I saw a good alternative to the gas tax holiday yesterday. It essentially goes that, instead of trying to offer a windfall profits tax, which, I agree, I don't want the government dictating the amount of profit a company can make, that the federal government just scrub from the tax code all of the tax breaks that oil and gas companies get. Obviously, if they're making record profits, they don't need any more help from the people of this country. It also falls in line with the thinking that the country shouldn't be dictating profits, therefore, by giving them a bunch of tax breaks, we're doing the same thing, just in the opposite direction of what a windfall tax does.
Also, I watched the video you sent featuring Cato's Jerry Taylor. He does a good job of debunking the benefits of the plans offered by Clinton and McCain. I'm just kind of confused why he's against a federal gas tax that maintains federal roads, when he seem to be just fine with state gas taxes that maintain state roads. It's, in my opinion, a weird conclusion to make, except from the view that the federal government shouldn't really be doing anything. I don't know why state governments collecting money and maintaining roads is better than the federal government doing it.
I do like that he calls the gas tax a "usage fee", because that's exactly what it is, as long as it's being used to build and maintain the roads we drive on, and not appropriated for some other use. I've been doing some basic thinking about the role of government, thinking about taxes as either "usage fees", or used as a form of punishment, to dissuade some activity, where any money collected goes to help reduce some unwanted activity. Like I said, very basic thinking, I might have something greater to discuss in a week or so.
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Despite you wanting me to use new posts, I don't think this response really warrants one since I basically agree. It really is a "comment". I absolutely think the government should get rid of the subsidies and tax breaks given to oil companies. They should get no special treatment whatsoever. As for his comments on the federal taxes being used for federal roads, I think he was trying to say that the states should take care of interstate roads because when the fed does it, they pander to the more populated or more influential states, leaving other federal roads in less influential states in disrepair. Plus theres the complication of having an entire federal branch of government, and a federal gas tax to boot, devoted only to the upkeep of federal roads. It would be much simpler, and better managed, to have the states take care of their stretches of said interstates. If the fed is bad at one thing, and we know they are terrible at many, its micromanagement.
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