Encounters with Stupidity

According to NPR, the brainiacs in Hawai'i have done it: they've outlawed expensive gas! Now if they could only outlaw expensive food, housing, cars and clothing. Hey, why not just have the government decree that everything must be cheap? Better yet, let's make everything free! The problem with this idea is that it ignores reality. Gasoline is a consumer product. Products are created by companies (or individuals) in response to demand, and the price is set (ideally) by free trade balancing supply and demand. A government decree can force the price of a commodity lower, but the market will respond by producing less of the commodity. What will happen next in Hawai'i -- if this law is actually passed and enforced -- are fuel shortages. Suppliers will do everything they can to limit shipments of gas to Hawai'i. In a market when gasoline is a scarce commodity, why would any supplier sell it for 10 cents profit (if any) when they can sell it elsewhere for 25 cents profit per gallon? The same would happen if the US at large passed a similar law. What will happen after gas becomes scarce in Hawai'i? Most likely, the government will blame gas suppliers for being "selfish" and stingy (of course, they should be selfish... but that's a longer story). Then perhaps lawmakers will mandate quotas for the amount of fuel suppliers must provide. Now we have clearly entered the realm of statism, where the government is decreeing what commodities must be made available, and at what price and quantity. Of course, that doesn't work. People are not most productive when forced -- they are most productive when they are free to pursue their own ends and earn maximum profits for themselves. In fact, people are far, far less productive when forced (there are many blatant historical examples, Soviet Russia being the most obvious; many modern day African countries being the most pathetic). Eventually, complete government control of the economy is the result of this process. When this happens, most incentives are removed to produce anything. As profits fall, production will drop, and the government will try to force producers. Eventually they might take over the oil companies and try to run them themselves. Unfortunately, we know what happens in state-controlled economies. Without competition and the profit-motive, state-run companies invariably produce very little compared to private ones. The result: everything is more expensive, and individual right to property (free trade of his property) has been removed. In the end, government cannot force production, and it must not control prices -- not for practical reasons, but to protect the investments of individuals (property rights). We must have separation of Economy and State.

NEW! An excellent article on the subject of gasoline price controls.

I was confused about the weight of cars. For a long time, I thought my Subaru weighed about 2800 pounds, significantly less than the 3200 lbs I thought my brother's Prizm weighed. I'm still not sure where I got the 2800# number, because now I can't find it anywhere. A standard place to find the weight of most cars is on the driver's door jamb. This reported weight, given on a stamped sheet of metal or a metallic sticker, is (usually) the GVW, or Gross Vehicle Weight. This number reflects the maximum possible ("safe") weight of the car with a full load of passengers / cargo. If your maxium payload is 1045#, as is the Forester's, the actual approximate weight of the car is the GVW minus the payload. However, there are other things that might count as payload, such as fuel, oil, coolant, etc. Enter the curb weight. So far as I can tell, this is the weight of the vehicle adjacent to a curb, or not, but ready to drive (i.e., with all fluids, with fuel, and ready to go). As far as I'm concerned, that is the real weight of the vehicle. The weight one might use to compare one vehicle to another. The gross weight of a 2004 Forester is about 4150 (I say about for the following reasons: reported vehicle weights sometimes, but don't always, distinguish between an automatic and manual transmission and various trim levels. On the '04 SF, the XS comes with discs in the back, limited-slip in the back, and other different things than the base X model. So don't tell me it weighs exactly the same. Automatics appear to weigh 100+ pounds more, too. End of parentethical remark.) Curb weight of the 04SF-XS: 3105#. Light! For comparison, let's consider a 1995 Honda Accord EX, AT, I4, like the one my (now former) roomates just purchased. It has a curb weight of 2871#. So, my guess it that Ryan's and Dad's Prizms don't weight 3200 pounds each. That is probably the GVW. With a payload of 700 to 800 pounds (as a guess), that means the Prizm probably weighs ~2400#, a few hundred less than the slighter larger and bigger-engined Accord.

I decided to debadge my Forester. Lately I've become more picky about things being neat and tidy, my car included. This may be related to the days I spent with Mike Geerts, who is semi-maniacal when it comes to cars being perfect, clean and shiny (and I mean semi-maniacal in a good way. I get it now.). I found this page about a guy's Forester XT (FXT), and cogs began to turn in my mind. Well-oiled, smoothly turning cogs, just like a perfectly rebuilt bike hub. When you get it just right -- no play, and smoooooth as silk. Ah. Anyway, back to the Forester. I went on some Subaru chat rooms, where they cautioned that some of the badging has (alignment?) holes behind it. Specifically, I read that the "U" and the "R" in Subaru has these holes. However, upon removing the "Forester" badge, I discovered two holes (see photos)!

Today I did some more Googling and I find that, indeed, these holes are discussed as a known issue. So duh on my part for trusting a solitary online source. Yo estoy stupido. Anyways, apparently other Forester Debadgites put the "AWD" emblem over said holes. Or you can do like Craig, and salvage a Beetle "Turbo" badge. Unfortunately (everywhere but at the gas pump), I didn't get the turbo model.

Recently I recieved a report from United Health, my health care provider through the U of A. At least, I think that is where I got this. In part, it read:

"Since 1990, when UnitedHealth first issued its national health report, the health of all Americans has improved by 16.9%. Plummeting infant-mortality rates, down 32% since 1990, a 34% drop in occurrences of infectious diseases, a 36% decline in the rate of motor vehicle deaths and a 24% decrease in the number of regular smokers are primary reasons for the upswing in the nation's health."

Yeah, I also found it on MSN.

Now, those stats are pretty darn amazing. Especially when you consider how far we've come in the previous 150 or 200 years. Still, doctors don't do much except prescribe medicene. (I think the real heros here are in pharmacueticals... and that includes Big Pharm.) The only exception are surgeons. They actually get in there and do some cutting and mending. I think of surgeons as technicians of the body. The body itself does most of the healing, growing new cells, reattaching nerves, and all the ultra-complex biochemistry stuff. Regular pill-pushing doctors don't seem to do much at all. They sure don't keep track of your particular case and illness. I've learned this personally, but also my Grandpa is going through it right now with his fight against cancer. The doctors don't even remember things like: "When is he due for his next chemo treatment?". Amazing. You must be your own advocate. Lance Armstrong said that, so have others. Check out his recent Playboy interview -- it mentions some things he did during his cancer treatment to try to increase his odds a bit.

But now back to the astounding stats, above. How is this happening? Cars are clearly getting safer, and I don't think people are driving better (as an aside, what's up with saying "folks" when we mean "persons" or "people"? It started with G.W., and now all folks do it...). Speed limits in most areas are at an all-time high... 80 mph soon in Arizona, at least on parts of I-10 in southern AZ. I have some speculations, but this blog is getting too long already. Two more things: 1) I finished Spanish 101. The forgetting process is already kicking in. 2) Check out KXCI's stream for a taste of Tucson radio. Skip Democracy Now!, though.