I don't have to try to make this sound stupid.

I decided that things couldn't possibly be as absurd as they sounded, and decided to hop on over to www.cars.gov and try out some trade-ins. Boy, was I surprised!

Turns out, I could turn in a '96 Ford F-150 (13 mpg) for a brand new Cadillac SRX all-wheel drive (19 mpg) along with a $4500 rebate. That's right, Uncle Sam has decided to subsidize its wealthy at the expense of... all of us as taxpayers! Lets not forget that the SRX isn't even "environmentally friendly." (As if that really mattered)

Perhaps luxury vehicles aren't your fancy and you're in the mood for a real gas-guzzlin' war hog! Fret not, I was eligible for a sterling Ford F-150 Pickup 4-wheel drive (15 mpg) along with a $4500 rebate! Well, hot damn! Screw the environment, ya know? Trees only get in the way of muddin' and huntin' with my new pickup truck, and polar bears eat people!

I really can't say I know of a coherent reason why this subsidy program exists. It's not for the environment, because many of the eligible cars are not "green." It's not for the poor/middle class because the government is subsidizing vehicles as expensive as Mercedes (Benz GL350, diesel fuel, 19mpg). This is certainly not for the economy, because as I stated in my last post, this program is basically creating a 'boom' that will eventually find its 'bust' once it goes off federal funding. I can't even make the argument that this is for American auto labor unions because foreign manufactured vehicles are receiving the subsidies, too.

I can say that a horrible consequence of this is the destruction that the traded vehicles will go through. No, really, the government is mandating that all trade-ins are to be scrapped. What the hell will that do to the used car market over the next few years? Ultimately, less used cars will be available on the market, driving the price of those remaining vehicles up more than they would have been. Now, who buys used vehicles? That's right, the poor/middle class, and small businessmen. These groups will be hardest hit by such erroneous policies. Let us not even begin to discuss the greater proportion of loan defaults that are going to occur under this brainless scheme, and thus putting even more pressure on demand in the used car market.