The world witnessed the failure of a planned economy with the collapse of the Soviet Union on Dec. 31, 1991.
“The total number (of people) who died unnatural deaths under communist regimes,” according to Professor Mark Kramer from the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, “(is) upward of 80 million.”
There are many “progressive leftists” in America who ignore all these failures. They want to move us toward a planned society.
President Joe Biden and environmental extremists have set a goal of 50 percent for EV car sales by 2030. California has announced that any new vehicles sold within its borders by 2035 must be electric.
This is the government planning our automotive economy. It’s doomed to failure. There are plenty of examples to learn from. We only need to look at our history.
Not long ago, during President Barack Obama’s administration, the federal government gave $500 million in taxpayer funds to a solar power company called Solyndra. Most of us remember what happened. They went bankrupt in 2011.
Other taxpayer dollars wasted in green energy from the Obama-Biden administration include Abound Solar — $401 million; Fisker Automotive – $193 million; A123 Systems – $132 million; and ABB, Inc. – $12.6 million
The Concorde supersonic airliner was a joint failure of the British and French governments (the United States dropped out due to cost overruns). They spent $2.8 billion (over $20.6 billion today) to develop the plane. Britain and France never received compensation for their investment.
Air France’s final Concorde flight took place on June 27, 2003.
At the same time, Boeing started flying the 747. Its development cost was $1 billion, almost bankrupting Boeing. The difference: The iconic Queen of the Skies, 747, has been a 50-year success story.
Recently, Trump administration economist Steve Moore cautioned that EVs may be the auto market’s “next big flop.”
According to a story on FoxNews.com, “Ford Motor Company stands to lose $4.5 billion on its EV business in 2023. General Motors said it was restructuring EV goals, Honda shelved plans to develop affordable EVs with GM, and Hertz said it will slow their rate of purchasing them due to high repair costs.”
The story reported that Ford lost $62,000 per EV in the third quarter and EVs sit on dealer lots twice as long as gas and diesel-powered vehicles.
This all comes about even though the federal government is subsidizing EVs to the tune of $22 billion in taxpayer-funded handouts.
A Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) study reports that the average 2021 EV would cost up to $48,698 more to own over ten years without subsidies.
The TPPF study concludes, “It’s time for federal and state governments to stop driving the American auto industry off an economic cliff and allow markets to drive further improvements in cost and efficiency.”
One year ago, the Biden administration proudly announced awards of $2.8 billion in grants for EV battery manufacturers. These grants come from the Department of Energy (DOE).
That’s chicken feed compared to $400 billion in loans and loan guarantees for green energy the DOE is responsible for under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Offshore wind projects — another big push by Biden and environmentalists — are also struggling. Last month, the world’s largest offshore wind developer, Ørsted, canceled two significant projects off the New Jersey coastline along with projects in Maryland and Delaware.
In September, six Democratic governors told the Biden administration that offshore wind projects need more federal funding. They said the risk is because “states’ ratepayers may be unable to absorb these significant new costs alone.”
Expect to start seeing more bankruptcies from companies — both domestic and foreign — who have wasted taxpayer funds from federal grants and loans. Easy money is easy to waste.
Burt Folsom, historian and professor at Hillsdale College, said, “Economic growth comes from entrepreneurs risking their own money, not from politicians risking your money.”
