Welfare For The Rich

Are you in the market for a new car this year? I thought not. But if you are Mr. Obama has a deal for you.

Los Angeles (myFOXla.com) - President Barack Obama announced today in Pomona that his administration will help put a million plug-in hybrids on the road by 2015 and offer $7,500 tax credits for people who buy them.

Obama, appearing at Southern California Edison's electrical vehicle technical center, where next-generation car batteries are being made, said the incentives are part of an overall plan to upgrade the nation's energy infrastructure.

He said the country has not made independence from foreign oil a priority, noting that the 1908 Model T Ford got better mileage than a typical sport utility vehicle in 2008.

"So the problem isn't a lack of technology," he said. "You're producing the technology right here. The problem is that, for decades, we have avoided doing what must be done as a nation to turn challenge into opportunity.

And what is the challenge? Producing a hybrid at a low enough cost so that you at least break even on the gasoline saved vs. the added cost. And what will a $7,500 subsidy for those who can afford a new car do? It will maintain the price differential between a hybrid and a conventional vehicle at $7,500. Now this might be viable if it was something like $7,500 the first year and $6,500 the second, etc. down to zero. The same thing we should be doing to wind subsidies. However, I see nothing like that in the plan.

There is in the plan $1 billion dollars (only a billion? is that significant?) to upgrade the electrical grid. If that goes into R & D to develop components for HVDC transmission, or carbon nanotube conductors and high power transistors, or the Smart Grid initiative we might actually get something useful for the money. OTOH if they are just going out and buying stuff it will not help much at all.

Why hasn't Polywell Fusion been fully funded by the Obama administration?

Bussard's IEC Fusion Technology (Polywell Fusion) Explained

Cross Posted at Classical Values