Bush Urges Less Global Oil Use - No, I Am Not Making Up This Headline

[hatrack]

WASHINGTON - While President George W. Bush is urging nations to use less oil, his administration has opposed major increases in US vehicle fuel standards that could save millions of barrels of oil a year and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Speaking on Wednesday as the leaders of the major industrialized countries traveled to Scotland for a Group of Eight meeting, Bush said nations should develop alternative energy sources to oil and natural gas to help control global warming.

Climate change is a top issue at the G8 meeting. The United States, the world's largest oil consumer and the biggest spewer of total carbon dioxide emissions that heat the atmosphere, is the only one of the countries at the summit not to have signed the Kyoto treaty to cut carbon dioxide emissions. The United States is doing its part, administration officials say, pointing to over $20 billion in spending on climate change activities by the end of 2005.

EDIT

Bush administration officials say they are acting to curb vehicle fuel usage, but they add market initiatives would work better than mandates to spur Detroit to produce cleaner cars. "We have a multi-pronged strategy on fuel economy," Jim Connaughton, head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said, pointing to a $4,000 proposed tax credit for consumers to buy fuel-efficient vehicles like hybrids.

EDIT

After years of resistance from American automakers, the US Transportation Department raised the fuel economy standard for gas-guzzling SUVs and light trucks from 20.7 miles per gallon in 2004 to 21 mpg for the model year 2005, 21.6 mpg for 2006, and 22.2 mpg for 2007. The department estimates the increase would save 3.6 billion gallons of gasoline over the 25-year life of the affected vehicles from the three model years. With one barrel holding 42 gallons, it means the fuel savings will average about 9,400 barrels per day during the 25-year period. That amount barely stirs the surface of the current 20.9 million barrels of oil a day consumed by the United States."

EDIT

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/31571/story.htm

Edited to add figures on whopping 1.5 mpg increased mandated by DOT.

[Dirty Hippie]

1. Ha! The $4000 credit will be PHASED OUT at the end of 2005. n/t

[Dirty Hippie]

6. Actually, I am not totally correct.

The $4000.00 is Proposed. Currently, there is a 2000.00 deduction that will be phased out at the end ot this year.

From http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/tax_hybrid.shtml

...
Vehicles in the table to the right may be eligible for a "clean fuel" deduction of $2,000 for those placed in service by the end of 2005 or $500 for those put in use during 2006.

Vehicles purchased after 2006 will not be eligible for a deduction under current legislation. If you purchased the vehicle before 2005, you can claim the deduction by filing an amended tax return for the tax year in which the vehicle was purchased.

[punpirate]

7. Umm... the current credit for hybrids is...

... $2000 for 2005, is reduced to $500 in 2006 and is phased out in 2007.

What Bush is talking about is HR 626, which proposes a sliding scale depending upon hybrid model, of $600 up to $4000. This legislation has not yet been passed.

Cheers.

[opihimoimoi]

2. Why now? Is he that slow??? this shoulda coulda been done years ago

Politically expedient bastatds....

[acmejack]

3. That's right, The US needs it all!

Think Hummers run on air. There is plenty of oil left if the rest of the world will just keep their grubby mitts offa it.

[In_The_Wind]

4. we need to STOP building motors that use fossil fuel

the technology already exist ... the old gas & diesel fueled cars will disappear by attrition

[napi21]

5. OH! Another do as I say, not as I do! Same thing as he's doing

with the neuclear program. No other country should have them, but he wants to increase those that the US has.

What an ass!

[atommom]

8. So the other nations should reduce fossil fuel usage, and stop

industrializing, too, probably, while they're at it. After all, they might end up using resources that good Amurkans could have used instead!

He's owned by the oil industry ... there's no way he can sincerely support a reduction in our consumption. :banghead:

[Coastie for Truth]

12. The issue is not revenue from petroleum

but revenue generally from all source - and return to sharelders and executive perks.

Thus Shell and BP have "positions" in photovoltaics and Oxy has a "position" in fuel cells and TexacoChevron has "positions" in fuel cells and hydrogen economy.

They at least have the theoretical capability of making the shift to solar, hydrogen, fuel cells, whatever while still "preserving shareholder value" and maintaining executive perks. And, that's what it's all about.

[Cerridwen]

9. Watch for it.

Big Oil is about to cash in on alternative fuel sources and is now ramping up the marketing to lock up their market share. bush* is just doing his part in the coming PR blitz.

Has anyone else noticed the new commercials coming out about "environmentally friendly" big oil and big energy corps?

Except for some extreme nut cases, many American consumers are becoming environmentally aware in their purchases - it has become "mainstream."

Watch for it.

[Coastie for Truth]

10. All of the Big Oil Have Their Ducks In A Row ---

All of the "Big Oil" players at least have their

-patent portfolios,
-research contracts (one sided with garage and academic inventors), and
-"non-competes" (with the bright young alternative and renewable energy PhD's they hired and then laid off after 2-3 years)

all tied up nice and pretty and thoroughly bullet proof. They will make more money on lower sales - and not just by aggressive pricing.

Big Oill will make money (skim and scam) off of the actual, entrepreneurial risk takers who actually go into alternative, renewable, and green energy. But, Big Oil won't put their own capital at risk.

That is precisely the strategy that GM followed with hybrids and ev's. They own a piece of every hybrid (and pure EV) sold anywhere in the world -- and don't lift a finger. All because of their patent law suits in the early 1990's.

SOMETIMES THE BEST PATENTS IN THE WORLD ARE "PAPER PATENTS" ON "VAPOR WARE"

-- USED ONLY FOR LAW SUITS ;)

[aspberger]

11. Oil and the next election

I cannot see giving our money to terrorist-linked oil producing nations. If a compaign issue was to stop doing business with the people who are blowing us up, and link that to a drop in the price of oil(by means of a drop in demand for oil with the rise in use of renewable energy), a winning mantra at the ballot box would be created. We need six pack joes.