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Walter Block's avatar

Dear Mitchell: I couldn't agree more with your excellent analysis. Yes, that it a GIGANTIC flaw in this ointment. A big problem is that this makes the govt more efficient, and as ancaps we want to weaken govt, not strengthen it. But I think this is a judgement call. In my book Defending I, I supported litter to undermine govt highways.. Do I favor people leaving bombs on the govt roadways, killing each other? Of course not. In my perhaps imperfect judgement, this govt peak load pricing scheme is like litter, not bombs. Should we support bums in public libraries? On the on hand, this screws up govt libraries which is good. But it prevents taxpayers from getting something back out of govt. My point is, I don't think we can settle this conundrum based on libertarian principles (NAP, property rights based on homesteading). It is more of a strategic or tactical issue. Thanks for pushing me around on this issue. Best regards, Walter

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Walter Block's avatar

Dear Allen: Well said. Thanks. Best regards, Walter

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Mitchell Langbert's avatar

The fly in the ointment is that the policy is imposed not by owners of private property on their own property but by the city government on streets that were once common land, so the city has confiscated access to streets that were once available to everyone. The policy is working as a guy at my club said the other day that his cab ride from 87th and East End to Fifth Avenue and 11th Street has been cut in half thanks to congestion pricing.

The fee differs for taxis (75 cents) and for personal cars ($5). While $5 sounds like a small amount, someone who drives to work five days a week pays $110 a month on top of the $15.75 daily ($346.50 monthly) toll on the GW Bridge. The average monthly parking fee in Manhattan is $570 per month, so the total monthly fees alone are $110 congestion pricing + $346.50 GW toll + $570 parking = $1.026.50 in fees.

The streets in the city are so bad that many cars cannot drive there. I can't take my BMW M850x there, and my wife won't take her small Mercedes there either, so when we stay there we take the bus. A large share of the cars is made up of huge Chevvy Suburbans or Cadillac Escalades because despite the huge fees, the streets are below third-world levels. The extra money goes to housing of illegal aliens.

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ALLEN GINDLER's avatar

Contemporary Republicans indeed are to the right of the Democrats, who have shifted toward pure socialism. Alas, this does not mean that the Republicans are a right-wing party—they are center-left. That is why one can observe so many inconsistencies and socialist elements in their policies.

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