Since
the 1970s, it has been the quest of the United States to achieve
energy-independence. To that end, President Jimmy Carter established the Department of Energy
so that the federal government could write checks to companies like
Solyndra -- companies that generate not power, but rather questions.
More recently, the grail quest has inspired the EPA and the Department
of Transportation (DoT) to wave a magic wand and mandate corporate
average fuel economy standards (CAFÉ standards) for vehicles at 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025 -- a mileage standard that not even a Harley-Davison motorcycle can achieve.
The plan as unveiled by the EPA and DoT is to have 11 million electric cars on the road by 2025. The thought is that with 11 million "zero emission" cars on the road, the average efficiency will rise. It probably comes as no surprise that there are major problems with this government pie-in-the-sky plan.
Let's start with the facts. Recently the EPA was caught trying to suppress a report that the U.S. power grid might not be able to withstand the new "pollution" standards without triggering rolling blackouts. What the report does not mention is that adding a major demand of 11 million new electrical appliances, called electric cars, will very likely collapse the grid. But not to worry: no one wants to buy the "premier" electric vehicle, the Chevy Volt, since it is prone to spontaneous combustion. But even before the disturbing fire hazard was discovered, the New York Times accurately guessed that "the Volt will likely be too expensive to be commercially successful in the short term[.]"
The plan as unveiled by the EPA and DoT is to have 11 million electric cars on the road by 2025. The thought is that with 11 million "zero emission" cars on the road, the average efficiency will rise. It probably comes as no surprise that there are major problems with this government pie-in-the-sky plan.
Let's start with the facts. Recently the EPA was caught trying to suppress a report that the U.S. power grid might not be able to withstand the new "pollution" standards without triggering rolling blackouts. What the report does not mention is that adding a major demand of 11 million new electrical appliances, called electric cars, will very likely collapse the grid. But not to worry: no one wants to buy the "premier" electric vehicle, the Chevy Volt, since it is prone to spontaneous combustion. But even before the disturbing fire hazard was discovered, the New York Times accurately guessed that "the Volt will likely be too expensive to be commercially successful in the short term[.]"
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