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Should Taxpayers Back Cars Only the Rich Can Afford?
theodp writes "The NY Times questions the $400M in low-interest federal loans requested by Tesla Motors as part of the $25B loan package for the auto industry passed by Congress last year. 'The program is intended to encourage automakers to improve fuel efficiency, but should it be used for a purpose like this, as the 2008 Bailout of Very, Very High-Net-Worth Individuals Who Invested in Tesla Motors Act?' Tesla says it is assembling about 15 cars a week and has delivered about 80 of its $109,000 base-price Roadsters to date, many of which have gone to the Valley's billionaires and centimillionaires who are Tesla investors as well as early customers. We discussed the company's financial difficulties last month."
Well since the top 5% pay %80 of the taxes - they are really just getting their money back.
My business partner and I both reserved '09 Tesla Roadsters. Why? Not because it's a hot car, or it drives like a rocket, but because we want to see electric car research pushed faster. And it was the next best thing to investing in the company. It drives me nuts when some fool comes out and says "Tesla can have help when their car is priced for the average person". They won't need help by than. They need help getting to that point.
No, they don't. If they want to survive then they need to price cars at a profitable level; even if it means very expensive. Just because they are "greener" tan an Aston doesn't mean they deserve help. Either their biz plan works or it doesn't - the government ought not pick winners and losers in the marketplace.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
Contemporary libertarians remind me of children who never learned to share. Or more on point, people who never learned the difference between possession and ownership.
That sounds like a post from someone who has nothing, and only has himself to blame for it. It sounds like a post from the type of person who would rather vote himself a pay raise, rather than studying, learning, and working harder and smarter.
I suppose that on the receiving end if the gravy train, it probably makes you feel much better if you call it "sharing".
So you believe taxation as such is immoral?
That qualifies as a lot of things, like -1 idiot, -1 troll, -1 offtopic.. and what do you get?
+5 insightful.
How embarrassing being part of a group with members that dense.
And yes, I'm aware this post deserves just as many -1 mods.
Truth arises more readily from error than from confusion. -Francis Bacon
Contemporary libertarians remind me of children who never learned to share.
You sound to me like someone whose deepest desire is to wield power over others. It doesn't get any more selfish than that.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Greed, defn:
...
...
1) Socialist: Greed is bad. Greed is you keeping what you earn to do with as you desire instead of giving it to me to do with as I desire. See defn for Kumbaya
2) Capitalist: See Gecko, Gordon under famous speeches
Obama is our leader. Pray to Him.
Detroit just needs to be burned to the ground.
First of all, it is an almost ALL BLACK city. Think that's a good idea? Look at fucking Africa. These people are still primitive, and have not evolved like us white peeps. Crime is HUGE in Detroit because black people are lazy and do not want to work for their money. End of story. Oh, and they are intellectually inferior. Think I'm wrong? The only smart jiglets are those who have some white blood in 'em.
Second of all, the automotive industry in this country is laughable bullshit. The cars are junk. Look at the interior of a Ford. It looks like an infant could destroy their dashboards with a few feeble kicks.
A junglebunny infant.
And finally, Marshall Mathers came from there. Look at his goddamned face. He looks like an asshole criminal. Can you blame him, though? Being surrounded by ape-like drug dealers since inception would do that to any of us.
Now I know I will be flamed for "being racist". But it is the fucking elephant in the room, people. Black people, as a whole, are degenerate. "Wih wih wih, you are ignorant, for shame for shame, blah blah blah!" Fuck that. Survival of the fittest... these jigaboos know it, and KNOW that they are inferior to us, and will die out eventually, and that is why they kill us. They are nothing but animals.
Why do you think Barack Obama wants to outlaw firearms? Because he knows that then, instead of law-abiding WHITE people being able to defend themselves, only the CRIMAL BLACKS (100% of the entire black population) will have them, and thus will be able to rob and murder us with ease. Why haven't the major news outlets picked up on this? Oh that's right, because their hairy, crusty lips are wrapped around the monster cocks of the jig "elite".
That goddamned movie with Denzel "Fatlips" Washington, about the "black criminal overlord", was nothing but a ploy made by the Tim Robbinses of the world to try to get INTELLIGENT WHITE PEOPLE to think that black people are smart. Well, guess what, you gynecomastia sufferer! It only presented more evidence that BLACK PEOPLE ARE ALL, DEEP DOWN, CRIMINALS.
There are many of you who would never admit that you agree with what I have written. But, do you know what? You do agree.
That's not socialism that's evidence of fascism
OMFG Hitler was a vegetarian???!!!! PETA are fascists!!!oneoneslashslash?!
Everything I needed to know about life, I learnt from Blake's Seven
That was stupid on so many levels it's hard to know where to start.
I'll point out first and foremost, however, that free and fair elections were part of the constitution of the Soviet Union. If you're going to quote principles from political documents as if you gullibly believe everything politicians publicly advocate, the USSR were really nice guys. OTOH, if you understand that documents like this are intended to mislead people, you'd have to be stupid to quote them as examples of what Hitler or any facist is really all about. So... which is it, are you horribly gullible or just horribly stupid? (If you weren't either, you wouldn't have made the post to begin with, knowing that there's no point in quoting the text in question as an example of anything.)
"Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies."
You tell me: Are Bush and friends far more wealthy after 8 years or not?
Specific example:
Is Haliburton Inc. in charge of the oil pipelines in Iraq or not?
At a time when GW Bush ought to be impeached and sent to Guantanimo for a "vacation" you damn near elected a new Republican puppet (MCain) and the dumbest pit bull with lipstick.
I think they did alright by their own agenda.
Bavarian Purity Law of Rice Krispie Squares: Rice Krispies, Marshmallows, Butter, Vanilla.
Oh, sure, here come the useful intellectuals — where were you, when the term "Bushitler" was passed around? Face it, a mere allegation of any similarity with Hitler is a powerful assault and I don't remember much opposition to that before. But, you are right, of course — Hitler could've been saying something right. That was not my point, though.
The point here was to simply remind, that Fascism and Socialism (whatever their merits) are no different from each other. In fact, Hitler's party was called "National Socialism Party". Thus pitching them as some sort of opposites is just that: a false dichotomy. See subject.
Well, honestly, what stronger evidence of something being Fascism can there be, than "Hitler said it"?
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
That is beautiful. One of the most eloquent pieces of political discourse I've seen on slashdot in a while. As a bonus, you didn't even use the word "Obama". Wow, thanks.