Is McCain's tire-gauge ridicule wrong? (That would be a "yes")

At least they're acknowledging this.

http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2008/08/is_mccains_tiregauge_ridicule.html#more

Is McCain's tire-gauge ridicule wrong?
Posted August 5, 2008 9:38 AM
The Swamp

by Frank James

snip//

On June 17, in a speech on energy security in Houston, the senator from Arizona said:

In the face of climate change and other serious challenges, energy conservation is no longer just a moral luxury or a personal virtue. Conservation serves a critical national goal.

So if conservation is so vital to the national well-being, as McCain says, why ridicule a conservation method as simple but effective as proper tire inflation?

Doesn't that risk sending a contradictory message that it's not worth checking tire inflation? And if it's not worth doing that, maybe it's not worth doing tune-ups? Or replacing incandescent lightbulbs with those fluorescent spiral ones, and on and on?

Indeed, wasn't Obama's point when he talked about tire gauges that it doesn't necessarily take a huge investment to practice conservation in everyday life? Don't we want Americans thinking that they can collectively have a large impact on the nation's overall energy consumption if everyone takes some relatively painless steps in the course of their daily routines?

Obviously, the McCain campaign was trying to trivialize Obama by saying that his entire energy policy can be symbolized by a tire gauge. That is demonstrably untrue but it has probably always been the nature of politics since ancient Athens that candidates state falsities about their opponents. Nothing is going to change there.

But if we are to truly have an all-of-the-above energy policy, which is what McCain and congressional Republicans say they desire, that's going to have to take into account everything, including the proper use of the lowly tire gauge.

McCain Mocks Obama With Tire Gauges, But Agrees That Inflating Car Tires Properly Will Save Energy:

as they get.

Everyone already knows keeping tire pressure up helps milage, but even knowing we won't fill them often enough. Making a policy on peoples improved virtue is silly because it just is not going to happen.

Might as well say people should push their cars on flat sections and turn the motor off and coast on downhills. That will save fuel too.

... and believing in their ability to do so instead of just being cynical about human nature. He realizes the dire situation we are in so he's not afraid to put everything out there and keep driving home the message day after day.

This is what a LEADER does. He keeps the faith when no one else does and takes none of his people for granted.

The type of person who inflates their tires is already doing it. The 30% who don't (lets say) will never do it. Now maybe if Obama automate the inflation process at a cheap price?

Look how simple the tire gauge is... And satirizing your opponent works.

This tire gauge thing shouldn't be engaged as a debate, that's a mistake.

McCain isn't saying anything about tire-inflation he's trying to make Obama look foolish about gas/energy policy.

This is easily defeated, simply by grabbing the symbol (tire gauges) and embracing them to mock McCain's attempt to trivialize.

I fear we're not taking this seriously and to the extent people are they're giving it legs by focusing too narrowly rather than the obvious symbolism the McCain camp is trying to frame.