We are seeing a renaissance in upcoming clean vehicle, high MPG gasoline and electric car offerings by all major auto manufacturer. But there are risks: Market acceptance is gradual and there is open hostility from some quarters. Here’s a thoughtful piece on the emerging political climate by Julia Pyper of Greentech Media.
In her analysis she makes the case that, though there may be hostility in the new Federal government (and certainly from Big Oil), the new administration might create unexpected room for better future CAFE standards, because of listening to inputs from multiple stakeholders.
Maybe…
Like much else with this new government, we don’t yet know how the chaos will settle out. We do know there will be pushback from every direction, from blue state governments, labor, green advocates, and Detroit and Big Oil, as well as foreign manufacturers laying in the weeds to grab market share if Detroit stumbles or becomes too reliant on regulatory relief for long-term competitiveness in the emerging market… (sort of like a five or six direction tug of war, if there were such a thing).
One thing that strikes me about this analysis (and the current national discussion stressing jobs and costs to Detroit) is there isn’t much voice given to car owners, especially the high cash savings us car owners will bank not having to buy so much darn gasoline!
Sending less money to Big Oil may hurt Big Oil, but boy: High-MPG gasoline cars and light trucks or electric vehicles sure put a LOT of cash back into working-family wallets… Such an ROI, widely disseminated, could/should/would influence the national discussion.
Maybe… maybe bigly. Let’s see where this goes.
(Since transportation is tied with electricity generation as the biggest two sources of greenhouse gases, high fuel-economy vehicles are a very, very big climate solution win. And therefore is a topic www.globalwarmingforbusypeople.com will come back to often…)
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Not sure where to start saving the planet (civilization, really)? Start by deeply knowing your own personal Superpowers:
1) To save the planet, Change Yourself First;
3) Use Your Voice and take advocacy seriously! Never miss a chance to vote, and never ever stop influencing your government and all businesses locally, at the state level, and at the national level. It’s on you to lead the way with global warming solutions.
And in all cases and at all times, cast aside the learned-helplessness that infects so much of modern life… the time is now for climate change solutions.
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Global Warming, You and I 