Pity for the Impotent Dick

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

In my personal opinion, oil costing what it should actually cost would motivate fast-tracking alternative energy sources, which would, I'm hopeful, be better in the long run for our health and environment. I was citing this as an example of liberals being perfectly happy to shrink government- in this case, ending oil and coal subsidites, which would end oil and coal's monopoly on our energy policies. I am presuming, then, that you are content to support the oil industry with your tax dollars?

Again, you need to provide backup if you are going to throw out stats like "1/3 of Americans would starve to death." Please post your sources for those statistics, as I'm sure you wouldn't just make it up, because that would be being very ill-informed, right?

You do understand that subsidies are not unique to the USA right? I dont want to insult you but your thinking is so impractical that I really have a hard time responding because you just seem unaware of how the world works. Subsidies often are granted to keep the price of goods and services static so that the companies which are individual or unique providers can compete with foreign competitors and/or keep important goods and services being produced. You do understand that some of our biggest companies like Boeing are competing with Airbus which is supported by the govt's of the EU which have a lot more money than an individual company. You do understand that many airlines in this country would be out of business if not for govt subsidies. And your idea of letting gas go to $13 a gallon (which I believe is a bad number based upon false pretenses) would pretty much force most business to go out of business. That Farmers would not be able to transport food to market because it would cost too much to get it there. That the average citizen would be destitute because the unemployment rate would go through the roof when businesses failed and they were laid off. That the few that survived would have to take pay cuts in order to stay employed at the same time the costs of goods and services skyrocketed making them much worse off. And the list would go on.

And what do you suppose we do with our cars and homes? Just sell your car for scrap iron? Simply convert to solar panels even if you live in an urban area? It is just not realistic.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

You do understand that subsidies are not unique to the USA right? I dont want to insult you but your thinking is so impractical that I really have a hard time responding because you just seem unaware of how the world works. Subsidies often are granted to keep the price of goods and services static so that the companies which are individual or unique providers can compete with foreign competitors and/or keep important goods and services being produced. You do understand that some of our biggest companies like Boeing are competing with Airbus which is supported by the govt's of the EU which have a lot more money than an individual company. You do understand that many airlines in this country would be out of business if not for govt subsidies. And your idea of letting gas go to $13 a gallon (which I believe is a bad number based upon false pretenses) would pretty much force most business to go out of business. That Farmers would not be able to transport food to market because it would cost too much to get it there. That the average citizen would be destitute because the unemployment rate would go through the roof when businesses failed and they were laid off. That the few that survived would have to take pay cuts in order to stay employed at the same time the costs of goods and services skyrocketed making them much worse off. And the list would go on.

And what do you suppose we do with our cars and homes? Just sell your car for scrap iron? Simply convert to solar panels even if you live in an urban area? It is just not realistic.

iran subsidizes their gasoline--citizens there only pay about 38 cents a gallon--but now of course you have the rioting going on, as the country no longer wants to pay out the tremendous amounts of money required to keep the price that low, so they have limited everyone there to around 26 gallons a month.