchasing used cars for the sole purpose of blowing them up. I'm not green, but this kind of waste even concerns me.
Read here for another green article, or here to be reminded of your part in government.
