A thought or two for our presidential candidates.

Lady, and gentlemen. Thank you for your interest in running our country. While you all have pretty impressive resume's, I would like your attention on a few matters. I understand running for "change" is a very populist thing to do. Would you please be a little more specific with your ideas. Such ideas may have merit. However I would like to point out that every election year "change" is a major running point. And I agree a few things may need changing. You also must understand something. The only things I don't percieve as broken are the very few things that people in your profession haven't managed to "change". Secondly I think it's about time you thought up a practical energy policy for my country. I don't care about ever being able to buy gasoline for .89 cents a gallon ever again. However I would like to see someone come up with a long term plan. Rather than pandering with talk of dropping the gas tax for the short term how about a practical idea. Chew on this thought. Years ago you caved in to the lobbyists from the auto companies and gave tax breaks for small businesses to buy trucks. Now we have day care owning soccer moms and corner deli owners driving SUV's so big their parking spaces require a zipcode. So it became fashionable to have a four wheel drive monstrocity parked in your driveway. How about you now turn things back around. A major problem is most people are so upside down in thier vehicle getting rid of it will push them even closer to bankruptcy. A new taxation idea. How about if someone were to trade in thier gas guzzler you let them write off the depreciation loss on thier income tax. On top of that should the replacement vehicle be built here in the states and get 35mpg or better, let them write off the interest over the life of the loan. Or if they are one of those rare people that pay cash give them a serious tax incentive. Say a $1000.00 write off for the purchase. Make it so people can't afford not to have an efficient vehicle in thier driveway. Also maybe it's time you stopped paying industries to look for solutions to problems. As long as looking is more profitable than finding there won't be any solutions found. The US government has spent tons of money subsidizing research to industry that would profit from the technology if found. Of course while American companies still scratch thier heads, the Japanese (Honda) has announced they will be leasing Hydrogen fuel cell cars in California next year. Sorry, not not ten years from now, not twenty years from now, next year!! Maybe we instead of pledging money for research we announced there would be a $2,000.00 tax incentive given to purchasers of hydrogen (or biodiesel, electric, or methanol) powered cars, half the new cars sitting on the dealers lots would not be gasoline powered at all. Also, considering that the airline industry has now about priced itself out of reach for most travellers. Isn't it about time we promoted Amtrak? Trains now travelling at 20% of thier capacity won't use much more fuel if they were running at 80% passenger capacity. Also while your at it, get those idiots at the post office to put the mail back on the rails. Shoot rail travel might even become profitable enough to privitize once again. Did you know there was a time when railroads owned things called train stations and paid property taxes on them. They were also the pride and joy of most comunities. You could tell alot about a town by looking at it's train station. OH! did I mention in most cases the railroads paid property taxes on train stations. Unlike airports that are owned and run at a loss by governments. And if you've seen one airport, you've seen them all. Of course I know that I'm holding my hand on my butt hoping that one day I'll be able to ride one of the old premier passenger trains, in all it's glory again. But, if a time existed it could happen, it's now. Just thinking.... Woods