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China Vies to Be World’s Leader in Electric Cars
Keith Bradsher, New York Times
TIANJIN, China — Chinese leaders have adopted a plan aimed at turning the country into one of the leading producers of hybrid and all-electric vehicles within three years, and making it the world leader in electric cars and buses after that.
The goal, which radiates from the very top of the Chinese government, suggests that Detroit’s Big Three, already struggling to stay alive, will face even stiffer foreign competition on the next field of automotive technology than they do today.
… But electric vehicles may do little to clear the country’s smog-darkened sky or curb its rapidly rising emissions of global warming gases. China gets three-fourths of its electricity from coal, which produces more soot and more greenhouse gases than other fuels.
(1 April 2009)
The Last Muscle Car
Mark Morford, San Francisco Chronicle
Sexy as a swollen porn star on meth, twice as useless
—
Have you seen this thing? This sexy macho bloated Hot Wheels fantasia dreamgasm of a car-like drunken child’s funbot crayon sketch?
No? Because it appears to be a vehicle that at least some across the Big Autosphere are still secretly praying, despite the sudden overthrow of — despite the deadly ultimatum for — General Motors, might yet prove to be a savior.
Indeed, it’s a car some hope will maybe, just maybe sell like crazy and restore a tiny bit of faith in big, thick, meaty, rather inane American cars that have no real place in the new millennium, but which for some reason they keep building anyway, presumably because aging frat boys you should never, ever date think they’re totally wickedcool and will therefore be willing to shell out 35 grand to own, unless they won’t.
Am I talking about the ugly-as-a-giant-vacuum-cleaner Chevy Volt? Am I aiming this admittedly overheated verbiage at the ruddy, useless Impala? No, I am not.
I am talking about the brand new, leering, pseudo-masculine 2010 Chevrolet Camaro.
What’s that you say? You had no idea that Chevy was resurrecting this rolling mullet from the mausoleum of the ’70s because, even after sucking up billions in bailout money, GM still doesn’t really have a single fresh and forward-thinking idea, and hence the best they can do is scrape the barrel of macho nostalgia in a desperate attempt to cater to male Boomers who drink too much light beer and think Maxim is the height of masculinity and are still debating which Van Halen vocalist totally ruled?
Well, they did. And it’s here. And they don’t.
(2 April 2009)
Also at Common Dreams.
Happy Motoring is a privacy right?
Hans Noeldner, Energy Bulletin
Given the fact that automobiles are involved in approximately 40,000 deaths per year in the United States, and given the inconvenient truth that automobile-centered lifestyles undermine, destroy, and prevent the formation of pedestrian-oriented, bicycle-friendly, transit-supportive “human-scale” habitat, tracking motor vehicle use makes a lot of sense. Privacy for people is great. Privacy for two and three-ton resource-gobbling, habitat-dominating, killing machines is not.
Consider aviation. Very few people are insane enough to demand privacy for aircraft. Careful surveillance – and onerous penalties for irresponsible pilots – go far to explain why flying is so astonishingly safe. Surveillance of passengers has sometimes degenerated to the absurd, but on the whole it too has been an incredible success. Big Brother watching the skies is actually doing a very fine job, thank you.
The basic problem in automobile-centric societies like our own is that most of us have lost any sense of distinction between our HUMAN selves and our automotive exoskeletons. Any restrictions on driving whenever, wherever, and as much as we want are seen as fundamental – even existential – threats. Opponents of Unlimited Happy Motoring must confront some very primal, powerful emotions – ones deeply rooted far back in the reptilian brain. How amazing to think that an industry with such a fervent ally in neurobiology has managed to go bankrupt!
(2 April 2009)
Hans is a regular contributor to EB. His blog is http://www.entropicjournal.blogspot.com/
Profits soar at Swiss Federal Railways
Swiss Info
Swiss Federal Railways says it made a profit last year of SFr345 million ($303 million) – up 329 per cent on the previous year.
It said higher passenger figures and good property investments explained the fact that profit was more than four times higher than in 2007.
The state-owned company said net profit had increased from SFr80.4 million and that the number of travellers was up 5.2 per cent.
There were 322.6 million train journeys last year, representing 16.14 billion passenger kilometres, the railways said. Rush hour passenger numbers increased by eight per cent.
The company’s freight-carrying arm, Federal Railways Cargo, announced a loss of SFr29.9 million for 2008, a markedly better result than the previous year, when it lost SFr190.4 million.
Federal Railways said it would need investments of SFr60 billion until 2050 for infrastructure and rolling stock, including SFr20 billion for rolling stock alone by 2030.
(2 April 2009)
Perhaps Switzerland would do better in railway management consulting than in tax havens. -BA
