In his column about electric vehicles (“It’s not easy being green,” July 6), Cal Thomas says “technology should precede ideology.”
An ideology is a system of ideas and ideals, for example the set of beliefs that if we are to preserve a world hospitable for human life, we need to quickly stop warming the planet. Seems like a pretty good ideology to me, one we should pursue whether or not the technology is 100% in place.
Progress has always been incremental, and is often instigated by visionaries who see beyond the limitations of existing technology.
Mr. Thomas claims the Biden administration is trying to “force us” into electric vehicles. If so, why are so many people lining up to buy them, and why are car companies everywhere retooling to build them? The demand is there because people are realizing that efficient electricity sourced from the sun is cheaper than polluting fossil fuels, and that we have to stop burning petroleum and coal as fast as we can if we wish to exist in a livable world.
Thomas cherry picks General Motors’ new $100,000 Hummer electric truck as an example of EV’s high costs. But Americans dealing with inflation are far more likely to be quite happy with an emissions-free electric car like the $25,600 Chevy Bolt, which sports an EPA estimated range of 259 miles, qualifies for a $2,000 Efficiency Maine rebate, and saves money over its life due to reduced maintenance.
Sam Saltonstall, Brunswick
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