It does make more sense for the US to slowly begin to tax fossil fuels more as it will cause us to be more forward thinking in our energy choices today. To me, the first shift would be to turn away from suburban planning, and towards centralized, higher density living, which is more common, and very livable, in most of the rest of the world. Not only does that negate much of the fossil fuels used in commuting, but it can also allow more open space to potentially be preserved for the future. Additionally apartments tend to be slightly smaller dwellings, with more common walls, heating and cooling systems, and thus consume less resources.
This sounds really great except for one thing: The ones that need to be taxed are NOT the United States Citizens who pay for a little thing called "Freedom". Yes, it is true that some other countries tax fuel more than we do. However the structure of those countries including the tax structures are quite a bit different. In addition, where they tax gasoline many of these same countries use that taxation to offset the price of diesel fuel which reduces the prices of transportation to those willing to use the far more efficient diesel engines. It also reduces the cost of transportation for manufactured goods and people moving infrastructure. In the United States any more taxes on fuels will NOT be an incentive to do anything with regards to energy producers. Without a complete replacement of politicians in the pockets of major corporations it will not change either.
People simply do not understand that taxation under United States guidelines and tax structure on fuels will do not one single thing to develop alternate energy resources, it will not do one single thing to make anything better. The U.S. Government will stand there with their hands out and most of what the taxpayer pays will as always go elsewhere.
If we want the Government to do anything with regards to energy we could follow the examples of many other countries and simply Nationalize the Energy Producing Companies as a matter of "National Security" which it certainly is.
I agree that major changes are needed with regards to energy producers.
You need to go back and hit the text books on this one and look at what has already been roadblocked over many decades by the politicians who serve you. I am a great deal older and have watched common sense be removed by those who profit from "no change" over and over again.
W.E.D. Enterprises (The Walt Disney Company) offered a gift to the City of Los Angeles which was a complete monorail system to help transportation around the downtown portion of Los Angeles. It was to be designed so that it could be expanded by the City of Los Angeles and was to be a GIFT (FREE) to the City of Los Angeles from Disney who was so grateful to the people of Southern California. Politicians turned it down!
In the City of Los Angeles, a transportation existed called "the red car". The Red car was an electric trolly system and it served a great deal of the Southern California area and many cities surrounding Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Municipal Bus Lines with the financial help of General Motors petitioned to have that system removed and replaced by diesel buses all built by General Motors at that time. The red car system was removed!
Los Angeles is the best example of a disaster created by this kind of myopic thinking. If you want taxation to do anything, you would need to create a separate tax structure for energy producers. You will also have to create a legal structure that does NOT allow a major corporation to shut down or "buy out" a guy who could actually solve a problem.
You would have to place heavy taxation on corporate profits and heavy taxation incentives for development of renewable low pollution energy sources. You would have to give grants away to people who can independently research and solve these infrastructure problems.
The Political Party does not matter on this one. A tax on the citizen will not help anyone or anything, a tax on energy that they CANNOT pass on is constructive when paired with tax reductions for alternate fuels. The hint to them. Start working on renewable fuels because those will be something that will pay your stockholders. Refuse and stick with the present path and you are guaranteed to have a very small profit at the end of the year.
