Originally Posted by OldManOnFire

I started thinking about this and actually...there are lots of things that can be done. How about...

Government vehicles:

In every situation where an electric vehicle will work as well as a combustion engine vehicle, start using electric vehicles. This includes the USPS.

All government vehicles that do not fall into the electric category above, should be sub-compacts, or hybrids, that have a minimum 35mpg rating. If USA manufacturers cannot provide these vehicles, then buy imports.

Remove all vehicles from service that are not considered essential. This includes all vehicles which are made available for personal use.

All use of government owned and operated aircraft, as well as government employees using commercial airlines, to be reduced to an absolute minimum.

Government facilities:

My guess is there are tens of thousands of government offices/facilities around the world. Immediately eliminate 25% of these facilities and another 25% over the next ten years.

US Military:

Immediately eliminate 15% of all military facilities around the world and another 15% over the next ten years.

The US military is the single largest consumer of oil products in the USA and the world, consuming approximately 150 million barrels per year, or 6.3 billion gallons per year! No matter the method, reduce this consumption by 15% in the next two years and another 15% in the next five years.

Begin removing 10,000 US troops per month from Iraq and immediately suspend all ground and air attacks.

Free enterprise encouragement:

The US government needs to have a contest like the "X Prize". It will award $1 billion to anyone who designs a passenger car which is equal in specifications to the Toyota Prius but has a maximum retail price of $15,000.

A second X-prize of another $1 billion will go to any person or business who can design a USA manufacturing facility which will guarantee the manufacture of this $15,000 car.

A third X-prize of another $1 billion will be awarded to create higher-efficiency electric car batteries that can be warranted for ten years and cost no more than $1000 per vehicle.

A fourth X-prize of $100 million 'each' will be awarded to all incorporated cities in the USA, with a minimum population of 300,000, who can document, design and implement a 25% reduction in passenger car traffic within a two year period.

Summary:

All of these ideas and in not a single one do I need to regulate an industry, charge windfall profits, or ask people to sacrifice or invest. In fact, once the reductions are made in the government and military, personal taxes can be reduced.

Regarding the government and the military ideas, this is common sense and nothing more than house-cleaning and increasing efficiencies. This is about 20 years past due!

Regarding the X-Prizes...we can have a $15,000 car, USA manufacturing plants, affordable electric cars, and remove 25% of all passenger car traffic from the nations 50 most populated cities, in a competitive spirit, for the measly sum of $8 billion...or about the cost of the US being in Iraq for a single month.

If these items can be achieved, at least in the USA, demand will be less than the supply of oil, and gasoline prices will fall like Paris Hilton's panties after one shot of tequila...

Originally Posted by OldManOnFire

Free enterprise encouragement:

The US government needs to have a contest like the "X Prize". It will award $1 billion to anyone who designs a passenger car which is equal in specifications to the Toyota Prius but has a maximum retail price of $15,000.

A second X-prize of another $1 billion will go to any person or business who can design a USA manufacturing facility which will guarantee the manufacture of this $15,000 car.

A third X-prize of another $1 billion will be awarded to create higher-efficiency electric car batteries that can be warranted for ten years and cost no more than $1000 per vehicle.

A fourth X-prize of $100 million 'each' will be awarded to all incorporated cities in the USA, with a minimum population of 300,000, who can document, design and implement a 25% reduction in passenger car traffic within a two year period.

Originally Posted by Malkavian

That's true. It must a lot of fun to drive military hardware though.

Originally Posted by Jonesy

We could restructure the way we live and work. Humans are wasteful creatures. You could easily design a complex where people could live and work without using any gas.

Take a shopping mall; add living quarters; make it so everyone who lives there also works there (and no one works there who doesn't live there); ensure the mall has all the basic needs and such (food, clothing, electronics, etc.); incorporate those flat-escalator things you find in airports (to make traveling around the facility ultra-efficient); and use solar-panels to generate the vast majority of electricity for the entire complex (if not all the electricity).

With this particular complex, most travel would require no gas whatsoever. I'm sure the inhabitants would be interested in leaving the facility from time-to-time, but the small amount of fuel it would require to transport them to and from the facility would be minuscule in comparison to the current levels of fuel consumption.

Originally Posted by BillCosby

Your welcome to your opinion.......

I am not opposed to regulation..

Unlike you & rockafellA'......... I would imagine the tobacco & alcohol ppl would agree as well.......