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Originally Posted by misher
This doesn't apply to most of the nation.
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Then it's not a Canadian problem so much as a problem with the province you live in. The Federal carbon tax covers just under half of Canada's population. And does provide rural residents with a higher rebate.
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Originally Posted by misher
And most workers are in work camps or just on site for the work. This includes all our tree planters. Its in our constitution that we have freedom of mobility and I think this goes against the spirit of that.
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Freedom of Mobility means the government will not erect legal barriers to movement inside the country. It does not at all mean it will subsidize your travel.
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Originally Posted by theman23
A 15% difference that could easily disappear purely based on your driving habits....
That's basically the point I'm trying to make - its close enough that your personal driving habits have a lot more to do with it than the vehicle itself.
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And the same driving habits would have even lower consumption on a more fuel efficient vehicle. The difference in consumption remains between vehicle classes. Unless you somehow drive an SUV cautiously and a midsize sedan without abandon.
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Originally Posted by theman23
If we want to reduce CO2 emissions, it makes far more sense to tax the gas. It encourages auto makers to produce more fuel efficient vehicles and also individuals to alter their driving/commuting habits to be more economical.
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Taxing gas discourages consumption. Taxing a vehicle based on fuel economy encourages you to buy a more fuel efficient vehicle by making gas guzzlers more expensive at the point of sale. We'd have far fewer SUV and pickup sales if those costed more.
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Originally Posted by theman23
I don't think you've gone shopping for a car recently or talked to anyone that has. Gas prices are a big factor in purchase decisions. Also, gas prices have been above a $1.50/L here for quite some time.
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I don't think you've seen recent sales stats. SUVs and Pickup sales keep going up and growing in marketshare, negating so much of the work in improving fuel economy. The public seems to take every bump in fuel efficiency as making larger vehicles more affordable, rather than reducing consumption.
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Originally Posted by theman23
...but why? Is the goal to get SUVs and pickup trucks off the streets, or reduce CO2 emissions? I don't like SUVs or pickup trucks either (they're generally driven by assholes, see my previous rants), but this seems more like social engineering than actually trying to protect the planet.
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Because unfortunately SUVs and Pickups consume more fuel and we can't simply rely on the entire population to drive like grandmas to keep emissions down.
Note I'm not suggesting taxing vehicle class. I'm suggesting taxing fuel consumption. A hybrid or electric pickup or SUV world do just fine under my proposal, with zero tax attached.