More on Oregon and GPS-tracked Gas Taxes

An anonymous reader writes "Wired has an update on Oregon's proposed replacement for their gas tax. Currently two candidates are in development, the first a GPS based system that tracks where a car goes to determine the number of miles driven. The other is a odometer-like device. Both would transmit the data to base stations periodically to determine the tax on a vehicle. There was a previous slashdot article."

Comments

Re:I got an idea ...

[RealAlaskan]

I think your post proves that we need to raise taxes so we can afford better education...

Unfortunately, throwing more money at education is like throwing heroine at a junkie: it will stop the jonesing, for a while, but it won't cure the problem. We can already afford better education; after all, it's cheaper than the bad kind.

FOr better education, all we need is for parents to get involved, to set high standards for their children and children's schools, and then insist that children and schools live up to those high standards. Parental involvement is the single most important factor, and higher taxes won't help that at all.

In fact, high property taxes to support the NEA and the rest of the public school aparatchiks are part of the reason that we have such low parental involvement: often, both parents must work to support the schools and all the rest of government, leaving little time for bake sales, children, education, and such trivia.

What children really need is one parent at home when they are. One parent at home who has time to sit them down, and find out what they learned in schoold today, and either praise them for that, or raise hell with the school because the kid got by without learning something that day. One parent at home who can do some tutoring when the kid needs it, or straighten him out when he's been causing trouble for the teacher.

What children typcially get is one or two parents who see them just enough to know whether they're still alive, and are too busy and too tired to deal with their problems. In the minds of most parents, school is the school's responsibility, and they resent having to be aware of it, except maybe around prom time.

More taxes fixes this how?

Re:I got an idea ...

[American AC in Paris]

Do you understand that it's not my problem? I don't plan on collecting social security, so why should they? Screw this "retirement" bullshit. If you don't want to work anymore then you don't get any money, this is absolute crap that soceity owes you a waiting to die vacation.

...you do understand that these people have paid roughly 8% of their life's income to fund this program, right? You're cool with yanking the rug out from under them, a "so sorry, we've changed our minds, you're not getting what we promised you. McDonalds is hiring, gramps." mentality?

I'd rather keep my money and take care of myself then have the government help take care of me, guess you could say I'm a libertarian at heart.

I'd call you a guy with a less than basic understanding of civics, society, the concept of a greater good, and government. The jury is still out on the presence of a heart.