F150 Lightning gets the thumbs down by one owner.

[Acebird]

So we should all drive 18 wheelers?

[BeeMaster2]

No but a full sized pickup or suburban is a good compromise.
Jim Altmiller

[Ben Framed]

So we should all drive 18 wheelers?

Maybe you should stick to your 400 dollar E bike Brian; Just add a custom pull behind trailer (if you need to haul a load.)
PS do not forget to add emergency blinkers! 

[The15thMember]

Ace,
There is another reason to drive big trucks.
As a firefighter I see all kinds of accidents. If seen large pickups rip 4 10-12 pine trees out of the ground and the driver walked away. My daughter?s boyfriend had his three daughters in a pickup and had a head on collision with a small car. Airbag broke his jawbone and the girls only had seatbelt bruises. I helped peal the woman out of her car, broken leg, arm internal injury and massive facial injuries. We life flighted her to a trauma center.
It is pretty much the same thing with most small car collisions, whether it is a tree/barrier or another vehicle. Most of the passengers in large vehicles walk away.
Jim Altmiller

I never thought about that before, Jim.  I guess it's just basic physics. 

[Acebird]

All we need is a huge tax on gas guzzlers when they are used for pleasure or commuting.  It will only affect those that can afford it.  And as Jim has demonstrated the roads will be much safer.

[animal]

wow ... standard democrat tactics ...
Set forth an unworkable and illogical idea, when opposed retreat to "all we need is a new tax".
Next is to write it into the tax code to benefit the "friends" of politicians and create headaches for everyone else who gets to pay for it and/or give up on what they want. ... then the item in question can be banned since not enough of those using it are left to oppose the ban.

Here's the deal .. I don't care what my neighbor has in his driveway or what he's doing unless it interferes with me doing what I want. I have no desire to punish him for the choices he makes that I think are stupid. Why? I'm not a control freak.

[Ben Framed]

All we need is a huge tax on gas guzzlers when they are used for pleasure or commuting.  It will only affect those that can afford it.  And as Jim has demonstrated the roads will be much safer.

Perhaps instead, we should impose a heavy tax of those who would suggest such nonsense.. 
But like your proposal this would be unconstitutional too.

What we really need is a President who is a proponent for American and its well being, especially when it comes to energy. Maybe someday we can select and elect a leader who would put the well being of American Citizens first, and willing to tap into the almost 'unlimited' oil that we have right here beneath our own soil?
But wait! We had one!!

[animal]

Such a tax could be imposed as "constitutional" under current theory. We already have many such taxes on the books and the majority of them are excise taxes.
One that many of you guys pay and that prevented me from going into a side business is a tax on recreational outdoor equipment. I have several designs for fishing lures, mostly for largemouth bass. Most have worked, but are unremarkable compared to the wide variety already available. One however, is a topwater lure that I've caught quite a few on and is a little special. It can go away from you by twitching the rod tip and letting out line. It takes a little practice and timing , but it works. As long as it starts about 8' away, you can tease it to 50' away or so. (depending on how calm the water is, the elasticity of your line, and the switchiness of the rod)
Anyway, I looked into the idea of making and selling them. The excise taxes are figured on a per unit basis tied to the expected retail price and paid upon production of the units.
So ..
you owe the taxes before the first one is even sold.
In my case, the taxes were going to be higher per unit than the cost of production per unit ... and prohibitive.

So.. to all you fishermen out there .. Y'all can't have one !

[Kathyp]

All we need is a huge tax on gas guzzlers when they are used for pleasure or commuting.  It will only affect those that can afford it.  And as Jim has demonstrated the roads will be much safer.

it is typical leftist thinking that people need to be forced to comply.  How about you drive what you want to drive and let me drive what I want to drive.  You can be all self-righteous as I pass your little sewing machine on the freeway and I can just smile down at you.  Everyone wins.

[Acebird]

Typical republican.  Love to control others but can't stand anyone controlling them.  Enjoy the gas prices.

[Acebird]

Anyway, I looked into the idea of making and selling them. The excise taxes are figured on a per unit basis tied to the expected retail price and paid upon production of the units.
So ..
you owe the taxes before the first one is even sold.

Usually refers to items consumed not sold retail.  Who is your tax advisor?

[animal]

Ace, to be honest, that was over 35 years ago. Rules may have changed, I don't know. I talked to agents in the local tax offices (feds and state) and they laid out the process based on what I told them I wanted to do/charge/etc. I wasn't well established yet in my actual business and didn't even have an accountant then. The agents in both offices took down my info, checked with others in their offices, and got back to me a week or so later if I remember correctly. I do remember both came back with the same answer.
No biggie, It's not like there's a fortune in it anyway ...
Now, the way I see it, it's too much hassle and expense to bother checking into it. If you want, you can chalk it up to a side effect of regulation limiting the market by increasing costs, rather than limiting through direct taxation. Tax advisors cost money. I'm no longer willing to bother.

[Michael Bush]

>All we need is a huge tax on gas guzzlers when they are used for pleasure or commuting.

Why not just leave them alone?

>Typical republican.  Love to control others but can't stand anyone controlling them.  Enjoy the gas prices.

I don't want to control anyone.  The gas prices under republicans are always lower.

[Acebird]

Tax advisors cost money.

The whole process of designing a widget, patenting a widget and bringing it to market costs barrels of money.  Then you need enough capital to protect the patent from those that will ignore it.
You could document how to make the widget so someone could make it themselves and sell that knowledge.  If it is really that good you could make a bundle on the internet.

[Acebird]

The gas prices under republicans are always lower.

And the world suffers greatly for it just so they can drive their gas guzzlers.  I am of the belief that you should leave your children a better life not worse.  But republicans don't care about other people not even their own children.

[Michael Bush]

The people who suffer most when gas prices are high are poor people.  Why do you want to punish poor people?

>But republicans don't care about other people not even their own children.

You say the MOST ridiculous things.  That statement is patently absurd.  Everything about it is absurd.  What is worse, I think you actually believe it.

[animal]

Tax advisors cost money.

The whole process of designing a widget, patenting a widget and bringing it to market costs barrels of money.  Then you need enough capital to protect the patent from those that will ignore it.
You could document how to make the widget so someone could make it themselves and sell that knowledge.  If it is really that good you could make a bundle on the internet.

1st deflection. .. only true if you are talking about bringing it to market on a large scale upon introduction.
2nd deflection. .. an alternate business model based on intellectual property and using infrastructure which did not exist at the time.

The point was that this was a real world example of govt. regulation and taxation (through a convoluted tax system) suppressing the market.

Very small example. inconsequential in itself. a niche market toy. because of how it works, it may not even be patentable. It is just a "shape" having different densities at different points, to transfer instabilities to linear motion. If people want to make their own, they can look at a "rattleback" and think in terms of the object surrounded by fluid rather than contacting a surface ... to produce a preferred "linear" motion rather than "reversing" a spin. Energy is stored when it dives from a yank on the line.

There. You have as much explanation of how to make one as you need. Probably isn't worth it to you ... just as it isn't worth it to me to navigate around a govt. roadblock to the market.

added hint.. it needs a swivel where line is attached

[animal]

what I didn't mention, because it seems so obvious to me ...
Although this example is inconsequential measured against the market, how many other "inconsequential" ideas of others have also been prevented from coming to market ? How many have there been that could have been game changers ?
Even this regular old guy from Mississippi has several others (completely unrelated to fishing) that have been prototyped and used, but production is prevented by costs to comply with regulation (and not just taxes). I also have friends with some pretty useful original gadgets ... anecdotal, yes ... but possibly a microcosm.

I suspect that the total of the never-produced ideas would have been far more significant to the market than anyone is willing to admit.

[Ben Framed]

Scotty Kilmer put this out just 10 hours ago..


https://youtu.be/KpdCvw7tqOI?si=dw27z-xSO8ECeRva

[Acebird]

what I didn't mention, because it seems so obvious to me ...
Although this example is inconsequential measured against the market, how many other "inconsequential" ideas of others have also been prevented from coming to market ? How many have there been that could have been game changers ?
Even this regular old guy from Mississippi has several others (completely unrelated to fishing) that have been prototyped and used, but production is prevented by costs to comply with regulation (and not just taxes). I also have friends with some pretty useful original gadgets ... anecdotal, yes ... but possibly a microcosm.

I suspect that the total of the never-produced ideas would have been far more significant to the market than anyone is willing to admit.

If your widget cannot support taxation you don't even have a market.  Taxes are applied to profit.  Nothing is being suppressed.