Gas Tax Paper

As of right now gas prices seem to be lower than they have been in decades; so wouldn’t this be the perfect time to increase the gas tax when the prices are extremely low? Gail Collin’s of the New York Times seems to believe so! In a story he wrote he basically states that now is a better time than ever to bring in some extra funds to help support certain areas throughout the country such as the roads and highways which desperately need it after this winter. The current gas tax is 17.4 cents, so raising it a couple of cents couldn’t really make that much of an impact, could it? Collin’s goes on to explain that this isn’t a revolutionary idea; it has been done numerous times before by previous presidents. He also goes on to explain another method Obama planned on using regarding foreign business, but it really doesn’t do the job that a simple raise in the gas tax would do. The article gives the impression that the only reason this is not getting serious attention is due to the fact something did not get passed which taxed tobacco for early education, which seems really unfair. Although some of his argument I disagree with, I think the gas tax increase is a great idea! Everything Collin had said was fine except for his opinion that gas prices being low has an effect on global warming. In my eyes global warming is not even that big of a factor. “Global Warming” is more in my eyes just the natural climate trend of the earth dating back millions of years. Aside from that he brings up a great idea in this whole gas tax situation. Firstly, the roads need serious attention and I’m in favor of anything that gives them the attention they need. On my way to school I must pass at least 1,000 potholes. Secondly, now is the perfect time! I personally love driving, and I drive a lot. Coming from someone who doesn’t like to spend money filling up my tank either, I know I wouldn’t care if prices raised 10-50 cents, especially if it would make a dramatic difference in the country.