Re: RC: Re: Gas or Oil out, What is the problem????

[David LeBlanc <dleblanc@mindspring.com>]

At 11:16 AM 3/22/00 -0500, Teddy Lancaster wrote:
>Horseshit...federal taxes on fuel are FAR more than $.04 per gallon.  I
>KNOW, I pay them every quarter (IFTA) for state taxes and pay at the
>pump in EVERY truck stop in Amerika!!

You might want to do a bit of research before calling horseshit. From 
http://www.cnn.com/2000/US/03/15/gas.prices.02/

"However, even the tax-cutting Republican majority in Congress is no longer
demanding a repeal of the 4.3-cent-per-gallon federal excise tax passed in
1993."

Sorry - I left off the .3 - still close enough.  I was just in Utah the
other day, where they post on the pump where the taxes go, and I was
surprised at how much was state.  There's no need to be rude, even if I was
wrong.

>Roads? What roads?  They are all going to hell. Construction quality is
>down and constant.

Depends on where you're driving.  Road quality in Georgia is excellent.  Up
here in WA, it isn't great, but not as bad as Alabama or Missisippi.
Considering as I've driven in GA, FL, SC, NC, VI, AL, MI, LA, TX, NM, AZ,
NV, UT, MT, ID, OR, PA, OH and WA in the last year or so, I can tell you
from experience that it varies a lot from one state to the next.  Some were
great, some really sucked.

It is generally the law most places that gas taxes go to pay for roads (and
only for roads) - for example, in Atlanta, there were fights over making
gas taxes pay for mass transit (mass transit lost).  Since gas taxes pay
for roads, then there are 2 possible explanations for crappy roads - either
your state isn't using the money efficiently, or you aren't paying ENOUGH
in taxes to support the road quality you'd like to see.  You generally get
what you pay for unless something is inefficient (could be - contractors
could be corrupt).

>Get real, we are being DUPED into believing it is
>all "for our own good"

Look into it yourself - see how your state finances roads.  If it is
anything like GA, FL or WA, you'll find that gas taxes are earmarked ONLY
for road construction and improvement.  Up here, gas taxes don't carry the
whole burden of transportation - used to be license tag fees until we voted
those out - now they're scrambling to figure out how to pay for it.  Good
roads cost money, and you have to pay for them somehow. If your roads are
bad, either you're not paying enough, or you're not getting the most out of
the money you're spending.

TANSTAAFL - There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.


David LeBlanc
dleblanc@mindspring.com