It was one of those small incidents that stays with you forever. The driver of the Volkswagon I was a rear-seat passenger in was glaring in his rear view mirror.
He began to swear, shifted gears and accelerated. I turned around and saw — nothing.
“Goddamned pickup trucks”.
I looked again. Sure enough, we were being followed by a contractor’s half-ton. It wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary – the mere presence of the imposing grill was enough to intimidate the jazz musician behind the wheel of our German-engineered shoebox.
Until that moment, I’d never really understood how different my perspective was from that of those living in suburban southern Ontario. I hadn’t seen the truck, because well….
While Liberal leadership candidate Gerard Kennedy can be forgiven for not having driven half his life on rural roads, one would think he might have cruised a few parking lots for an SUV “headcount” before coming up with gems like this;
In an interview with Canadian Press, Kennedy said he thought it was time for Canada to impose a tax on gas guzzlers.
He also speculated that he might try running for a federal seat in Lethbridge.
Yeah. Sure he will.
(Reminds me of this Kennedy quote sent on by a reader, from the Winnipeg leadership debate– “By 2010, 100 per cent of the population growth will be from immigrants.”)
Kennedy might run in my riding, what a laugh if he thinks he could win. Better men than him have tried and gone on to nowhere. The majority of voters in this rural riding drive pick-up trucks and SUVs. There is no place in Alberta he could win, not even landslide Annies riding, once it was discovered the rigging of the voters list. Has this man looked at the margin of victory Rick Casson got, and has repeatedly received, in his elections. And, I should also mention this riding has never elected a woman, but every election the same 2 women run for the NDP.
Gerard Kennedy is no Sandra Pupatello or John F. Kennedy!!!!!!
I’ve worked for Chrysler for 20 years and i think Kennedy might be a little ignorant in his comments.
There is ALREADY a gas guzzler tax put on new vehicles.The size of the tax depends on the fuel rating of the car amd specs such as motor and vehicle size.This tax can go as high as $7000.
Perhaps being a Liberal it might make more sense for him to start an suv registry.I’m sure the Liberals know a few advertising agencies to handle the pr.
This “Mad-AT-The-SUV’ thing. I think what gets under peoples skin is; not the work related SUVs and big “half tons” on the road, but the people cruising the higways and streets in these road-hogs just for transportation. Or just for kicks. They can be a danger and a menace to others. On the other hand semi trailer trucks are much bigger, but they are hauling our goods. And semi drivers are for the most part, good drivers.
Liberals are corrupt theives and liars, but they get away with it. So if criminal law doesn’t apply to Liberals, could we at least tax them in order to control their numbers?
The only solution is to start lynching the liberanos at every opportunity.
I wonder what the stats are? How many people have been maimed or killed by “SUVS” as opposed to say street racing in small souped up honda civics.
There was a time when you could consider semi drivers as good drivers, but these days there are too many drivers on the road with a lack of experience.
The problem (as is usually the case) lies with lack of common sense and inability of the drivers.
B. Hoax Aware: As a high-miler motorcyclist I agree with your observation about SUV I-own-the-road-and-half-your-lane-too arrogance BUT that is an URBAN phenomenon, not RURAL. Kennedy is a mere anti-ruralist like the gun-banners.
Kate, if you think there is a shortage of pickup trucks/large SUVs in Southern Ontario, you’d be really wrong. It wouldn’t surprise me to hear there are more of them in Mississauga than in all of Sask. Difference here is that most aren’t work trucks – they’re used exactly the way of your experience, to intimidate the sh*t out of everybody else. Come first snow here, the big $70K SUVs stay in the garage (Jeep and Ford Exploder owners still run around). Kennedy likely doesn’t drive much – many politicos here get driven (or it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that he has one – just doesn’t want everybody else to…that would be ideologically consistent). nobody in the GTA needs an SUV, except for some of the trades, not even in the winter. They’re bought because, well, just because, and to cut people off at merges, turn lanes, and lane changes.
it would be unfair to tax working vehicles and i can understand how this would piss off farmers and others who rely on their large wheels for a living. however, in crowded places like southern ontario, many of us wouldn’t mind seeing a few less smog alerts. getting unnecessary vehicles of the 400 highways would be a great thing. cars and trucks are a necessary part of many people’s lives. however, no one promised you the “right” to sit solo in your SUV on the 401 daily while pumping pollution into everyone’s air. tax the big wheels in toronto!
Skip:
Why are you blaming the vehicles for the bad habits of the drivers?
What? Moi jealous? No. Moi loves my taxes.
Luigi Carboni lives in Westmount, shops at Macy’s (shirts made of the finest Egyptian linen), skis at Aspen, holidays on the Riviera, parks his Lear at Dorval (free), drinks organic coffee (grown in the shade), commutes to Ottawa to work via Via (first class). Quel lifestyle?
Touche! Carboni wins again: a free subsidy: It’s called a “tax”.
This copy is a winner for bald-faced ripoffs by the elites. …
Quebec unveils carbon tax
Globe and Mail – 16 Jun 2006
QUEBEC — Quebec plans to adopt tough vehicle emissions standards and will become the first province to levy a “carbon tax” on oil and gas companies as part of an ambitious plan to fight global warming. The …
Happens on the prairies too…. folks who don’t need a pickup or ‘ute drive them to flaunt affluence… why else would Cadillac and Lincoln manufacture them, or for that matter Lexus, Porsche, and BMW? I’d stack my trusty Ram 4WD up against them off-road any day, but of course I actually use mine for fishing and hunting, so know HOW to drive in “4-by”, plus I haul a trailer.
It is still up for debate whether global warming is caused by man, or simply another in an endless cycle of natural cooling and warming cycles.
Until the jury is back, please refrain from judging those who have decided that an SUV is the best choice for their family’s needs.
Happens on the prairies too…. folks who don’t need a pickup or ‘ute drive them to flaunt affluence… why else would Cadillac and Lincoln manufacture them, or for that matter Lexus, Porsche, and BMW? I’d stack my trusty Ram 4WD up against them off-road any day, but of course I actually use mine for fishing and hunting, so know HOW to drive in “4-by”, plus I haul a camper. Kennedy’s proposal strikes at the heart of my recreation activities, (and the livelihood of trades and others with legitimate needs for a truck) and won’t affect the behaviour of the affluent urban SUV drivers one iota… just give them more to flaunt.
The point isnt that city folk dont need a gigantic SUV or a hummer, thats thier problem. The point is that the Liberano$ want to exert control over the people using taxes.
The former Soviet Union was about “need”.
City folk don’t need a lot of things. If Kennedy wants to be consistant, why not place an energy surtax on monster homes, private swimming pools, riding mowers and saunas?
Right on Kate!
How about boats, atvs, the list is endless.
Damn,, dont do that Kate,, I decided to raise my kids before jumping into the guy with the most toys win contest. The youngest goes to Queens next year, that would be just totally unfair. But seriously, interesting suggestion, how much power does a heated inground pool use up in a year, and lets relate that to the crap that comes out of a ancient coal fired electrical generating plant here in ON. Would love to see those numbers.
There is already a tax on gas guzzling SUVs. It is called gas taxes. When it costs over $70.00 to fill up my jeep, I am paying half that in taxes.
Typical lefty bull. Keep piling on those taxes.
enough
davidson said: however, no one promised you the “right” to sit solo in your SUV on the 401 daily.
Rights aren’t GIVEN or PROMISED to you.
You should think of rights in the negative sense: the right NOT to be inteferred with when pursuing peaceful self interest.
“getting unnecessary vehicles of the 400 highways”. Who decides “necessary”. Shall we have “use” rules now … cops stopping us and interviewing us on the side of the road: “Sir, and what it the nature of your trip?”
Shall we now have a rights registry, a full and complete list of “permitted” behaviours.
um….my Nissan X-Trail gets about 30 miles/gallon city and about 37 on the highway … it’s by no means a gas guzzler. Being a new father I have no idea how we’d fit a baby seat, the baby’s stuff, a lab/border cole cross in the back, and both my wife and I in our Mazda 323 sport and still be able to see the road.
What really gauls me in BC is the people that don’t have, can’t afford, or maybe don’t need vehicles for their jobs, get suplimented already for their transit costs in the form of Gas tax we drivers in the lower mainland are forced to pay every time we buy gas. Rather then pay a higher fare, the socialist minded politicians decided to add a translink tax raising gas buy about 0.08 / litre and now some of these clowns are screaming we need a tax on the SUV’s to keep our transit costs down…
Here’s a thought… Translink should have all their gov’t suppliments cut and be run like a real business… they’d instantly fire all the over paid big wigs, hire non-union staff, put in turn stalls and camera’s instead of the “honor system” that allows the drug dealers and criminals free access to the rail system, hence also adding a level of security to the system because only paying passingers would have access. Then the Transit police, who are carrying guns, could instantly be sent to area’s where obvious transiants and vagrents are congragating and move them out… They might even find they can keep the system cleaner, safer, and at the end of the day even make a profit…
We got the Xtrail for the simple fact that it would be safer, got good milage, had space and provided a view equal to other SUV’s that are on the road so we could both see and be seen
Greenies have been bitching about SUVS for a long time now. They dont seem to be getting any traction, at least not out here in B.C.
I think the reason is that you cant convince people of the validity of their claims when its all based on emotion. Where are the stats to prove the “gas guzzler” claim?
As Mr. Ed mentioned his SUV uses less gas than a lot of smaller cars on the road today.
I have a chevvy pickup (4X4). My neice has a suburban of the same year. If i was to put a matching canopy on my pickup you couldnt tell the difference. We both get about the same mileage, 25 mpg. I used to have a small Nissan pickup, and it got 22mpg.
BTW, i notice a marked increase in the number of hummers around here, im seriously thinking of making one of those my next vehicle. They look like a safe mode of transport for my loved ones.
Poor Gerard Kennedy. He is about to get kicked and won’t get elected anywhere except in Toronto, maybe. Perhaps my fondest moment was Gerard canvassing the Ontario Public Service picket line in 2002 while an opposition NDP. While I waited the mandatory 5 minutes to be able to cross the picket line to resume my Management Board consulting gig, Gerard was shaking hands with the velve socialist. The picket line at Queens Park vanishes at 2:00 PM everyday. Gerard was a regular on the lines during the useless strike featuring Union Leader getting nothing after 6 weeks on strike, except maybe some extra pay to keep the Mercedes Benz she tooled around town in.
Anyway, although a nice enogh guy [and a hockey player to boot] he is a loser. He lost to Dalton despite a huge lead and because he could not co-opt Tony Ianno, running his cousin’s Bevalacqua’s campaign, he was euchred by “Chretien’s” man Derwood McLintock. So his candidacy’s doomed because, as Kate has masterly displayed, he has elbow on the pulse of the people and he is nothing but a career Liberal chronic who, unlike the big guns, doesn’t know enough to bide his time. Iggy is going to win in a walk. PMSH and Iggy are going to go at it the House come net year an the politics will be elevated because they both are smart guys and they’ll rise to debate something meaningful. Kennedy’s a waterboy!
SUVs + Lefties.
What you gotta love about lefties is this: they scream about SUVs and high resource consumption, then scream at the high gas prices in the free market, which of course signal scarcity and the need for conservation. Scream about ME oil politics and scream against domestic oil and gas development in the middle of nowhere due to misplaced concern about cariboo (whose population soared after the pipeline from Prudhoe Bay in the 70s).
BTW, how many people are aware that Gore encouraged Clinton to release the oil reserves to help reduce prices?
No clues. No programmes.
There are at least four contractor’s pick ups on my southern Ontario suburban street, and I live in terror that one of them will appear behind me. Maybe i should stop playing jazz.
Seriously, Kate, if your friend drives around here and gets intimidated by a small truck, he better stop driving or move.
“Skip:
Why are you blaming the vehicles for the bad habits of the drivers?
Posted by: Lee at June 18, 2006 12:03 PM ”
Eh? I’m not. I’m blaming the drivers for misusing the vehicles… The “need” comment is sarcasm: part of the liberal catechism – no one “needs” pit bulls, handguns, big SUVs, property, self defence, an army, etc, etc.
“davidson said: however, no one promised you the “right” to sit solo in your SUV on the 401 daily.
Rights aren’t GIVEN or PROMISED to you.
You should think of rights in the negative sense: the right NOT to be inteferred with when pursuing peaceful self interest.
“getting unnecessary vehicles of the 400 highways”. Who decides “necessary”. Shall we have “use” rules now … cops stopping us and interviewing us on the side of the road: “Sir, and what it the nature of your trip?”
Shall we now have a rights registry, a full and complete list of “permitted” behaviours.
Posted by: Me No Dhimmi at June 18, 2006 12:53 PM ”
Dalton the Coward has already made that call for you in Ontario: They’re called HOV lanes and they are going in as I write. I understand Indians will be exempted from having to have more than one brave per vehicle in theses lanes, assuming they don’t just occupy them first.
Having been a motorcycle rider in Toronto for ten years of my young life, and having the scars to prove it, I take the greatest delight in driving the Dodge Ram 4×4 around downtown. The evil looks from drivers with Greenpeace stickers all over their clapped out rice burners, makes me feel all warm inside.
Plus, yuppies won’t cut you off. Awesome.
Since leaving the environment to GM and Ford and their consumers hasn’t worked, there are these options I can think of at the moment.
– Significant tax breaks are given to anyone buying a vehicle that gets better than ~40MPG.
– Penalties to automakers that don’t release vehicles that get at least 30MPG in the city, in 90% of their new fleets.
– Penalties to autobuyers that buy gas guzzlers. Obviously people in the West will be hurt by the third option, and since there’s no way to legally require a person not to drive in a city with their truck or SUV, the first two options are preferrable.
One point for Kennedy is that Westerners have seem to accept bad milage from their large vehicles, when that doesn’t have to be the case. There is hybrid, deisel, and electric technology that would vastly improve milage in even doolies, if only Ford and GM [Dodge, whatever] would change the focus of their production.
I’d be interested to know the percentage of those trucks Kate pictured, that actually drive out of city limits onto grid roads that might need a bigger vehicle.
When I first moved to Northeastern BC to work in oil and gas, the first morning I left my motel room to go to my Nissan truck. It looked quite comical to me. Overnight, it seemed to have vanished in the parking lot, surrounded by dozens of 3/4 and 1-ton 4WD trucks. My truck looked like a Smart Car standing among a fleet of army tanks. Up here, a truck is the ONLY thing you’re likely to see in your rearview mirror.
Now I understand why. Apparently after paying for gay pride festivals and needle exchange programs in large southern urban areas, there’s not enough left in the tax budget to fix the Volkswagen-size potholes on the streets up here in my town. Driving to work every day is an unintentional offroad adventure.
When I speak with my old friends in Toronto, I’m now amazed at the visceral hatred they have for people who own trucks and SUVs. They don’t just want to tax these people — they want to teach them a lesson; to punish them badly. The haters also seem to invent these elaborate imaginary biographies for SUV/truck owners: “Oh, they just want to show off”, or, “they must be sexually inadequate”. It won’t surprise me when they accuse SUV drivers of having a statistically higher likelihood of pedophelia, based on a study by the David Suzuki Foundation.
To a certain extent, I understand their ignorance. Their typical workday never involves asking a friendly local farmer to pull their 1-ton 4X4 work truck out of the mud with his 4 wheel drive tractor. Then they’ll argue that a city-dweller doesn’t *need* a truck (“need”, as defined by them, that is). Well, nobody *needs* a big screen TV or a dishwasher, but that doesn’t give me the right to lead a torch-wielding mob to their house, demanding they live the lifestyle I’ve chosen for them.
Maybe the SUV haters are really the ones who are trying to address their own inadequacy? I dunno, maybe I’ve just gone native, but I’m beginning to think the SUV Derangement Syndrome is just a symptom of what’s wrong with urbanites, and why I’m pretty glad I don’t live in the city anymore.
Yo! Don’t be hatin’ on the trucks.
Incidentally, you can buy a pretty nice late-model SUV or truck for a lot less than a hybrid car. What does that say about the demographic, I wonder?
I’ve read in an automotive magazine (can’t remember which) that even the new SUV hybrids don’t stack up to the statistics they claim.
We all know that SUV bashing is a vehicle (excuse the pun) for political platforming that has more vitriol than real substance. In political terms, its one of those “shiny metal objects” that most on the left cannot break their gaze from, no matter how irrational the base logic of the argument may be.
If greenhouse gases are actually doing what the scientists say they are doing, taxing SUV’s isn’t going to do much to mitigate climate change. I worked on some of the Kyoto issues and if what the evidence suggests is true, there is not a lot we can do to avert disaster without completely reversing our economic growth and plunging the world into chaos.
BTW, scientists also deal in the currency of “theory”. For one, I’m hoping that they are wrong, and/or, we will one day achieve the innovation capacity necessary to avoid our own doom. Through economic growth we can hopefully find salvation… who knows. Either way, I’d rather be in a warm SUV than in a cold, wet cave when judgement day arrives.
Cheers!
Leto
Lethbridge!!!!!!! , he can take over from Dar Hetherington. And she started off by buying a bike. she never rode it , just tossed it by the river, then rode the press to success , then infamy.
I love news like this. Liberal without a clue figures he can make a go of it in Alberta. All hat no cattle.
Why is it that Liberals don’t seem to have any knowledge of what taxes are already in place? Why is it that their supporters are happy to pay more, no questions asked?
Actually, maybe more of them should try getting real jobs and getting to them, all seasons, in rural ridings.
Happy Fathers Day to the real men in Canada (and elsewhere). The ones making the real sacrifices, paying the real taxes, living the real life.
I’m a 50’s something female,live in very rural Man.Am on my 4th Jeep (2 TJ’s,2 Liberty’s)and I find it insulting and arrogant for some politician from the “center of the universe”..Toronto,or Ottawa..telling me what I should/shouldn’t drive.I would love to see one of them trying to get to work after a good Manitoba blizzard,in one of those pukey little hybrids!I do emerg.call-outs on a frequent basis..work with families in crisis,and need to be able to get to my clients when neccesary.I am more than willing to pay the extra fuel costs,as if I can’t get to work,I don’t get paid,and kids could be in jeoprody.Leave me alone,I’ll drive what what I want !!! Sammy
And to add to Cheri’s Happy Father’s Day
…being real husbands and real Dads.
People buy SUV’s to intimidate other people?
Tell me, what kind of job do you need to have where you can make that kind of money where you can blow 70 K just to piss on other people.
“Incidentally, you can buy a pretty nice late-model SUV or truck for a lot less than a hybrid car. What does that say about the demographic, I wonder?”
This is absolutely true. Just picked up a used fully loaded Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 for $18,000. Mint, low mileage, with factory warranty. This vehicle originally listed for $54,700+ tax.
Dealers lots are full of used Explorers, Yukons and Grand Cherokees. I recently saw a top of the line Honda Civic SIR with a list price of $35,000. It is a no brainer and I just might buy a used Jeep for the girl friend and still be money in pocket over the Honda.
Elites back the homosexual agenda… Giddyup, Brison….
Brison getting backing of East Coast elite
HALIFAX (CP) – The captains of East Coast industry are quietly lining up to offer their financial support to Scott Brison, Nova Scotia’s dark-horse candidate in the federal Liberal leadership race
cnews
Yeah great Kate. We need to continue gratuitously driving an unnecessarily large SUV, and draining the earths resources because “we wouldnt want to be intimidated by a tractor trailer”. THAT makes a hell of a lot of sense. [/sarcasm]
KC,
Please provide a list of your character traits so that I may arbitrarily chose which ones conflict with my definition of societal norms.
Thank you.
Well I had to find another site for Caledonia information (I’ll get into that later) – Found this GREAT site http://www.citizensofcaledonia.ca Talk about informative.
I’ve been reading the reclaimation info site. I have been interested in the information about Caledonia, Ontario. For some reason this site now wants you to register – like I’m going to let someone have my IP address to read a site – I THINK NOT ! Who is this bozo anyways ! Talk about being into himself.
The site I found has all sorts of documents. It seems that the LIBERAL government is really good about just rolling over & playing dead when it comes to an issue. They need to address this issue with the Indians of Canada face on. They can’t just take the land back when the Indians yell – it’s mine – and keep it under a farce of Province Land and NEVER DEAL WITH THE ISSUE. The LIBERAL government doesn’t give a crap about the people involved who are tax payers. The government just bends over & take it up the a** by every Indian in Canada so they don’t have to deal with it. When will they finally realize that they are being made fools of. Can you say BOZO. Oh wait – isn’t that the guy who tried to control the other site…. Maybe there is a connection.
Check out this site – http://www.citizensofcaledonia.ca but beware – it does show what the media is afraid to show. Peaceful to the Indians (or as they call themselves Native) is what most Canadians call violence. Where is the Law & Order in this whole issue. Someone needs to stand up to the plate.
Well I had to find another site for Caledonia information (I’ll get into that later) – Found this GREAT site http://www.citizensofcaledonia.ca Talk about informative.
I’ve been reading the reclaimation info site. I have been interested in the information about Caledonia, Ontario. For some reason this site now wants you to register – like I’m going to let someone have my IP address to read a site – I THINK NOT ! Who is this bozo anyways ! Talk about being into himself.
The site I found has all sorts of documents. It seems that the LIBERAL government is really good about just rolling over & playing dead when it comes to an issue. They need to address this issue with the Indians of Canada face on. They can’t just take the land back when the Indians yell – it’s mine – and keep it under a farce of Province Land and NEVER DEAL WITH THE ISSUE. The LIBERAL government doesn’t give a crap about the people involved who are tax payers. The government just bends over & take it up the a** by every Indian in Canada so they don’t have to deal with it. When will they finally realize that they are being made fools of. Can you say BOZO. Oh wait – isn’t that the guy who tried to control the other site…. Maybe there is a connection.
Check out this site – http://www.citizensofcaledonia.ca but beware – it does show what the media is afraid to show. Peaceful to the Indians (or as they call themselves Native) is what most Canadians call violence. Where is the Law & Order in this whole issue. Someone needs to stand up to the plate.
I don’t begrudge people driving an SUV or 4X4 if they really need one, but most people living in urban areas don’t. Who would spend $100k on a Porsche Cayenne to drive off road? Certainly not someone who needs something practical. In any case, even if you don’t agree that global warming exists, these vehicles still pollute (bigger engine or more power=more pollution) and add to the smog problem in cities. Also, wasting resources just to enhance personal image is just plain selfish.
Higher fuel prices will sort things out:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0826/p01s03-woeu.html
“I’d be interested to know the percentage of those trucks Kate pictured, that actually drive out of city limits onto grid roads that might need a bigger vehicle.”
Saskboy – there’s mud on those trucks. The photo was taken in Delisle, for cryin’ out loud.
KC – I actually own three vehicles. My daily drive is larger than most late model SUV’s and gets about half the milage.
Iberia:
“but most people living in urban areas don’t need” [SUVs or 4X4″].
– Let’s let people decide what they need or don’t need.
Iberia:
“Higher fuel prices will sort things out”.
– Spot on. The free market will sort it out like it sorts everything else out and in the fairest, most efficient way possible if we don’t tamper with it and fiddle the price structure.
The point isnt that city folk dont need a gigantic SUV or a hummer, thats thier problem. The point is that the Liberano$ want to exert control over the people using taxes.
ALbertan Technophile:
Exactly. You got right to the core of this decayed apple. That attitude, that they know what’s best for us or our families. The idea where dumbbells but there “experts”.
One only needs to point out the smoking bans Helmut laws that cause more accidents than help( lack of peripheral vision ).
Than there is gun control(Make sure no one can defend themselves or even hunt), the farmer (wheat board) made to be a serf, by a branch of the Eastern federal government.
Now we here of taxes on junk food, & other products. How long before no one can afford anything but these fat pigs? They will have regulated our lives away while scooping up the tax loot.
All the while people believe there lies & scare mongering. To continue this charade. In the name of health, inclusiveness & there other chimeras.
One lone letter stopped 30,000 people from enjoying peanuts at a ballgame. Or football game for good(allergy to peanuts, so all must suffer for one irresponsible parent.). Utter insanity.
This is how they impose there social engineering. One safety law or ordinance at a time. To the point where any real freedoms are burned away, in the house of cards, law making they have created.
Soon your a slave to the cost of ANY would be vice they can invent. Let us say coffee. You pay they play. Thus another group ends up financially buried in a tax, attacking behavior.
Of course the designers of this Utopia are above these laws. They will make sure of that.
“KC – I actually own three vehicles. My daily drive is larger than most late model SUV’s and gets about half the milage.”
You must be so proud. Conservatives sure have a warped idea what constitutes a “right”. Gay people calling their relationship a “marriage”–not a right. Driving a huge vehicle that effects us all by warming up our planet and depleting the natural resources that we all depend on for survival–a right.
I am no stranger to rural areas and I drive a 98 Honda Civic, so your excuses seem pretty stupid.