Once again those ignorant cohearsed lawmakers of OURS want to use Federal money to bail out another industry and allow the corporate giants to once again reap the benefits. Those executives are making millions and millions on salary,bonuses,"company loans",and other little deals that are made to help them and the "Boys and Girls Club of Millionaires of Corporate America"team! When will enough Americans and OUR LAWMAKERS WAKEUP and say NO MORE!! The US Govern't. bailed out U S Airways and what did the executuves their do-They cut wages 41%,increased health care,and then "contracted-out" the jobs to lower wage and unskilled or adequately trained people while the exec's. stashed away millions and ruining dedicated former employees families,pensions,ESOPs',and their trust! Be careful who you fly next time! Will you or youloved ones make it safely? You can bet the executives are not flying their own,they use executive charter services! And when they do fly their own it is only for show! America needs to stop bailing out corporations especially if there are not any explicit stipulations in place! Remember they aren't loosing their homes,retirement,families, or having not to have anything under the Xmas tree for their(spoiled,greedy)kids.Happy Holidays!

Thank you, Barak and others who inspire US to stop wasting resources:

Waste of resources has caused the war in Iraq, the criminal invasion of Iraq was based on lies of WMD, of 9/11, of Reaganomic "voodoonomics" (George Bush Senior) that assumes that private profit justifies all and that consumption=economy.

That is wrong:  Basic economics 101 is the study of balancing supplies and demands, of producing enough to consume and consuming enough to produce in a series of interlinking cycles of life's genetic producers.  We need natural systems to produce enough to consume, to clean the air and water and inventions such as 85% ethanol fuel will help pull us out of this mess in Iraq.

But GW Bush just doesn't get it.

President Clinton and Vice President Gore inspired US to innovate and to produce riches of the earth enough to count.  So we prospered and produced the longest period of peace and prosperity in our nation's history (Edwards, 2004).

We can do that again.

But it takes brain power and positive will to produce a more positive future, and I don't see that in the White House now.  Perhaps some tutors would help....and fast, please.

I'm glad to see that my theory of a creative solution to every problem is "proven" again.  And, this is a great example.

What do we want?  Cleaner and more energy efficient cars.

What do US Auto manufacturers want?  Lower manufacturing costs (mostly employee wages and benefits).

So, as a slight extension to what Sen Barack and others have proposed, let's give them a tax credit (or even a cash payment) based on how much their auto sales exceed the current CAFE standard.

We wouldn't have to set the criteria -- some manufactures could go for hybrids others could take different approaches.  At the end of the year, a firm that has sales exceeding the CAFE standard would earn a credit, bonus, or something similar.  A firm that just met the CAFE minimum (and I do mean minimum) would not.

The payment could be earmarked to offset employee health care expenses so it wouldn't end up entirely in the pockets of shareholders and top executives.  The bottom line is that there's currently a penalty for not meeting CAFE standards, but there's no real reward for exceeding it.

This kind of proposal would support adequate health care, efficient automobiles, and continued investment in auto R&D.

It's creative and it's a can't lose proposition.  It -- or something like it -- has my support.

Keep creative!

Curt 81