Industry Opposition To California Emissions Controls In "Death Throes"
A federal district judge has dismissed an auto-industry request to delay implementation of California's new emissions standards. The LA Times reports that the Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers' request to delay the 30 percent reduction by 2016 time line was slapped down by Judge Anthony W. Ishii. He ruled the petition was "without support in law, logic, or grammar." (Apparently the grammar police have a grammar court in California.) The shellacking extends the industry's losing streak to three, having already lost battles against California standards in Vermont and Massachusets. But don't count your carbon footprint just yet; California still has to win a lawsuit against the EPA before implementing the new standards. Except that the waiver was denied against "the unanimous recommendation of the (EPA's) legal and technical staffs." That's right, the EPA's own lawyers think they'll be forced to grant California the waiver. In other words, do start counting your carbon footprint. Meanwhile one of the best things about California: you don't have to live there.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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Boy, silly me for being pessimistic. You guys have all the answers! "You are just as toast versus a truck in a 8k lbs SUV land yacht as a Prius or Smart" Really? You are of course wrong, but I'll not waste my time trying to convince you. BTW, in the reviews I've read, just keeping the "Smart" in it's lane or even on the blacktop when a semi goes by maybe be a callenge beyond the cababilities of many drivers. The smart and all the commie-crat cars may just get blown off the road. "There’s a guy in Kansas modifying Hummer H1’s and H2’s " Well, there you go. We're all saved by a guy in Kansas. You dont give a link, or tell us how much this costs (more than $49.95?) or whether your reference to Duramax deisel means a whole new engine is installed? which, if a diesel, will keep it out of our enlightened state of California anyway thus rendering your point moot. BTW, you sure he's not using a FLUX capacitor?
And in this great brouhaha over emissions and fuel economy, the makers of premier luxury and exotic cars are no where to be found. It's the proverbial blind spot in every MPG debate -- pillory the SUV, but ignore the Ferrari driver getting only 7 mpg, or the Bentley Flying Spur driver getting a paltry 8 mpg. And while EPA/CARB/CAFE regs condemn whatever's left of middle class society to driving compact vehicles with less than 100hp and all the appeal of a fridge, the rich and wealthy will still have their Maseratis, Bentleys and Lamborghinis.
I'm beginning to think that California's allowance of gay marriage and the neutering of vehicles via CARB may somehow be connected....
As a Federalist, I'm all for California doing whatever stupid stuff it wants. If they want to send their economy into the crapper, that ought to be their right. Will this law "work"? I don't know, but if it does and car companies can make these cars for them at a cheap rate, the rest of us will reap the benefit. If it doesn't work, then the rest of us get to point and giggle like we did during their rolling blackouts.