Auto Wars

It is very disheartening to see the intellectual elite winning the automobile war. This battle has been going on for decades and now the hybrid bunnies have finally gained the upper hand. Over the years there have been many attacks, some downright hilarious such as the invasion of the Volkswagon beetle. These domed, waterless rear engine bugs were the rage of their time but over the years they were beaten back and now they primarily reside in Mexico where one of the last manufacturing facilities is located. The next significant battle came during the “70’s” when gas prices and lower speed limits were the mantra of “the large automobile haters”. Too much horsepower, too dangerous, gas guzzlers and on and on went the government and the “know-it-alls who saw it as their duty to keep us, the wandering souls from being smitten with “Corvette fever”. Once again we beat them back but couldn’t knock them out. Now as we have just started this century they are back again singing the same song but with more power than ever before. First they attacked the oil industry by limiting the drilling and exploration for oil both on land and offshore within the North American continent. This of course eventually made us reliant on foreign supplies and thus higher and higher gas prices. Next came the environmentalists with their “Global Warming” mania which has exploded into a new religion that has its willing and eager robots all lined up to yell at anyone driving a car with anything over 150 horsepower under the hood. Then the ultimate weapon arrives in the form of the most socialistic President of the United States ever who, “in the best interests” of the masses of people who just don’t understand, will now dictate what cars are built by the US industry because they are now the majority owners of GM and Chrysler. Slowly but surely the newly reorganized plants will begin spewing out small boxlike, wee engine hybrids or electric cars that will scream past bicycles at a top speed of 40 miles per hour. There will be no character in these cars, other than that of a crackerjack box. Once upon a time people were defined by the cars that they drove because they had a choice to be whomever they wanted to be. A high flying race car driver who cruised around in a Corvette or a man of luxury that sported a white scarf as he drove uptown in his caddy could be your vision of life if that is what you wanted it to be. How about that feeling you were actually James Dean sitting in a 56 Ford convertible as the cameras flashed over and over. The roar of the engines as you merged from the ramp onto to the expressway in your “Mustang” leaving the semi’s in your dust. But alas I guess the next generation will not have these opportunities to feel the rumble of a powerful eight cylinder powerhouse as it sits up and rockets down the road or see the admiring looks from people on the street as they see your unique and image making wheels roll on down the street. I hope this latest volley fails as did the others but I’m afraid the ingenuity and courage to think for ourselves is being replaced by the “do what is right for the planet” regardless if you agree or disagree. Ah for the days when I sat in my 66 Meteor S33 convertible with a hot blond (my wife by the way) beside me as I drove through the streets knowing I was one of the coolest dudes on the planet.