Well noted for their catchy acronyms, the Federal Government has instituted the CARS program, Cash Allowance Rebate System, which attempts to stimulate the automobile industry while at the same time healing the perceived by the left sick environment. The bill authorizes car dealers to offer up to a $4,500 rebate to buyers who traded in their clunkers for more fuel efficient models. The program allocated a billion dollars for this purpose, which was supposed to last four months, but which lasted 4 days. The Congress has now added another 2 billion to the program, which, if recent history holds, will last about 8 days. But the problem is not that the government underestimated the number of people who would take advantage of the program, it is that the government has mandated that the clunkers, many in good running condition, be utterly destroyed. This has the direct consequence of reducing the inventory of used cars available to those less fortunate souls who cannot afford a new car, and by interfering in the market, the government has made used cars more expensive. But the fact that poor people will have to pay more for a used car is quite beside the point to the government, who are congratulating themselves on a program that will, they believe, reduce the carbon footprint those poor people are inflicting on the planet by driving used cars, defending themselves by pointing out that while used cars may be more expensive for poor people who need them to drive to work, the government has also addressed and solved that problem by substantially reducing the number of jobs there are for poor people to drive to. So from the point of view of the Obama administration, this is a win win situation.

  

 

There’s nothing wrong with a nice trade

That takes cars off the market

You get a nice car newly made

And have a place to park it

And even though some low class slob

Could use some transportation

To get him to his low class job

The government’s creation

Of this fine plan will lead to more

Clean air on this fine planet

And show those clunkers out the door

At least that’s how they plan it

Of course we know all guv’mint plans

Lead down to deep perdition

So I intend to keep my vans

Regardless of condition