Yesterday I came very close to buying the Supra that has been shown and written about in the previous two posts. After driving the car and returning home from the dealership, whose salesman I told the likelihood of my buying the car was better than 50-50, I placed an order to sell a small part of one of my retirement portfolios to help pay for the car.
When I woke up this morning, however, all of my instincts were screaming at me not to buy that car. I have learned that I ignore my instincts at my own peril. I cancelled the order to liquidate assets in my retirement portfolio.
As I write this, hours before it will be published, the dealership does not know of my change of heart. We were treated very well and the car drove fantastically. I really don’t know why I am not going through with the purchase, only that something in (what’s left of) my brain is telling me a resounding “NO!” If I am not 100% enthusiastic about buying that car, then I shouldn’t buy it.
I still think it is likely I will buy a Supra early next year–remember that I had originally agreed to purchase one in September, 2022 but the dealer backed out a few days later when the repairs to my Z06 took longer than expected–but at this point I cannot call that a certainty. It is not a case of analysis to paralysis, but simply listening to my inclination.
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From Seth Moulton, House Representative from Massachusetts:
“I have two little girls; I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.”
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This CNBC article reports that Toyota is publicly stating that California’s EV mandates that begin in 2026 are impossible to meet. The People’s Republic of Crazifornia is mandating that 35% of new vehicles sold in the state in 2026 must be “zero-emissions.” Of course, they really mean zero tailpipe emissions because, according to Volvo, the production of a battery-electric vehicle produces 70% more greenhouse gases than the production of an ICE-powered car.
Jack Hollis, COO of Toyota Motor of North America, said, “I have not seen a forecast by anyone … government or private, anywhere that has told us that that number is achievable. At this point, it looks impossible. Demand isn’t there. It’s going to limit a customer’s choice of the vehicles they want.”
Actually, a total of 12 states and the District of Columbia have adopted the California rules, although for most of them the 35% rule begins in 2027. Hollis also said, “If the mandates are unchanged, it will lead to “unnatural acts” in the automotive industry that have already begun at some automakers, where companies are supplying states which have agreed to the rules with a disproportionate amount of electrified models. It’s going to distort the industry. It’s going to distort the business. Why? Because it’s unnatural to what the current demand in the marketplace is.” NO STATE is even close to that proportion at present; only California, Colorado and Washington are even currently at 20 percent or higher.
I guess Toyota would be cutting off its nose to spite its face simply to stop selling all new cars in those dystopian states. If EV subsidies are reduced or eliminated under the new Administration, demand will fall even in those states. Smug, self-righteous and arrogant is a road to ruin and to tyranny.
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“But you ought to let the Jews have Jerusalem; it is they who made it famous.”
– Winston Churchill
#ToTheBrinkButNotOver