Re: theWatt Podcast 77

Ben,
I think the goal to tax the wealthy for excess consumption is admirable, but I don't know if it is effective. The wealthy are already heavily taxed anyway. There is a progressive tax structure in the USA and the wealth pay a lot. Also, there are CAFE standards for cars. This means that US car companies must sell a lot of 35MPG cars to sell a 18MPG car. To do this, the car companies take less profit on the 35MPG car to allow them to take a larger profit on the 18MPG car that many people want. So the rich people are subsidizing the cheap US made cars. The European car manufacturers' don't meet the CAFE standard and the just pay a big fine to the EPA each year. This fine is passed on to the US customers in the form of higher prices. This has been going on for years and is effectively a tax. It is does not seem to be effective.

Not that it is the same thing, but consider the tax on cigarettes. The price has gone from US$1 per pack to US$5 per pack. However, the reduction in the number of smokers in the USA has been only modest.

My wife has her master's degree in Public Health and I was reading one of her journals that had a piece about recycling. They did a very careful study on trying to improve recycling. There were four groups

Group 1) told about the program by dropping off a pamphlet at their house.
Group 2) Told about the program with a personal visit discussing why it was important
Group 3) Told in a personal visit and given a small incentive like free ice cream cones at a local shop
Group 4) Given significant money for recycling. (worth much more than the ice cream cones)

Group 3 did the best in terms of recycling the most. Personal education and a small incentive seems to work. Just paying (and perhaps taxing) doesn't always have the best results.

Thanks
John C. Briggs