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Originally Posted by Flubflow
Surely they could bung 50cents tax on a gallon of petrol and they'd be well on their way to being in the clear by xmas or thereabouts and the public would hardly notice the difference (based on 5 times the vehicle owning population and 3.3 times the consumption of petrol per head than the UK). It would probably cost the average 6 litre SUV owning fat ass only $10 extra a week.
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Unfortunately that may drive down ownership of big cars, fuel consumption, and therefore oil companies profits which is bad. Already those buying the really big beasties get something crazy like $110,000 in tax breaks back for buying that enormously fuel inefficient car. Power and oil companies rule Dick Cheney, Cheney rules Bush, therefore Cheney (currently fighting off a lawsuit as he doesn't want the USA public to see what those private chats he's had with power companies while vice-president were about, though he should be fine, went on a hunting trip with one of the judges a couple of weeks ago
) rules the White House. So that really isn't going to happen.
You've also got to remember that a lot of the USA doesn't drive anywhere. 200 yards to the local 7-Eleven, in the car you go, and it's such a big sparsely populated place.