June 12

For those of you not of the conservative persuasion, I'm sure today holds no particular significance. But for those of us who are, we might remember that on this day in 1987, Ronald Reagan delivered his famous "Tear Down This Wall" speech. I know that I am a pretty big Reagan fan, but we really haven't had a president in recent history that could speak so well and leave such important speeches behind. In addition to this great speech, many will also remember his Evil Empire speech, the D-Day memorial speech about the boys of Point du Hoc, or the space shuttle disaster speech, where he eloquently described the astronauts who lost their lives as they "slipped the surly bonds of earth, to touch the face of God." It is moving stuff. Maybe I'm a bit sentimental in this way, but it has been a while since we had a president that could move us. Bush may be remembered for his "you are either with us or against us" challenge, Clinton for his "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Ms. Lewinski," George H. W. Bush for his "read my lips, no new taxes" pledge. But as the interval between the present and the last days of Reagan's administration lengthens, we learn more and more just how great a president he truly was.
On another note, I thought I might address a strategy endorsed by many on the left, including Al Gore, to beat oil dependence out of us. This is to increase the tax on gasoline. Seems like a good idea, right? Drive up the price, and we will turn to other alternatives. The problem is, we don't have those types of options. The average American may find it difficult to give up their car. This isn't Europe, and we don't consist primarily of large cities where public transportation is a valid option. Most Americans must travel to work. It is not feasible to set up a nationwide public transportation system. Even these new hybrid cars still require gasoline. And how will those on lower incomes afford these new, expensive hybrid vehicles?
When dealing with the war on drugs, many on the left think it is ridiculous to target and incarcerate the buyers of drugs. These are people with addictions who should be treated, not punished. The logical move is to target the suppliers. But they take just the opposite view with gas. They want to punish the users of gasoline. We are really the problem. This new tax would also be incredibly regressive. The lower the income, the more likely a person is to drive a less fuel-efficient car, and the harder they will be hit by any such gasoline tax hikes. It is such a nice sentiment from Al Gore, sitting in his energy-guzzling mansion, jetting around the planet (in private jets, guzzling jet fuel for his use alone), to lecture us on how we need to be more conservation-minded. We have yet to see these limousine liberals practice what they preach. The reality is that the average American is leaving less of a carbon footprint on this planet than any Al Gore or Sheryl Crow or Leonardo DiCaprio you want to trot out as they jet around the world with in private planes, or travel by limousine to awards banquets where others will praise their wisdom, or cruise around the country in gas guzzling tour buses.