Let me be clear, it WILL hurt to gas The Presciousssss up. But I can handle it. My concern is with those who can't.
Yay! More taxes!
Yeah, we just got hit with more gas tax. I say that, because some apologists for the yahoo’s we have sent to Sacramento seem to think these are, like, brand new, man. Like, no one was paying gas tax, and now there is one, and that magical infusion of money is gonna get laid on our roads and turn them into gold.
Heh. Ok, slight exaggeration, but yeah, we have been paying a gas tax. One of the highest in the nation.
You know who hasn’t? Electric car drivers.
So give that Tesla a big thumbs up when it passes you. Those drivers pay no gas tax, therefore you get to pay for the road...for them. You also helped them buy the damned thing, but that’s another story for another day.
I am like most Americans who actually pay taxes, I grouse about it. We get to. That money is taken from us. And when it is magically taken from us and handed to others, without even a kiss, mind you, it peeves me. Though it’s unlikely for the reason you think.
You see, I am not anti-tax. I believe taxes are the grease in society's wheels. Taxes are why we have roads, water for our cement ponds, and a place to flush our poo. We still get to grouse about paying them...but there is no getting around the collective need to flush, drink, and get from A to Z.
My problem with taxes has always been the bait and switch, which brings me back to the roads. The crappy, damaged roads we have already paid to have fixed. Between the taxes and fees, (and I use that term loosely,) that you pay to register and fill up your tank, you have paid to keep up on the roadwork.
That’s a big fat pile of money, though, and you know what big fat piles of money do in Sacramento? That’s right, those glistening mounds are fondled till they disappear, by the very lawmakers we HOPE will be Scrooge McDuck. They aren’t. The money you pay for roads goes right into the general fund, and like magic, it’s gone.
Cue the pearl-clutching and rending of garments. The cries that the roads are, “just turrible!” Something must be done!
And so it was. With no small amount of condescending smarm from our governor, who called those in opposition to the increase, freeloaders. Only if they drive an electric car, governor. But I digress.
The gas tax today is 12 cents per gallon higher than it was yesterday. Your car registration fee is going up too. Now, Mr. Tesla will pay 100 bucks a year to drive on those roads. You’ll end up paying a lot more than that, but hey, some folks are special-er than others. Suck it up, buttercup.
BUT WAIT! That's not all!
If you think you’ll only pay at the pump, have we got a wonderful set of Ginsu knives for you!
As a bonus, with the increase in the price of petrol, comes higher prices on virtually...everything!
See diesel went up 20 cents a gallon, because we can! And that means prices go up on anything that needs to be transported to you. Food, for instance. It’s gonna cost more to get it to the store, so when you buy that kale salad you aren’t going to eat, you get to pay more for that, too. In other words, your life will get exponentially more expensive, in a state where most people struggle paycheck to paycheck, and can barely pay their rent.
So put that in your pipe and smoke it. For an additional fee, of course, we don’t want you engaging in unhealthy behaviors. Heh. LH.