Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Cars for Me, but NOT thee


The school of social economics, which subscribes to the theory of zero sum (e.g., if I have a refrigerator then you most not), has come out against the Tata company's Nano car for India. The best quote that captures this selfish view is: "we'll get into a situation where we'll have to compete with them for gasoline, $4, $5 a gallon. Who knows how high we could go?" said Peter Beutel."

How said it is for the world that we've come to the point of begrudging the poor of the world their chance to drive to town instead of walking.

Let us all turn our minds for a minute to the early 1900s when the miracle of the Ford Model T liberated our kinfolk form the farm. Let us stop being small and start welcoming the rest of the world into the machine age. Let us look upon the poor people in undeveloped lands as individuals who can bring their dreams and hopes to life.

Instead of disaster, I see a future where one evening in a village in India dad will finish the wax job on his Tata Nano and sit down and admire the way the lines on his ride shine in the setting sun and look so good. Sitting next to him will be his son who also looks at the Nano and dreams of the day when he can take it for a drive too.

The Nano won't bring about the end of world, bring about a beginning. A beginning the world will be better for.

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