|
The average American does not have the luxury of not watching dollars and sometimes pennies. The average person that buys something like an X5 is not often in that category. That's one reason why there has been discussion about a price cap on when the credit can be used, but the original bill also penalized the people that could benefit most from it because they did not pay in that full amount, so could not get the full credit, effectively pricing them out of the market for some EV or PHEV vehicles.
I would have bought the EV and PHEV that I did even without any incentives given my driving needs...mostly shorter distances at lower speeds (I live in a small city, and am retired). The tax credit was a bonus. The X5 is way over the average new car/vehicle purchase price.
I do enjoy not having to go to the gas station often...it was only twice in the first 9-months of ownership, and after a trip, it's now been nearly four months and the computer says I have 93% remaining. I certainly don't mind that I'm not spending money on gasoline, but I could if I had to.
The contrast here is that some people, earning minimum wage, may not be able to afford to drive to their job as the price of gasoline rises. If public transport is available to them, it may not be still running if they've got a late night job, or the service intervals are such that it means waiting maybe an hour for the next bus or train to get them home, then, they have to maybe walk home in the dark.
Too many people are looking out for just themselves, and not looking at society.
Wages for the average worker have been going down for decades while corporate executives has been rising. Most of the tax cuts given in the last presidency went to buy back schemes to prop up stock prices, not help raise wages. My portfolio liked it, but the average person doesn't have enough to pay their bills, so one is maybe out of the question.
|