History repeating itself

[Kneale Brownson]

At 07:20 PM 03/14/2002 -0500, George Selby wrote:

>At 03:56 AM 3/14/02, you wrote:
>>One does wonder..if polls show people really DO want efficient cars,
>>and American car makers haven't stepped up to the plate, why hasn't
>>Audi, BMW, etc?
>
>
>I think the result of the 'poll' you keep mentioning in your editorial 
>comments is due to the way the question is phrased.
>
>For instance, if you ask, "Would you like better fuel economy in your next 
>car?"  Surely everyone would respond, "Yes, sure, who wouldn't."
>
>If, on the other hand, you ask, "Would you like better fuel economy in 
>your next car, considering it will have to be a combination of slower, 
>smaller, and less crash-worthy, or burn a fuel other than gasoline (diesel 
>is usually more expensive than premium gas now, there isn't an 
>infrastructure for any other type of fuel.)"  In this case (and this is 
>the present case) Americans are answering (with their checkbooks,) NO!
>
>Remember, the best poll of all is the free-market capitalist economy.

But our "free-market capitalist economy" has governmental interventions 
that cause us, here in the USofA, to not even get to choose some of the 
better options in automobile features.