Posts tagged money

By Tom Carter Gene Weingarten wrote a very funny satirical article in The Washington Post today about the Chevrolet Volt .  That’s the “volt” referred to in the title; Weingarten is the “dolt,” by his own admission. Like most people, I suppose, I didn’t know much about the Volt before I read Weingarten’s article.  From what little I knew, it seemed like just another green-inspired scam.  So few people seem to want it that the government has tried to fake demand, bribing consumers with a $7,500 tax rebate just to buy it or a similar car. I’m always suspicious when the government tries to force products like that on us — e.g., that overpriced curlicue light bulb we all have to buy someday soon.  In the case of electric cars, the demand isn’t being created by legislative fiat but by giving my tax money to other people so they’ll buy the damn thing.  I may not be an economist, but I know that kind of demand creation is bogus and likely to fail, at great cost to us taxpayers.