Reuters: Volkswagen is ready for Europe's 2035 fossil-fuel car ban - CEO

[OKIsItJustMe]

Volkswagen is ready for Europe's 2035 fossil-fuel car ban - CEO

Reuters
September 4, 2023 6:16 AM EDT

MUNICH, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) is ready for Europe's planned 2035 ban on new sales of fossil-fuel cars as it ramps up its electric vehicle lineup, Chief Executive Oliver Blume said at Munich's IAA mobility show.

"We are prepared for the 2035 combustion ban in Europe," Blume told reporters at the car show.

He said that through its partnerships in China, the world's No. 2 carmaker will be able to lower its battery costs via a 50% reduction in cost at the cell level.

…

"I think we have great chances," Blume said. "We know how to build cars, with top quality. We will have to work hard on the cost side."

[NNadir]

1. Yeah, they can install defeat device software to make coal into magic free clean energy.

The Germans burn coal for their electricity. They phased out clean energy to institute coal.

Volkswagen however, has experience a lying to paint themselves "green," just like their government.

[Think. Again.]

2. That's more than a decade away...

...talk about 'slow-walking'.

[OKIsItJustMe]

3. You cannot turn a battleship on a dime

If you try, you are liable to capsize.

[Think. Again.]

4. This is not a battleship or a dime...

...automobile manufacturers have been developing non-CO2 emitting models for decades.

It's obvious that the delay is due only to marketing concerns about how the public will react to a quick change in purchase options, but the bottom line is, the public will purchase what is available to them to purchase.

[OKIsItJustMe]

17. "the public will purchase what is available to them to purchase"

You cannot make people buy a car they don’t want.


CNN: Electric cars are breaking sales records, but here’s why they’re not replacing gas cars anytime soon

By Christopher Hickey, CNN
Published 4:00 AM EDT, Sun August 20, 2023

…

US agency predicts an EV-majority market won't happen anytime soon

Even under a scenario with high oil prices, electric vehicles will account for less than a third of car and truck sales through 2050, according to projections from the US Energy Information Administration.

…

[Think. Again.]

18. You're right...

...no one can be forced to buy a car if they don't want any of the cars that are for sale.

[MichMan]

10. The 2035 deadline was established by European governments

Why do you think they didn't make it required in 2030 or 2025?

[Think. Again.]

15. as I mentioned...

...I suspect the decade-long delay is to pander to the auto industry's concern over marketing with some influence from their sister industry- fossil fuels- thrown in.

[LiberaBlueDem]

5. We need small cars with small batteries

USA should nationalize a car company that builds the same small car with the same parts standardized so that everyone can afford to own and drive a sun powered car for all their small trips.

And a $10 a gallon tax on gas would end the ICE car industry

[JustAnotherGen]

6. Are they free?

[OKIsItJustMe]

7. The dirty secret of the automobile industry...

… is that building a small car costs almost as much as building a large car. Detroit has focused on building large cars, because people will pay more for them. Historically, they have made and sold small cars, only to meet the demads of CAFE standards.

For a small solar powered car, look to Aptera:

[TreasonousBastard]

8. It took us over 100 years to build the ICE car industry and...

the infrastructure to support it.

How fast can we build an electric car industry?

[OKIsItJustMe]

9. The nice thing is we don't need to start from scratch

Factories and assembly lines can be converted. “Gas stations” can install charging stations.

One of the largest challenges has been motivating consumers.

Forbes: The United States’ Electric Vehicle Market Is (Finally) On The Move

[Think. Again.]

16. It's already there...

...EV's have been being researched, developed, refined, tested, mass produced, and sold for decades now.

Of course, as with anything, new developments and improvements will never end, but it wouldn't take more than a couple of years to scale up to fill the entire auto market with EVs.

[LiberaBlueDem]

11. $10 a gallon gas tax

That still won't be enough to pay for all the damage fossil fuel burning has caused. But it will be a start, and will ensure EVs powered by solar are everywhere!

[OKIsItJustMe]

12. So, here's the thing...

The Biden administration is producing lots and lots of oil to keep gas prices low, and the GOP still claims that America is suffering because of energy policies that make gasoline too expensive.

Politico: The U.S. is pumping oil faster than ever. Republicans don’t care.

GOP presidential candidates are blaming pump prices on President Joe Biden’s clean energy policies, even though the U.S. is churning out record amounts of oil.

By BEN LEFEBVRE
08/28/2023 04:30 AM EDT

The late-summer surge in gasoline prices is heightening the risks that inflation poses for President Joe Biden, and offering Republicans a new chance to pin the blame on his green agenda.

The GOP narrative has a major hole: U.S. oil production — already the highest in the world — is on track to set a new record this year, and will probably rise even more in 2024. But the ever-increasing flow of U.S. crude has failed to keep a lid on gasoline prices, showing once again that a global market drives the fuel prices that shape presidents’ political futures.

And that means events far beyond the nation’s borders will play a sizable role in voters’ verdict on “Bidenomics” — as global oil prices rise and fall in response to banking conditions in Europe, China’s slumping real estate market, Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine and the latest maneuvers by Saudi Arabia.

“The U.S. consumer blames whoever is in the White House” for high gasoline prices, Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist for financial advisory firm LPL Financial said in an interview. “Biden’s people have to be watching this despite a stronger economy, which is an irony.”

…

For years now, James Hansen has advocated a fee and dividend program (rather than a tax program.)

A socially and environmentally just way to fight climate change

BY JAMES E. HANSEN AND DANIEL H. MILLER, OPINION CONTRIBUTORS — 09/09/20

A majority of the public is in favor of action on climate change, and putting a fee or tax on the carbon content of fossil fuels is generally accepted — including among conservatives — as a key method for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, while the cost of climate solutions was a major issue preventing action in the past, now some progressives insist that climate action also meet the goals of social and environmental justice. Because of that, some progressive groups such as the Climate Justice Alliance have come out against “putting a price on carbon.”

These progressive groups oppose carbon pricing because they view it as a regressive tax that disproportionately affects lower income people who must spend a higher percentage of their income on heating, cooling and transportation. This was one of the reasons that the Sierra Club did not support a Washington State carbon pricing initiative.

While it is true that most carbon taxes are regressive, there is one carbon pricing policy that is actually anti-regressive and helps lower income people the most. It’s called Fee and Dividend and it is quite simple: A fee is collected from fossil fuel companies at the point where fossil fuels enter the domestic market — at the mine, well or port of entry. The fee starts small — about $15 per ton of carbon dioxide embedded in the fuel – and goes up $10 every year.

What does that mean for consumers? By the time it reaches $100 per ton, the fee will raise gasoline prices 90 cents per gallon. It will also raise the price of every product or activity that relies on fossil fuels. This higher price will spur development of low carbon energy and products made with little or no fossil fuels, driving a transition to a clean energy economy.

…

[LiberaBlueDem]

13. Here's the thing

Most oil is burned in cars, so the $10 a gallon tax will be paid by people who want to drive their ICE car, the rest of us will have small EV's mass produced with standardized parts and small batteries powered by the sun.

Too cheap to meter? Well, yeah and the used EV market will be a great economic driver for working people because they or a neighbor can fix their EV themsleves.

And all that extra revenue from the tax can begin to pay for the damages FF/ICE cars have caused. Win/win

[OKIsItJustMe]

14. I guarantee, a $10/gallon gasoline tax is a non-starter

I might like to see a $10/gallon tax on gasoline, but you can rest assured, if it ever passed (which it wouldn’t) it would only last until the next election. Plenty of candidates would run on ending the terrible $10/gallon gasoline tax, and enough of them would win to repeal it, and then we would be left with a government with even fewer ecologically minded members.

[Think. Again.]

19. It worked for cigarettes.

[OKIsItJustMe]

20. You're right!

I can’t remember the last time I saw someone smoking a cigarette!

CDC: Youth and Tobacco Use

[Think. Again.]

21. looks like a pretty good decrease to me...

[OKIsItJustMe]

22. It only took 40 years to lower it about 70% and cigarettes pose a direct threat to smokers.

With each puff, smokers can feel their effects. Yet people continue to smoke.

Traditional cigarette sales may be down in the US, but the sales "e-cigarettes” are up.

https://www.cdcfoundation.org/National-E-CigaretteSales-DataBrief-2021-Mar21?inline

[OKIsItJustMe]

23. FTC Report Finds Annual Cigarette Sales Increased for the First Time in 20 Years

FTC Report Finds Annual Cigarette Sales Increased for the First Time in 20 Years

First-ever reporting on flavored products finds menthol makes up more than half of smokeless tobacco sales

October 26, 2021

The number of cigarettes that the largest cigarette companies in the United States sold to wholesalers and retailers nationwide increased from 202.9 billion in 2019 to 203.7 billion in 2020, according to the most recent Federal Trade Commission Cigarette Report. This represents the first time annual cigarette sales have increased in 20 years.

According to the 2020 Smokeless Tobacco Report, smokeless tobacco sales increased from 126.0 million pounds in 2019 to 126.9 million pounds in 2020. The revenue from those sales rose from $4.53 billion in 2019 to $4.82 billion in 2020. For the first time, the Commission is reporting sales of nicotine lozenges or nicotine pouches not containing tobacco. In 2020, the companies sold 140.7 million units of such products in the United States, for $420.5 million.

The amount spent on cigarette advertising and promotion increased from $7.62 billion in 2019 to $7.84 billion in 2020. Price discounts paid to cigarette retailers ($6.07 billion) and wholesalers ($876 million) were the two largest expenditure categories in 2020. Combined spending on price discounts accounted for 88.5 percent of industry spending.

Spending on advertising and promotion by the major manufacturers of smokeless tobacco products in the U.S. decreased from $576.1 million in 2019 to $567.3 million in 2020. As with cigarettes, price discounts made up the two largest spending categories, with $296.6 million paid to retailers and $83.5 million paid to wholesalers. Combined spending on price discounts totaled $380.1 million – or 67.4 percent of all spending in 2020, up from the $376.0 million spent in 2019.

…

We can’t afford a success rate like that when it comes to “Climate Change.”

[OKIsItJustMe]

24. The Federal Trade Commission's First Report on E-Cigarette Sales and Advertising Reveals Disturbing...

The Federal Trade Commission’s First Report on E-Cigarette Sales and Advertising Reveals Disturbing Trends Affecting the Health of Young Americans

Flavored cartridges, nicotine concentration, and deep discounting surged between 2015 and 2018,likely fueling increased underage consumption

March 17, 2022

The Federal Trade Commission’s first-ever report on e-cigarette products paints a disturbing picture of surging e-cigarette sales and advertising that are likely to damage the health of America’s youth.

The report, which is based on industry data provided for the years 2015 to 2018, shows that total e-cigarette sales, including both disposable units and those using changeable cartridges, increased more than six-fold from $304.2 million to $2.06 billion in those three years alone. The sales of fruit and other flavored e-cigarette cartridges preferred by youth increased seven-fold over that time, and nicotine concentrations in disposable e-cigarette products also increased.

“The Commission’s inaugural e-cigarette report paints a disturbing picture, especially with e-cigarettes driving an unprecedented increase in youth use of tobacco products,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “The data show that this increase coincided with dramatic spikes in the market share of flavored products, higher concentrations of nicotine, and an industry attempt to evade a ban on free sampling.”

…

The tobacco companies are on the ropes! Another century or two, and they’ll be out of business!

[OKIsItJustMe]

25. Two years ago, gas prices went up a little over $1/gallon and people were screaming for Biden's head

We won’t institute a $10/gallon “gas tax.”


The People Behind the Joe Biden Sticker That Has Colonized America’s Gas Pumps

As gas prices go up, so do sticker profits.

BY HEATHER SCHWEDEL
MARCH 11, 2022 5:09 PM


The stickers first started showing up on gas pumps across the country last year: pictures of President Biden, usually placed to look like he is pointing to the price of the gas, with the words “I did that!” beside him. After first spiking in popularity online months ago, the stickers are hot once again these days, thanks to recent sharp rises in gas prices—$4.33 on average for a gallon of regular. With some consumers mad enough to become sticker vigilantes and Biden’s approval ratings in the dumps, there’s only one real winner in this situation: the sticker profiteers themselves.

“It’s been ramping up for a few months,” said Javier Estrada Ovalles, who’s been doing brisk business in “I did that!” stickers at his online store catering to car enthusiasts as well as his brick-and-mortar store in El Monte, California. “But in this last month alone, once the prices of the gas really started going up, I started getting bulk sales twice or three times more than it was before.” He said he went from getting 20 to 30 individual orders a day to 80 a day, and those 80 are often for packs of 10 or more.

The stickers are also moving fast at the Patriotic Products, an online shop run by an Oklahoma-based young man named Keenan. (Keenan declined to give his last name or specific age, saying that he’s “under 21.” He was suspiciously unavailable between the hours of 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.) Over the past week, “I’ve noticed an increase of organic sales, meaning I’m not having to do advertising,” Keenan told me. He estimated that he’s sold about 1,500 stickers in that time, which is pretty good, but small potatoes compared to August—that was the first month he started selling “I did that!” stickers, still very early in the trend cycle, when he claimed he raked in $40,000 in sticker sales alone. The field was clear then, but now he has dozens, maybe even hundreds, of vendors to compete with.

Over the summer, Keenan had seen a TikTok featuring the sticker. “Right when I saw it, I knew that that product would do very well,” he said. He ordered a bunch from the creator of the TikTok video and eventually started producing his own. Now, “every time I go to the pump, usually one in three times, I’ll see one myself,” Keenan said.

…

[Think. Again.]

26. Sometimes I think...

...that you just like playing the devil's advocate.

We need to move forward with as many ideas, options, and efforts that we can think of to end CO2 emissions.

And we need to do that with a hopeful, energetic attitude.

Finding fault in any and all thoughts that folks post on the issue is not helping.

[OKIsItJustMe]

27. I was raised to play the "Devil's Advocate."

Test any assumption.

The Devil’s Advocate was created for a purpose. Wikipedia: Devil's advocate

It may be nice in some people’s imagination to canonize everyone. The Devil’s advocate is supposed to make sure that doesn’t happen.

Likewise, not all assumptions are valid, not all ideas are good. We don’t have time to waste on dead ends, if we can avoid them.