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Show i DAILY HERALD Just say no to oil addiction robably the last surprising thing esident Bush said in the State of the Union address was that Americais addicted tooil. Carson the road didn’t thin out even whengasoline hit $2-$3 per gallon, providing ample proof of the ropentne: Americans are Tuesday's address was not the first time Bush said this, noris he the first president to use the White House bully pulpit to confront American petroleum junkies. PresidentClinton called for fuelefficient homes andcars,as well as renewable fuel development in 1998. President Carter warned Americans in 1980 that the country needed to becomeindependentof oil. Both Presidents Ford and Nixon hammered on the same theme in the mid-1970s. The problem is that Americans don't seem to wantto giveuptheir oil-drivenlifestyle. And every time the price of oil drops, the need to conserve becomes less urgent. But with China andIndia increasing demandfor petroleum, and the Middle East remaining politically volatile, we can no longer ee the monkey on our national ick. Drilling for moreoil is not the solution. Thatis akin totelling a heroin addict to find a new supplier when oneruns out.It’s time to find real alternatives. The new generation of hybrid cars is very promising. Cars such as the Toyota Prius run primarily on electricity; its gasoline engine is used only intermittently to rechargethe batteries that run the car. As a result, these carseasily get up to 60 miles to the gallon, cutting the need for fuel. Some owners claim their gasolinebill has dropped 75 percent. Unfortunately, the government has not provided muchincentive to build or purchase hybrid cars — a $5,000 tax deduction for purchasing a $21,000 car. That may not yield much actual cashin your tax refund. On the other hand, someone could writeoff the entire cost of a gas guzzler like the Hummer for commercial purposes. While there may be some businesses that would havelegitimate needs forthe civilian version of the Army workhorse,one has to question why white-collar businesses would want one. The only reason a pizza place would need a Hummer is if it were making deliveries in downtown Baghdad. A greatertax incentive for hybrid cars would encourage American car makers to produce domestic hybrids and send the message that driving guzzlersis bad for America. Anotherideais to find an alternative fuel that comes from a renewable source. Onesuch fuelis E85, a mixtureof ethanol and gasoline. Unlike the oxygenated fuel Utah County residents used in the 1990s, E85 is mostly grain alcohol with 15 percentgasoline. The fuel has the benefit of producing 105 octane, far higher than premium gasoline blends. This means drivers get more power from the fuel andit burns cleaner than gasoline. Not only does this cut down on petroleum use,it also shifts America to fuel source that grows here in abundanceas corn and other grains.Falling back on E85 could allow America to break OPEC's stranglehold on our fuelin only a few. years. The only drawback is the fact that there are somecars that cannot run on E85. But if the fuel gains popularity, car makers will respond and offer more models that can. Another renewable fuelis vegetable oil. This has already been employed in somediesel vehicles. Again,it is renewable and actually puts a waste product to good use. Somebiodieselusers get used cooking oil from restaurants to powertheir rigs. While the message to conserve fuelis not new,the teci ability to do something other than just complain about it is already sitting on the shelf. All we need to do is just say no to dependence onpetroleum anduse the tools we have to get clean and sober. ur Union — Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, delive} the Democratic Party’s response to the State of the Union Address. “Tonight President Bush did not use the State of the Union to Beehive: — Rep.Chris Cannon, R-Utah, giving his evaluation of President Bush's annual report to the nation. Buffalo Chips Buffalo Chip (fresh) to the - Utah Senate for approving Sen. HowardA.Stephenson'sbill to makeit easier to open a nuclear waste dump. Currently, if either the Legislature or the govoes disapprovesan application, proposed is dumped. The Senate voted 22-6 to let the Legislature override the governor's merely wants the Legislature to retain its constitutional authority to override a governor.But this isn't about constitutional abstractions; it's about keeping waste out of Utah. And it was the people who wanted the governor to have power because they don't entirely trust lawmakers. Time to talk to your representatives,folks. Their numbers are online at www. le.utah.gov. + Beehive to the Senate JuCommittee for apee aia, some outdated, unconstitutional ee iathe atea The Mecoy'sbil’Eve McCoy’ kensacdnaee Utah's criminal libel and slander laws, which were Stor tras the days when people settled questions of honor with dueling en skews modified Seateriano tokeethe hoop nae's iw on Weber, and a committee member wanted that provision retained for who can't afford tofile a suit. We're not sure exactly who that would be in the age of “One call, that's all.” Buffalo Chip to Art Hender- son forself-deception. He actually thought a judge would allow him out on bail. Henderson is the former Lehipolice officer facing three felony ae murder charges for estranged wife and her boy! Fiend through townand shooting the boyfriend. Henderson himself was wounded by police, who arrived quickly at the scene. He asked to be erpeey erty so he conetoe care el s. request was esiedHowever, his attorneys may want to se it as grounds for an insanity plea. Beehive to Rep. David a Clark for showing that lawmakers are not alll elitiomer a oe » RSt. fe, sponsoring House Bill 216, which ends lifetime health benefits for retired legislators and governors. Current legislators who retire at age 62 are eligible for’state health insurance, with coverage based on ears of service. In 2005, the lature altered retirement . But what's good for the goose is good for the gander, and the House, to its credit, approved Clark's bill 58-14, It may not go over so well with gandersin the Senate who were hoping to cash in, but it showsthatat least some politicians are willing to live by the rules they impose on others. DOONESBURY * Garry Trudeau TM +HNQN’ MAYBE WED ALL BE BETIER OFF IF ‘Here WERE FENER PRONE |