Insuring You’ll Stop Driving . . .

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Forcing people to buy insurance they can’t afford as a condition of being allowed to own (or use) something is a very effective way of discouraging people from owning or using things.

Like cars, for instance.

It ought to be crystal clear by now that there are people in positions of power who do not want most people – by which they mean us – to own (or drive) cars. But they are clever people and understand that outlawing cars outright and all at once is too obviously blunt and – more to the point – it would probably result in immediate push-back. Far better – from their point-of-view – to permit us to own cars, provided we abide by certain conditions.

Such as being obliged to “cover” them.

No surprise (assuming you’ve been paying attention) – it is all-of-a-sudden costing a lot more to “cover” a car. About 20 percent more, on average – just this year so far. Many people are being hit up to tune of 30 percent or more.

It is interesting to note that these increases in the cost of “coverage” are being imposed on people who have not been convicted of “speeding” (the vehicular equivalent of not “masking”) or because they filed a claim and so cost the insurance mafia money.

The mafia says it is only making these “adjustments” to take account of higher repair costs and because of costs pertaining to natural disasters. Well, the latter is an obnoxious transfer of costs onto those who did not incur them and the former is just bullshit, because if you’ve not wrecked or filed a claim, then you’ve not cost the mafia anything.

But the mafia can still make you pay.

Remember: Insurance is a “service” you cannot refuse. Even – in some states – if you don’t actually drive the car on public roads. If the vehicle can be seen without tags on private property, it can be seized on account of not being registered and tagged. The law in these states says that any vehicle stored on the owner’s property must be registered – and in order to legally get/maintain registration (and tags) the vehicle must be insured.

That’s a Bingo! as fictional SS Colonel Hands Landa from Inglorius Basterds put it.

It’s also proof that forcing people to buy insurance is not about making sure other people aren’t left holding the bag for damages incurred by the “uninsured.”

It is about making people pay.

Anyhow, when you have to pay, then you can be made to pay more. You can be made to pay whatever they say.

People are finding out just how much that is.

In particular, people who bought into “electrification” via the purchase of an electric vehicle. Many of them thinking they’d “save money” by not having to spend it on gas, which the same people pushing trying to push all of us into EVs have also been making more expensive, in order to drive as many of us as they can out of vehicles that burn it and into electric vehicles that burn money, instead.

That’s certainly more efficient.

Well – surprise! – EV owners are discovering that it costs more to insure their battery-powered appliances. Which is another way of saying it costs more to own a battery-powered appliance. Not counting what it’s soon going to cost to charge one up, as the supply of power dries up.

The UK Daily Mail published an article the other day that gets into the jolt many of these EV owners just got in the mail. One couple profiled in the piece got a piece of payin’ paper from the insurance mafia demanding twice as much to cover the new Tesla Model Y they’d just bought as they were being forced to pay for the VW Atlas they’d also bought.

To be fair to the mafia, the Tesla is a much more expensive vehicle – with a base price of $49,990 (vs. $35,150 for the vehicle that isn’t a battery-powered appliance) and so would be a more expensive vehicle to replace, if totaled in an accident. It also costs more to repair. 

But this vehicle isn’t just expensive.

It is electric. 

It carries around an enormous high-voltage battery composed of thousands of individual cells, any of which can trigger a ferocious fire. Without benefit (so to speak) of the vehicle having been in an accident. That means a risk that cannot be controlled by the owner.

It is simply an increased risk – and a potentially enormous  cost – that comes along for the ride. 

Or rather, for the park – as EVs can (and have) caught fire when they’re not being driven. In some cases when they’re not even plugged in. The recent catching fire of cargo ships transporting EVs that were just sitting (in the hold) has naturally alarmed the insurance mafia – and the mafia isn’t going to pay for it when it can make us pay for it.  

Which is just what the mafia is doing.

And not just to people who bought into “electrification.” As mentioned already, insurance costs are going up for everyone, including people who do not own an expensive (and fire-prone) battery powered appliance and who have not filed a claim (and incurred any costs) nor given the mafia any legitimate reason to “adjust” what they are forced to pay.

But they do own a car – and that is just the point.

Or rather, it is the object.

If people can’t be nudged into electric vehicles – a growing “concern” for the people who’ve been pushing them, as more and more people are becoming aware of the facts about them – then insurance can be used to push people out of vehicles.

And not just electric ones.

But there may be push-back, once people understand they are being pushed out of vehicles. Perhaps at that point people will just stop paying – and continue driving. This would be a healthy a re-assertion of the long-neglected principle of saying No to things you don’t want.

And something else to people who try to force you to pay for them.

. . .

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115 COMMENTS

  1. What about sijmply paying a bond? When I was a kid, it was $30k. I haven’t checked lately, and I don’t recall if it’s $30k per car or per driver. Anyone else remember being able to post a bond with the DMV instead of paying for insurance?

  2. Homeowner’s insurance has blown up as well. I have been in my house 12 years. Every year the insurance went up by 50 to 100 dollars. From ’22 to ’23 it went up a thousand dollars. No claims.

    • Same here. My car insurance is up 33%, Homeowner insurance increased by $150. No claim at all. I dont know why politicians are silent? Oh, I know why……..

      • Hi Kha,

        I think we are at or very near the point of having to decide whether we’re going to continue obeying (and paying) or not. I think the situation is now analogous to the situation with the Idiot Rags. If people had just refused to be (and look like) idiots, by wearing that rag, the idiocy (and tyranny) would have dissipated quickly. I think the time has arrived to refuse to pay whatever they say – just because they say (and because they can). It is one thing to expect that people be held responsible for harms/damage they cause others. No reasonable (or moral) person objects to that.

        But this business of punishing people who have not caused any damage or harm – and that is what forcing them to pay for insurance amounts to – and so severely as to (effectively) force them to give up their car and driving is intolerable. It is time to put a stop to this, too.

    • Hi Doug,

      I believe it is sound – if you can (if you own your home) – to stop paying for such “coverage.” Assuming you do not live by the ocean, in the known path of hurricanes, in an area where tornadoes and earthquakes are common, the probability of a major loss occurring is probably very slight. You may have to deal with a tree falling or some such but – as a general thing – most of the stuff you might have to deal with you could probably pay out of pocket, if you’d just set aside what you’re paying to be “covered.” And if you never need to spend the money on damage repair, you will have the money to spend on other things.

      Let’s say your policy costs $1,500 annually. Over 20 years, that’s $30,000. How likely is it you’ll suffer $30k in damages to your home over the next 20 years?

      I’d much rather assume the slight risk and save the $30k!

  3. Automotive lenders have more to do with requiring insurance than governments do, because they want to make sure that they will get their loan money back, even if the car is totaled.
    I have never bought more than the state minimum on anything I’ve owned and driven.
    One pays a high price for driving any vehicle for status more than function.

      • Hi Doug,

        I drive an almost 22-year-old compact pick-up (Nissan Frontier). It might worth $5k. I will not pay more than $500 to “cover” it and the day it gets to that point, that’s the day I’ll begin “riding dirty” and be like the “refugees” and just stop doing what they say. I think we can learn a valuable lesson from the Me Gustans.

  4. They fully intend for you to be unable to afford a vehicle and a home. 100% on purpose and part of the Great Reset fascist plan to get everyone into high-density housing and using public transporation all under constant surveillance.

  5. 15 minute cities soon to be 5 minute cites require no cars or vehicles other than maybe busses and mafia police vehicles. See, no need for any more cars or trucks.

    Those drive-able electric toasters are the biggest joke since mRNA poison injections. All are designed to kill you in one fashion or another. There has been a giant lithium discovery somewhere near the Nevada/Utah border consisting of some 120 million tons. That means more push toward lithium batteries and a slew of poor African children to come work the mines.

    If there are no more cars, then what are the auto companies and auto insurers going to do to rip us off? These clowns are so brain dead since they cannot see they are destroying their futures as well as ours. The same for most industry and government.

    • Hi Tom,

      In re: “If there are no more cars, then what are the auto companies and auto insurers going to do to rip us off?”

      The plan is to enroll us in serial subscriptions for “transportation as a service.” You will pay to be driven somewhere in a vehicle you don’t own and have no control over. Just pay your monthly fee – and maybe they’ll allow you to ride.

  6. A very broad subject that holds huge amounts of deliberate corruption by the insurance companies. Here’s a point that shows the insurance companies work with and need the lawyers. Years ago California was going to charge a little more at the pump on fuel to cover No-Fault insurance on everyone. If you drove a more expensive vehicle that owner could buy extra coverage. The Trial Lawyers shut it down, immediately. The insurance companies had no objections about the Trial Lawyers actions. In a class action lawsuits against a few insurance companies brought on by a number of state AG’s over doctors malpractice insurance going up to many fold higher in a few short years. Using discovery the AG’s found out with the supplied data by the insurance companies that: the juries were not awarding higher awards, no increase in lawsuits were being filed but only 3% of the doctors were the cause of lawsuits. The insurance companies were ripping off the doctors because they could, 100% fact.
    Let’s look at how good drivers get ripped off. The insurance companies use statistics to rate good and safe drivers that have perfect driving records (for decades) and not their factual driving records to charge more for insurance. If the population increases the rates go up but if that insured driver/s move to a place with far less population, that increase from a larger population will not be removed. Motorcycle insurance many times are 12 month policies were a car is only 6 months. Because the likely hood the motorcycle will not be driven all year. If a driver raises the deductible from $500 to $2,000 the price will go down for about 2 years then goes back up to the higher rate. All of the scams are approved by each state because the insurance companies file a report on how they will do business in that state every year with the insurance commissioner. The states will never pass No Fault insurance because the Trial Lawyers need to work too. Everything about insurance companies across the board is more often a rip-off than not a rip-off and all we can do is complain and pay.

    • Hi Mark,

      Indeed. Also, there’s this objection which I’ve yet to have anyone counter intelligently:

      If insurance is such a valuable service, why is it necessary to force people to buy it?

      The standard answer is: Well, if it weren’t for the laws requiring people to buy insurance, people wouldn’t buy it. To which I reply: But forcing responsible people to buy insurance does not prevent irresponsible people from driving without insurance and – more to the point – only makes insurance more expensive for the responsible people.

      Take away the force – and reinstate the ability of responsible people to say NO to usurious premiums that cannot be justified on the basis of losses incurred – and the cost of coverage for responsible people plummets, with the result being that most people would probably buy coverage voluntarily because it would make sense to do so when the price of the coverage is low and correlates with their risk profile.

      • Good points that I didn’t bring into my post. However, in Texas workers compensation insurance is not required by law. And it’s fairly priced being far less than states that have laws forcing businesses to buy it. Your point proved by real world facts.

  7. Auto insurance premiums up 20 percent, meanwhile the cost to repair a car is also up 20 percent. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/25/car-repair-costs-are-up-almost-20percent-over-the-past-year-heres-why.html What an amazing coincidence! Must be a Mafia, right? Nevermind that most insurance companies are mutual companies, meaning that when you buy a policy you become an owner and any profits go to you. But, don’t expect any dividends from State Farm. https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2023-02-27/state-farm-hit-with-record-13-2-billion-underwriting-loss-in-2022 – well, remember that in most states you don’t have to buy insurance at all. Just post a bond and you’re good to go. Of course, why let facts get in the way of a good rant?

    • Elias writes:

      “Nevermind that most insurance companies are mutual companies, meaning that when you buy a policy you become an owner and any profits go to you.”

      Strange that, despite having been forced to buy “coverage” for decades – I have yet to receive a check from the mafia that forced me to pay for this “coverage.” And “ownership”? That’s as pathetic as baying at a cop that you “pay his salary.” When you own something, you have control over it. Tell me what control you have over the insurance mafia you’re forced to send money to …

      Also, I have liability-only coverage – which means the mafia does not pay me a cent for “repairs” in the event I wreck. So your assertion about repair costs is a fatuity.

    • Elians writes:

      “well, remember that in most states you don’t have to buy insurance at all. Just post a bond and you’re good to go.”

      Yeah, sure – if you happen to have $50,000 or so in idle cash laying around. Almost no one does; ergo, it’s a straw man argument. Effectively, people are forced to buy insurance. And that brings us to the core issue here. It is this dirty business of forcing people to pay for harms they have not caused – by forcing them to buy insurance – based on the possibility that they might.

      Do you see the danger in that? Probably not. It is this: If the possibility that you might cause an accident is sufficient warrant to make you pay money (non-refundable) for “just-in-case” and even when nothing does actually happen that results in harms to anyone else – then how would you argue against a law that requires people who own a gun to buy insurance for that as well? How about rape insurance for men?

      People – who don’t understand principles and precedents – sometimes deride the foregoing as the “slippery slope” argument; it does not make the argument less valid – in principle or in fact. Look at the way an entire nation was “locked down” (and forced to wear Idiot Rags) because neurotics fretted the possibility “someone” might get sick….

      Wouldn’t it be better – as in more right – to hold people responsible for the harms they cause but otherwise leave them in peace?

  8. What the insurance mafia failed to mention is that another reason rates are jumping up is because so many v@x’ed people are having expensive accidents.

    I live in the middle of nowhere on purpose (my 6yo commented about “all the traffic” when once we had to wait at a stop sign for a grand total of four cars to pass—usually it’s zero cars so I coast through) so I haven’t seen the vaccidents myself. I’m truly thankful for rural America.

    • Am, SJ –

      Me also.

      But – thanks to the ruination of the (blue) cities, blue people are moving to rural areas and ruining them, too. Traffic in my one stoplight county has probably increased by a third since the “pandemic” ended. I dread having to move as I love my place and the place where it is – but if I need to do in order to get away from the cattle call (and all that comes with it) I will.

      • lyspooner,

        I’m not sure whether you’re trying to be serious – or trying to mock those who are. “Evil COVID vaccines”?

        Yes, exactly. Well, not exactly – for the drugs that were pushed on people did not prevent them from getting the sickness they were putatively “vaccinated” against, nor from spreading to others. Ergo, they were not vaccinated. But the pushing of these drugs was evil. Unless you think that pushing drugs on people isn’t evil.

          • Hi Lyspooner,

            “What effect from the vaccine could possibly cause more accidents?”

            Well, we know the drugs – again, they’re not vaccines – can and have caused heart problems and that there is also evidence they induce blood clotting, which can lead to strokes, including minor ones that manifest as cognitive impairment. Any of these could cause a person to crash.

            Who knows what the long-term effects might be?

            • Ok that’s plausible. The vaccine has been reported as causing clotting. The “experts” say it’s rare but at least they have acknowledged it. I wouldn’t think that would be a cause of significant traffic accidents, however it is possible.

  9. Your dog is going to be hungry, feed him some oatmeal with cream and some brown sugar. Get a T-bone steak and let your dog eat it all.

    Dogs eat cabbage, potatoes, are more or less omnivores.

    Fry an egg and make some toast for the poor thing.

    Food is a remarkable remedy and is good medicine.

  10. Nothing to do with insurance, but I wanted to ask if any dog owners have had dogs diagnosed with cancer and if there was any alternative methods that were able to extend their lives or provide them comfort.

    Just found out today that they are giving my seven year old Lab about six months to live. They diagnosed him with bone cancer that it has spread to his lungs. The vet basically shrugged her shoulders and said there isn’t anything that we can do except give him some anti inflammatory medicine. I didn’t like that suggestion so I made a second appointment with a veterinarian office in Fairfax. They cannot see him until next week.

    The only sign that something was wrong with him was last week he started limping on this right leg. Hubby made an appointment and the soonest they could get him in was today. We believed he may have twisted it or it was due to some inflammation. Was not ready for the diagnosis that they provided.

    In the meantime, I am going hell bent if there are some herbal remedies I can try in the meantime. I plan to be up most of the night researching.

    Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

    • Sorry to hear that, RG. I have delved into this regarding brain cancer in humans.

      I became aware of the “Warburg Effect.” In the 1920s, Otto Warburg made the observation that tumors were taking up enormous amounts of glucose compared to what was seen in the surrounding tissue. He determined that cancer cells can only live on glucose. I believe he won a Nobel Prize.

      Glucose is introduced into the body by eating glucose and other carbohydrates or by gluconeogenesis (i.e. generation of glucose in the liver from certain non-carbohydrates i.e. protein).

      Thus, it stands to reason that if one’s body is starved of glucose, the cancer cells cannot spread or survive. Of course the main fuel for one’s brain is usually also glucose. However, when your body enters a state of ketosis, your body and brain switch over to fueling with ketones. The way for humans to enter a state of ketosis is to fast and/or stop eating virtually all carbohydrates, a minimal amount of protein (just enough to maintain tissue and muscle mass) and to eat mostly fat.

      If I leaned I had cancer the first thig I would do it fast for about 3-5 days and then go on a keto diet (approx calories: 80% fat, 15% protein and 5% carb). There are urine strip test that can tell when a ketosis state is reached. I would probably consider surgery to the extent possible as well. Now, weather I would also consider traditional cancer therapies such as chemo or radiation, I just don’t know. Those are very toxic.

      I believe keto diets are ok for dogs and have had some success with cancer. Putting a pet on a keto diet would be easy too. From the AKC:

      “One of the main advocates is KetoPet, a nonprofit organization founded in 2014 to help shelter dogs with cancer who would otherwise be euthanized. They placed the dogs on a ketogenic diet and gave them advanced cancer treatment. The dog’s blood was monitored to ensure they were in a state of ketosis, and PET scans were used to measure tumor size. While the keto diet was not a cure, more than half the dogs on the diet were alive and active months beyond their expected life span. A few were even cancer-free despite being diagnosed with highly aggressive forms of cancer.”

        • Thanks so much, ML. I have read similar studies regarding cancer and glucose. This is very informative.

          I redid the dogs meal tonight. I made grass fed beef and added organic green beans. I did add some organic rice (which I probably shouldn’t have done since it is pretty carby). I did make a paste of turmeric, coconut oil, black pepper, and water to add to each of their meals and mixed in about 1/2 tsp.

          I also contacted a holistic vet. I hope to hear from her tomorrow.

          Thanks so much!

      • I’d make a similar recommendation, Mr. Liberty. I actually worked in a research lab studying glioblastoma. There were doctors at that hospital that would vouch for the efficacy in the ketogenic diet in the treatment of cancers, and particularly something like glioblastoma, which is very difficult otherwise. The surgeons, however, weren’t so keen on the idea, and they were seen as lords of that realm.

        I’m happy that this method of treatment has gotten such a foothold in spite of whatever resistance might be present.

    • Raider Girl,

      I’m very sorry to hear this news. I second Mr. Liberty’s recommendation. There may be immunological treatments that may be offered as well, though the cost may be prohibitive.

      Here is a link to one company which specializes in such therapies:

      https://eliasanimalhealth.com/

      I just learned that my brother might have some strange form of cancer as well. I’m hoping they’ve made a mistake as the biopsy results have yet to come in.

      Best of luck to you, RG.

      • Thank you, BaDnOn. My appointment is with SouthPaws next week. It looks like they are one of the two veterinarian clinics that participate in this in my state.

        I am sorry to hear about your brother. I hope the biopsy is negative. My best to you and your family.

        • Hi RG,

          Very sad to hear about your Lab. I hope that natural-pathic treatments help. I try to feed our pets much of the same food we eat – and we’re trying very hard to eat real food; i.e., the eggs we raise, local meat, no processed foods, etc. Give your dog a scratch behind the ears for me.

    • You aren’t going to like my advice. I love dogs, and have lived with them nearly my entire life. But they are dogs, not people, and they don’t normally live that long anyway. Which is why I don’t have one now. I’ve grown tired of watching them die.
      There are an abundance of healthy young dogs out there looking for a home. Keep your Lab comfortable, but spending thousands with no guarantee of positive results is not cost effective. Better spent on another dog, that is likely facing death if no one adopts them.
      I’m 69, so I’ve had lots of dogs, and watched, and sometimes helped, a lot of them die. I can’t do it anymore.

    • Hi RD, I’ll so sorry to hear about your fur baby. I live on a farm in rural Missouri and raised dairy goats for 20 years. I have seen the explosion in cancers among my family, friends, and animals as well. We found a wonderful antiparasitic works great to eliminate it in a short time if used properly. It’s called Clark FX and is made from black walnut hull (while still green), cloves, and wormwood. It’s a tincture. I read a book about 25 years ago called “The Cure For All Cancers” and made the tincture myself from the recipe and it had worked ever since. The naysayers have “debunked” this wonderful medicine, however, everyone I know who has used it has cured their cancer, including my family members. Your dog will take it but it doesn’t taste good. 20 drops 3x daily for humans who have cancer and 20 drops 1 time per day for those who don’t have cancer. Take it for a month then once per week forever. I hope your baby heals soon.

      • Thanks MG for the suggestion. I make my own tinctures, but did not know any for bone cancer. I will try to find a copy of the book. One can never have enough medicinal texts laying around.

        We are meeting with a holistic vet this weekend who will examine him. I have put both of my labs on a ketogenic diet in the last few days. They hate pretty natural, but I did add kibble every now and then.

        My former vet provided us two options: amputate his leg (it won’t extend his life but should reduce pain) or put him through radiation.

        The Fairfax vet (will visit next week) has established clinical trials for dogs going through bone cancer. My sister’s Lab was diagnosed with leukemia several years ago and used them and they actually extended her dog’s life from six to eighteen months with good results.

        Right now I have no expectations, I am just trying to do something.

        The holistic vet mentioned that there were studies now being conducted showing a link between neutering before one year of age and bone cancer especially for larger dogs. I briefly read about it the other night, but cannot locate the cause.

        Thank you for the advice.

        • Neutering before one year of age also precipitates abnormal behavior, due to hormonal imbalance. Although living with a bitch in heat at 6 months can be a real “bitch”, I’ve always waited until their first birthday. After they have acquired sexual identity.

      • Hi Missouri –

        Thanks to you (and others here) who have been passing along info about treating sick animals. Many of us here are “animal people” and so very much appreciate the back-and-forth.

        Also: We have become very leery about “vaccines” – and not just the “safe and effective” ones. God knows what the drugs they’re pushing on animals do given what the drugs they push on humans do. Stay away from them. Vets are becoming Quacks, too.

    • Hey Raider Girl.
      Supposingly, Turkey Tail mushrooms are miraculous for cancer.
      And don’t ever believe some smug know it all when they claim that dogs don’t go to heaven. Where ever we go, our dogs will be there waiting.

  11. Stop you driving….ban all the cheap ice cars…..

    Cheap transportation for the slave class….$8,999 in 2023 dollars…almost 60 mpg highway…

    better then $50,000 EV’s….

    Air cooled sound is very cool…no need to buy a $100,000 plus 911 or 356…

    Honda 600 Models Price and Specs
    The price range for the Honda 600 varies based on the trim level you choose. Starting at $1,270 and going to $1,870 for the latest year the model was manufactured. …in 2023 dollars….$8,999

    The model range is available in the following body types starting from the engine/transmission specs shown below.

    Year Body Type Specs
    1973 Coupe 0.6L engine , 4 SP MAN…. 1330 lbs curb weight…

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nOutIHSbEc

  12. Curious how all the new and improved regulations always work against us. Not just talking about the folks here, but ALL of us not employed by the state, or not in collusion with it.

  13. Stop you driving….city wide 20 mph speed limits….another unlawful, unjust fake law….

    in new Zealand they made from 50km/hr to 40 km/hr. Lots of people got speeding tickets and complained. So the police have stopped checking but the signs are still up.

    NOTE:When the public asked the council whats the statistics that show it makes the roads safer? And they said there was no evidence….so…. revenue generation only…theft only…. Still its not changed anything. Our council is very corrupt anyway. We may end up setting up our own council also.

    There is no evidence lower speed limits make roads safer….

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dsiTVR0Ozw

    • There’s a stretch of road in an industrial area that I take to and from work every day. For years the speed limit was posted at 50 mph, then all of a sudden one day signs went up that changed it to 40 mph out of the blue. I did not observe any wrecks happening along the road, so my only thought is, this is a road that working class people use exclusively, so by setting the speed limit at a low 40 mph, it insures that everyone will speed, and so they can pull over anyone at any time without need for any other pretext. Lo and behold, everyone still travels at 50 mph (or more), and I have sure enough observed extra police presence along this road in the last few weeks. Revenue generation scheme. What a racket!

    • For the record dude.. unless the Kiwis improved some of the roads in.. the more remote parts of the islands… lots of times 40 “klicks/ hr” .. happened to be a rather reasonable limit…
      For the record been there done that comprehensively..👍

    • Seatbelt laws are for generating revenue aka: fast cash. The proof is the government buses children twice per day 9 months a year with vehicles with no seatbelts.

  14. Not directly insurance related, but confirmation of what Eric, and others, have been saying for some time, namely that EVs are only affordable for the well off:
    https://tinyurl.com/2p8sr87t

    >The jurisdictions where electric vehicles’ share of active registrations is highest — Montgomery and Howard counties — have a median household incomes of about $117,000 and $130,000, respectively. The jurisdictions where EV’s share is lowest — Garrett and Somerset counties — have average household incomes of about $58,000 and $49,000.

  15. I see an analogy with inkjet/toner cartridges, as well as auto parts. You can pay $$ for OEM, or $ for aftermarket replacement parts. The difference in price can be stark, and if you are on a limited budget, you may have no choice. The article states that the highest number of electric bicycle fires were in working class neighborhoods.

  16. There is also inflation at around 50% in real terms…not defending the price increase but it makes sense with that and the super fragile cars running around today. Of course, the biggest issue here is a law requiring the purchase of the product from a private company.
    As to inflation, I just paid over $100 for a gallon of synthetic 15w50 sportbike oil which is insane.

  17. Götterdämmerung, bitchez:

    ‘Sometimes, art is more than just the canvas or sculpture. Many will probably remember the Banksy painting that – as soon as it was sold at auction – self-destructed by means of a paper shredder that was hidden in the frame.

    ‘When she left office after 16 years, a local museum unveiled a statue of Merkel on horseback to commemorate her reign. The artist left it to the viewer whether the statue was created out of appreciation or whether it was intended to be ironic. It drew plenty of ridicule at the time.

    ‘Last week, the statue collapsed under its own weight. As with most things done during the Merkel era, the statue was built as efficiently as possible, but not very durably: it was hollow and 3D-printed out of concrete that could neither withstand the external forces of nature, nor support its own weight. This probably wasn’t intentional, but if it were it would be a brilliant artistic rendition of Merkel’s leadership and the aftermath the country is dealing with.

    ‘Since her leadership, European has seen supply chains collapse, with the future of German industry now at risk as EU leaders scramble to obtain more reliable sources of energy and inputs. And thanks to the lack of a German, or European, strategic global view, external forces like China have eroded away the continent’s power on the global stage and the competitiveness of Germany’s industrial engine: the car sector.

    https://tinyurl.com/yck6e54b

    EeeVees, comrades: far from chariots of the gods, they are a Trojan horse that’s imploding Europe.

    Do Ukies dream of electric tanks?

      • Not me, boss. Must have been you. 🙂
        In any case, the story reminds me of a quote from the late P.J. O’Rourke.
        “Commies love concrete, but they are just not very good at it.”
        Props to Jim H. 🙂

    • Germany can have cheap, reliable energy any time they want.

      All they have to do is play nicely with the Russians. Or open up some nuclear plants. Or go back to burning coal. Or maybe a few other things,

      Since they aren’t willing to do any of that, they are going to shiver in the dark while paying through the nose. And since their industry will be shut down, the Euro will become worthless.

  18. Living in West Florida, insurance almost doubled. No accidents, No tickets in years. No reason given. Didn’t even hit them up for a windshield destroyed by a rock.

  19. Another “gotcha” is having to insure every car you own, rather than the driver of said cars, after all you can only drive one car at a time. Buddy of mine (single of course 😆) owns five cars that he drives at different times. In a sane world he would have a policy to cover the most expensive car that would apply to the rest as well. Of course that way the state and the mafia (bur I repeat myself) wouldn’t be able to extract so much cash from him, can’t allow that.

  20. You hit another nail on the head.

    Here in CA, insurance is mandatory, as is registration of cars. Even if you don’t drive a car on public roads, like a track car or a museum piece, you register it for “planned non operation” and pay a smaller annual registration.

    In order to register the car, you must have insurance. I once received a notice that both my registration and my driver’s license is going to be suspended because I have an uninsured car (the insurance company had a typo in the VIN). This is precisely the totalitarianism that you write about, but it gets worse.

    We have a ton of illegal immigrants here who drive and who are uninsured. In fact, if you have a car you drive often and care about, you probably want to pay for uninsured motorist coverage – in a state where having a license and a registration is predicated on having insurance. How?!

    Here, the illegals, sorry “undocumented immigrants”, are allowed to get a drivers license, register it, but somehow, they get around the insurance requirement which is automatic for the rest of us. This make me much more annoyed than if everyone was uniformly oppressed.

    • Indeed, OL –

      We (citizens) are forced to pay for the cost of the illegals, who aren’t bound by “the law” we’re forced to obey. I say the time has come to emulate the illegals – and just ignore “the law.” Of course, it’s harder to do – for us – because we have legal assets that can be seized whereas the illegals remain smartly indigent and so aren’t worth anything to the government.

      • “whereas the illegals remain smartly indigent and so aren’t worth anything to the government.”- Eric

        Must be worth something,,, The cartel is allowing millions each year….the lines stretch for miles. $2200 and a free ride to a city of your choice.

        • Hi Ken,

          Well, they are worth their weight in gold, politically. The “immigrants” are meant to serve as a perpetually reliable voting bloc for the Left.

          Me gusta!

          • Immigration is a fantastic way to get out the base, on both sides. Congress talks about “reform” all the time when campaigning, but won’t take action because it is a hard wedge issue and they know it.

            • I know. I’m sick of the immigration issue. You are 100 percent correct that both parties use it to create a wedge. The fact is that our immigration system is like posting a speed limit of 25 mph on an interstate and making everyone stop on painted lines every 1000 feet if you want to get in legaly. If you get in illegally, the rules don’t apply. What we really need to do is relax the rules to give people a legitimate way of getting in to the country, and also to bring every illegal into a legal status. In exchange, build the wall and allow no more. Legal status does not mean citizenship. That status should never be granted to people who came here illegally. No right to vote and no right to get a government job.

              The only candidate that speaks sense on the issue of immigration is Robert F Kennedy Jr.

          • >“immigrants” are meant to serve as a perpetually reliable voting bloc for the Left.

            Surprise, surprise, surprise.
            It ain’t necessarily working out that way.
            In my (possibly limited) experience, *plenty* of recent immigrants are “living the American dream,” are hard working, socially conservative, naturalized citizens, and vote accordingly, maybe even “staunch Republican.” Guaranteed they have no use for sexual perverts, social degenerates, or those looking for a free ride.

      • “ because we have legal assets that can be seized “

        This allows “them” ultimate control on “us” as individuals. Homeowner, some money in the bank, other assets to be seized good luck if/when you do something to get the spotlight on you. Mass disobedience the only way out, so far as they make individual examples and those end up in the news keeps the lid on us asset holders. See Jan 6th defendants, homeowners standing outside with guns, an individual shooting in self defense, standing up at a school board meeting.

      • Hi, Eric,
        >we have legal assets that can be seized
        You need to find a good asset protection attorney, who will (for a fee, of course) show you how to make yourself “judgment proof.”
        Asset protection is *not* just for rich people. The degree of sophistication required depends on your situation. Legal entity or entities should be created to hold “your” assets.
        Bottom line: you, personally, should own nothing.
        Old saying, “You can’t squeeze blood from a stone.”
        Or a turnip.

        • Excellent advice, Adi. I know many libertarians hate the “protection” of assets, but the laws are not only on the books for large corporations and the rich. They are setup for all of us to benefit. If the system is willing to give you a loophole…take it.

        • This is a good reminder, I need to get this done. Not rich, but enough assets to be attractive to other lawsuit happy Washingtonians. I already carry 2 mil. extended liability insurance as it is.

          Father in law had his stuff in a trust, no probate when he passed.

          • >Father in law had his stuff in a trust, no probate when he passed.
            Exactly. And since the trust, not you, owns the assets, they are not at risk in case you get sued while you are still alive.

    • Hi OL,
      Same thing here in Taxachusetts, insurance is mandatory and one of the required coverages is “uninsured motorist coverage”, talk about a Catch-22. “Undocumented” also get drivers licenses just by showing up; I remember when my kids went to get their license they needed something like five different ID’s, what a crock.

      • I spent my young adult years a little to the south of you, in Providence, and in RI, we had this wonderful thing instituted in the 1990’s called “no fault insurance”, where your insurance pays for your car, the other person’s for their car, and there’s no fault. It was supposed to make insurance cheaper, which was totally bonkers in RI, but instead, it skyrocketed overnight.

        To give a concrete example, and mind you, this is 25 years ago. I bought a Toyota Corolla to drive out to CA for my first job (back when young people could afford a new Toyota Corolla). My insurance in RI was $440/month, much more than my car payment. When I moved to CA, the same policy with the same company got adjusted to $100/month and when I shopped around a bit for a different company, I managed to find about $80/month. This is back in 1998 though, prices are much higher now.

    • migrants are allowed to get a drivers license, register it, but somehow, they get around the insurance requirement which is automatic for the rest of us.

      plus $2200 per month….for 10 years….that is how long it takes before a hearing date….plus a free phone, etc…..then they go work for cash somewhere…

  21. We’re long past due for a correction. The end of the 80 year credit cycle is upon us, but the idiots in charge are hell bent on meddling. If they’d just let it happen the deck would reshuffle and we could get on with our lives. Except that the insitutions made all these promises to pay out later, then destroyed any storehouse of value, and now they’re over a barrel.

  22. House insurance up 20 percent, taxes are triple what they were in 1988.

    Car insurance is up 30 percent, one claim in 25 years, vandalism on a rented vehicle, insurance replaced a shattered window.

    Listen to Jimmy Dore, the interview with Dr. Epstein exposes how ghoulgal manipulates and controls millions of minds. Purdy much reveals why Trump decided to go the vaccine route when a Covid treatment existed then and still does. Damning evidence, for sure.

    Trump is toast and a total loser, can’t possibly vote for the bum, no way, none.

    Dr. Robert Epstein interview

  23. Why do you think the elites don’t want people to drive? Just for the environment? It seems like a lot of people driving is a money maker for rich people. Businesses do better, investments increase. Why risk crashing the economy?

    • Oh, Tom, you have so much to learn.

      The elites goal is not to crash the economy, but to depress wealth for the middle and lower classes. Hence, why the WEF likes to show a pic of some guy with black curly hair smiling. The saying is: “You will own nothing and be happy.” The saying came from Ida Auken, a Danish politician, who coined it in a 2014 essay for the WEF. The WEF ran with it and it appeared in a video in 2016. It has since been deleted, because “there was too much backlash.” I guess not all the people (especially those who wealth they want to take) were on board.

      During COVID $3.7 trillion dollars of middle class wealth was “lost” and redistributed to the wealthy who actually ended up with a total gain of $3.9 trillion in wealth by the end of 2021.

      Inflation is a redistribution of wealth. Ask anybody today if they were better than they were four years ago? I believe 90% would state they are not. Prices on food have doubled (if not tripled). A $350K house that once had an interest rate of 3.5% for 30 years cost was $1572/monthly. That same house today (if you can even find one for $350K) is now $2447/monthly. Add in the jump in the ownership of a vehicle which now averages $48K new. And then there are the utilities, insurance premiums, daycare, clothing, etc. The middle and lower classes are bleeding money and the elites don’t care because that money finds a way into their pockets.

      Wealth doesn’t evaporate…it just finds a new owner.

    • “Why do you think the elites don’t want people to drive?”

      Answer: They hate you for your freedom. They do not think you deserve to be free. They don’t like you breathing their air or living on their land or traveling freely across it. Freedom, every freedom, is a loop hole and I guarantee that if a freedom exists, they have people working diligently to close that loop hole.

  24. The lady who cuts what little hair I have left was in a fender bender a while back. After repair & rental car costs, the other person’s insurance ponied up something like $5,000. For a freaking low speed rear end collision.

    I don’t recall when the stupid plastic bumpers came about. I do know that when I first started driving, that fender bender would’ve resulted in popping a dent and buffing out some paint. (the best bumpers were the welded well casing the local redneck boys put on their trucks)

    The whole government-insurance-auto manufacturers complex is one big racket.

    • The plastic bumpers came out in the 1980’s. Back then, they were a lot more solid than today’s pieces of crap. Today, they have to take weight out of cars in other areas to make cars saaaaaafe. Weight has been piled on the body panels and “frame” for side impact and roof rollover “protection” as well as for airbags, and customer desired “options” such as power windows and seats. It is removed from things that make the car cheaper and easier to operate and maintain and for durability

  25. ‘It carries around an enormous high-voltage battery composed of thousands of individual cells, any of which can trigger a ferocious fire.’ — eric

    Eeek — triggered! As a kid keen on cars, I had seen the stacked metallic plates inside a 12-volt lead-acid automotive battery.

    One day while building a fort in the woods to smoke pilfered cigarettes, we came across a ruptured, auto battery-size casing with hundreds of little C-sized cells — the kind used in flashlights — packed inside, most of them ruptured too, and a big chunk of them missing. It looked like the inside of a vandalized carbon beehive or something.

    I was appalled. What was this — military tech? Detritus from a Russian satellite? An artifact from Atlantis?

    Not until the advent of EeeVees did the unsettling image of this multi-chambered smudged horror from childhood recur. The notion of sitting atop a bedsheet-size pallet of those tiny satanic cylinders, humming and writhing under the floor, twists my guts with revulsion.

    Round about the Tesla go;
    In the poisoned entrails throw.
    Toad, that under cold stone
    Days and nights has thirty-one
    Swelter’d venom sleeping got
    Boil thou first in Elon’s pot.

    — Shakespeare, Macbeth

  26. I’d like to learn more about how a civil disobedience movement could gain ground, simply by people dropping their insurance. This is meaningless unless the first step is to, as Shakespeare wrote, “kill all the lawyers.”

  27. When I last took my Allroad up to Audi Annapolis for whatever it was, I noticed that several cars on their showroom floor have a box nearby with cables that run up into the hood. I’m not 100% sure what that’s about because, if they are EVs or plugin hybrids, why not just plug into the charge port? Maybe the dealers have some different trickle charge thing? I dunno.

    But wait until some fancy dealership (or 3) gets burnt to the ground. It’ll be millions in damages.

  28. So your neighbors EV catches fire so they raise your rates on your ICE car because they can but don’t demand .gov does anything about them mandating fire traps? Sounds like BS to me, but since they can do it they will do it.

    I’ve seen E-bikes with no tags that go 50 miles an hour; I wonder what would happen if I grabbed one of my spare snow blower engines and bolted it to my mountain bike and used a centrifugal clutch and chain to connect it what would happen to me then?

    Perhaps when cars are banned and we all take .gov transportation they decide one day that your bus takes you to your “home” in a new “Freedom City”. Scary thoughts I know.

    • Hi Landru. I believe that in most states, the law stipulates that if a vehicle can exceed a certain speed (I think it’s 37 mph in FL) then it must be registered. Doesn’t matter what kind of vehicle, golf cart, go cart, bicycle, scooter, gotta have a plate on it

    • I saw a couple of teenage boys up in central PA that were riding what looked and sounded like a small 2-stroke bolted onto a mountain bike! They were going really fast! I totally want one of those but good fucken look searching the internet for it. All search engines “know” what you really want is a fucken battery powered bicycle even if your search includes “50cc” or “gas engine”. Complete bullshit.

    • Easily modifed e-bikes are pretty sketchy. Most were designed for the Chinese domesitc market where the only liability law enforcement happens if The Party puts you on their shit list. While you can usually push ESCs and motors way out past their design current with good heat sinks and ventilation, that battery pack is going to get hurt every time you push it beyond spec. It’s lots of fun until it swells up, and burns up.

      https://www.thecity.nyc/2022/11/21/23468257/ebikes-fires-lithium-ion-batteries-delivery-workers

      I look at them from time to time, and even test drove a few. Yes, I’d like one if the price is right, but I’m not going to skimp on quality. Yamaha makes a very good product, I trust the name, but it’s also a $3500 vehicle. At that price, I’ll stick to my touring frame with the granny ring for the hills, at least until my old legs won’t move my fat ass anymore.

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