Comments on: Staggering Arrogance

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 10:27:59 +0000

"When you lower the price that drastically, how will you be able to meet the safety and emissions standards? There are no clear answers yet."

Yet, the same people probably claim you can lower the price of healthcare (free), and improve supply and quality

By: la petite chou chou

la petite chou chou — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 02:27:04 +0000

People's Car, huh? Weird because thats what Volks Wagon is. Interesting story behind those cars too.

By: Andy

Andy — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 23:59:26 +0000

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the Tata car is powered by compressed air instead of a combustion engine. If so, there goes the CO2 argument.

The way I see it, everyone one has the right to improve their life and if that comes at the expense of the environment, so be it. For those really concerned, then the impetus is on them to invent technology to mitigate the impact they fear while giving the people the technology they desire.

By: will

will — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 18:54:35 +0000

Maybe he meant 20th Pittsburgh since the first half of the 20th Century was the worst. In 1948 Donora (the birth place of Stan Musial, Ken Griffey Sr and Ken Griffey Jr) air pollution became deadly, 68 people died directly from the pollution. Pittsburgh was known at the “dirty city”, with the coal furnaces for the homes contributing to much of the soot. Replacing coal furnaces with natural gas really improved things, plus I didn’t have to shovel coal anymore.

By: Alex Cull

Alex Cull — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 17:27:57 +0000

The same pattern – initial heavy pollution followed by cleaner air and a more pleasant environment – can also be found in places like Kawasaki near Tokyo. The air quality back in the 1960s was apparently horrendous, with traffic cops needing to resort to oxygen masks; I found no trace of that when I went there in the late ’80s. It’s possible there may be various causes for the improvement, including strict Clean Air laws and the shift of heavy industry to other countries, but smarter, cleaner technology was surely part of the equation as well. Likewise, here in London the air is better than it was during the 1950s, despite the traffic. It does seem hypocritical to deny the Indians and Chinese the same benefits of car-ownership that we enjoy in the West; rather than trying to stuff the genie back into the bottle, it seems to me that the best way forward would be a combination of sensible legislation, decent town planning – and smarter, ever more efficient and innovative technology.

By: MCLA

MCLA — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 17:25:00 +0000

My colleagues here in India are worried that Tata's low budget car will worsen the traffic congestion--and they'll have trouble driving their SUVs! I find their concern for the environment really touching.

As for the lefties, they want the poor to lead a simple life in quaint little villages, i.e., remain perpetually poor so that they can be endlessly patronized. God forbid they get corrupted by rich people's vices like the car or the air-conditioner!

Cheers!

By: BobH

BobH — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:44:47 +0000

I had the pleasure of a very brief business visit to India about a year ago. In addition to verifying that there are, indeed, cows wandering everywhere, one of my main observations was the number of small motorbikes in traffic and, more particularly, the number that had two or more passengers.

To make it worse, the typical overloaded bike had a woman in back who, because of her clothes, was riding side-saddle (!). Not only was she going to die in a crash, but even a sudden stop would put her face-first into the pavement.

And this guy's worried about the car meeting safety standards?

Perhaps if this were pitched as a women's rights issue, the lefties would like it.

By: Some guy

Some guy — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:47:32 +0000

Nice post, but you made a slight typo.

You meant 19th-century Pittsburgh, right? The USA wasn't even a twinkle in anyone's eye in the 10th century...