Clunk, Clunk...

WASHINGTON (July 30) — The government plans to suspend its popular "cash for clunkers" program amid concerns it could quickly use up the $1 billion in rebates for new car purchases, congressional officials said Thursday.

The Transportation Department called lawmakers' offices to alert them to the decision to suspend the program at midnight Thursday.

Even before the suspension, some in Congress were seeking more money for the auto sales stimulus. Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., wrote in a letter to House leaders on Wednesday requesting additional funding for the program.

"This is simply the most stimulative $1 billion the federal government has spent during the entire economic downturn," Miller said Thursday. "The federal government must come up with more money, immediately, to keep this program going."

Brendan Daly, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said they would work with "the congressional sponsors and the administration to quickly review the results of the initiative."

General Motors Co. spokesman Greg Martin said Thursday the automaker hopes "there's a will and way to keep the CARS program going a little bit longer."

Well, folks, that is the Washington version. What they are NOT telling you, mostly because politicians cannot see past their noses, is that the poorer folks cannot afford to turn in their clunkers, because they cannot afford to buy a new, fuel-efficient car. All this taxpayer money is going to scammers who buy up wrecks for $50, then sell them to affluent people for $1500 who, in turn, use them as trade-ins to get $4,500 of the new car they were going to buy, anyway. So scammers and the wealthy are collecting the taxpayer funds, while the poor suffer even more.

How do they suffer? Heck, I'm sure every one of you can recall a time when you were struggling, and drove an old car that wasn't yet a classic. And those old cars always needed parts to keep them going. Now, with those parts cars getting crushed, just where will struggling people find parts at a reasonable price?

Once again, the poor get the short end of the stick at the hands of politicians who SAY they are working to help the poor. Sure they are! Helping them to stay poor. And, knowing the current administration and Congress, I'm betting they actually expand this dumb program, and dump even more of our money down the toilet.

On another topic, we have been bombarded by friends asking us where we are going this weekend - Andover or Parsem. The pressure has been great, as our friends seem evenly divided as to which is best. Originally, we had decided to attend Andover this year, and hit Parsem next year. But with all the pressure building, we were at a loss to choose.

So, we did the only honorable thing - tossed a quarter.

It will be Andover, after all, and possibly Oxford on Sunday.

And Robin didn't give back the quarter.

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