
 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Sept. 14, 2005
/ 10 Elul, 5765
Driving while economizing
By
Debra J. Saunders
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
SAN FRANCISCO I push the pedal to the metal as I challenge
another journalist driving down Folsom Street to see who can make it back to
the Sierra Club convention first. She's driving an SUV, a 2006 Mercury
Mariner with a gasoline/electric hybrid engine. I'm in Ford Focus with a
hydrogen fuel cell. There's no provocative "vroom, vroom" when I jam the
accelerator at a standstill. I have to lower the windows to issue my dare.
I win.
"Awesome driving," says Sierra Club spokesman Eric Antebi from
the backseat, as I pull into the staging area. He's already tickled at the
odd convergence of Ford, Honda and Toyota at the Sierra Club's
eco-convention. So he's happy to humor a Republican global-warming agnostic
with a lead foot.
Detroit has joined Japan in recognizing a market for more
fuel-efficient cars, as all automakers are looking now at putting hybrid
engines in bigger cars.
Later, I drive the Mariner and find that what the folks at Ford
say is true: The hybrid Mariner may cradle a four-cylinder engine, but, as
the show-floor crew intoned, "with the performance of a six-cylinder." The
Mariner hybrid boasts 33 miles per gallon in the city/29 mpg on the
highway a big boost from 22 city/26 highway stats for the all-gas
version.
Finally, Ford and its divisions are looking to improve fuel
economy.
Except now talk about a bad timing the Bush administration
is poised to poison the well. It has proposed questionable changes in
federal fuel-efficiency standards for SUVs and light trucks.
I should note, the Bushies have not proposed changes in CAFE
(corporate average fuel economy) standards for sedans, which would remain at
27.5 mpg. Also, Bush already has raised standards for SUVs, light trucks and
minivans the 2005 standard is 21.2 mpg for light trucks; it will rise to
22.2 mpg in 2007.
Now, alas, the Bush administration is pushing for what it calls
tougher standards for SUVs, with different standards based on size. The
bigger the SUV, the more gas the Bushies will allow it to guzzle. Under this
plan, the fuel-economy standard for the smallest SUV models would be 28.4
mpg by 2011, while the CAFE standard for the largest vehicles like a
Dodge Ram truck would be 21.3 mpg in 2011. For now, Team Bush would
exempt Hummers and other monster trucks that weigh more than 8,500 pounds,
because they are so big they are considered commercial vehicles.
The enviros are suspicious and rightly so because the new
rules would enable the Big Three to get around the new Bush standards simply
by making bigger cars. Thus Dan Becker, the Sierra Club's global-warming
czar, dismissed the new Bush plan as "allowing the auto companies to decide
whether we save gas or not."
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., was one of five U.S. senators
who responded by asking Bush to end the "SUV loophole" and make all vehicles
meet the 27.5 mpg fleet average rather than create a more elaborate SUV
loophole. While Detroit complains about niggling federal regulations,
closing the loophole would allow car manufacturers to decide how best to
meet a universal standard. Selling more hybrid models might well be the
ticket. The technology exists. The cost is reasonable and getting better.
One problem, one of the car guys tells me: The public has to
want fuel-efficient cars. We are standing on Howard Street, watching SUVs
dominate the streets of San Francisco. If consumers in this haven of the
left choose to buy gas-guzzlers and refuse to exercise personal
responsibility when they shop for wheels, they have little business blaming
Bush for not being strong enough on the environment.
Bush should end the SUV loophole, if only to increase America's
energy independence and air quality.
And Dubya should end the pricey program that he claims will
innovate America out of a future energy pickle. Specifically, in the wake of
Hurricane Katrina, with federal spending about to go boom, Bush should pull
the plug on his Freedom CAR CAR stands for Cooperative Automotive
Research program, which is supposed to develop hydrogen fuel-cell cars
after the taxpayers plunk down up to $2 billion on research.
I drove a hydrogen car Friday and had a fun ride. But with a
price tag of $1 million to $2 million per fuel-cell car, it's pie-in-the-sky
stuff. A Ford executive admitted it would be "a decade or two" before
hydrogen fuel-cell cars are commercially viable.
Sorry, but one or two decades is what they always say. Why not?
In a decade, there will be another president who can propose a different
program.
Meanwhile, taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill for fuel
savings that may or may not happen ever. As the Sierra Club's Antebi noted,
hybrid "technology is on the shelf and it can be applied to almost any car."
Now.
As gasoline pushes $3 per gallon, Bush would be doing Detroit a
favor. He'd even be helping out gas-guzzlers. Then again, these days they
need a break.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment JWR contributor Debra J. Saunders's column by clicking here.
Debra J. Saunders Archives
© 2005, Creators Syndicate
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Tony Blankley
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Alan Douglas
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
Marybeth Hicks
David Horowitz
Jeff Jacoby
Renee James
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Ben Wattenberg
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

Mr. Know-It-All
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
Tech Maven
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|