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LadyEllen -> RE: gas prices (4/30/2008 6:58:41 AM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Aneirin
Better still for the UK at least, cut the tax paid on fuel to help the economy. So, the treasury will lose out, but what is better, the treasury losing or numerous families losing out ?
Public transport, forget it, too expensive and not to be relied upon, despite what politicians tell us to do. I use public transport, and have worked out a journey taken on a bus works out more expensive than what it cost to run my car for the same journey. I get travel sickness on a bus, never got that by car. Bus takes 45 to 50 minutes to do the journey, car took twenty minutes. Bus fares are going up again very soon and even now I struggle with the cost.
Oh, I got rid of the car, so public transport is my only option, that is until I get a two stroke motorcycle, as that will be the cheapest option other than walk.
Oh interestingly where I used to live in Oxford, there was much hoohar about the new alternative fuel buses, how theywere going to save the planet etc. Last I heard, those buses got quietly decommissioned as being too expensive and problematic to run economicaly.
Good observations Aneirin. I suppose the crunch will come next, when getting to work costs so much that working is no longer worthwhile - so we can expect industrial unrest and wage increases which will make us uncompetitive in the global economy and drive inflation as those wage increases are passed on to the end consumer. And from that, huge increases in unemployment as jobs are shed and firms close or move to cheaper parts of the world - with a corresponding increase in social welfare costs which will necessitate higher taxation.........
And increasing costs for public transport (as well as its notorious unreliability) will come too - not just from fuel price increases, but because we have imported east Europeans to drive the buses who are here so they can send money home or take it home when they leave - such drivers are now working for 15% less than they were before in terms of their remittances because sterling is in the shit. It wont be long before they demand increased wages or leave. And if that doesnt happen, the costs of increased journey times of public transport compared to private, must have enormous knock on effects to the economy, when we are told that traffic congestion on our roads costs enormous amounts.
It wont be long before we look like China 20 years back - all on our bicycles, whilst they look like us driving cars.
But not to worry - the rich and powerful will not be harmed.
E
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