Dave Ross: Don’t criticize the man who’s giving you cheaper gas… if only for an hour
Sep 30, 2024, 8:13 AM
A customer pumps gas. (Photo: Marta Lavandier, The Associated Press)
(Photo: Marta Lavandier, The Associated Press)
The sponsor of the initiative campaign to repeal Washington’s carbon fees has been using a very clever tactic to win votes: the gas station takeover.
The Seattle Times reports that initiative sponsor Brian Heywood will go to a gas station and pay the owner around $1,000 for the right to run the station as he sees fit – for an hour.
And what he does is – he instantly lowers the pump prices! To demonstrate to surprised and delighted motorists how liberated they will feel if his initiative passes and the carbon fee disappears.
Like the Internet is always telling us – “It’s genius.”
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And yet, I see that some supporters of the carbon fees are claiming it’s unethical.
Really?
It seems to me if someone with a lot of money wants to spend it cutting gas prices for an hour, don’t CRITICIZE the guy – ask him to do it for TWO hours! Or all day! And ask him to adopt more gas stations!
This looks to me like a breakthrough in the whole discussion over tax fairness because it indicates that some of our wealthier neighbors MIGHT be willing to subsidize the highways WITH THEIR OWN MONEY! And if that’s the case, let’s not QUESTION their motives. Let’s ENCOURAGE them. And let’s be NICE to them.
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Because if you take a good look at the highway projects all around us – you know there’s no way we ordinary drivers can afford to build and maintain all that.
Here’s my prediction:
In a few years, cars will come equipped with toll chips standard. Those chips will document which roads you use and for how long. They’ll feed that into the AI brain which will know what it costs to build and maintain the EXACT roads you use, and what YOUR share of the cost should be – based on how much you use them.
And just like you get a customized bill for electricity and water, you’ll a customized bill for pavement. SO be nice to the rich people.
Because when THAT bill comes, we’ll ALL want to be friends with a rich person.
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