Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

Today's ruling on California's Proposition 8--banning gay marriage but upholding the marriages of thousands of same-sex couples already performed--has us wondering if driving a car in San Francisco today is a good idea.

Based on past experience on any given day, it's usually terrible. Parking a Smart Fortwo is a challenge and various street people--iPod-wearing club kids and homeless alike--will wander into the street at a moment's notice.

Add in the complexity of real, possibly violent mass protests, and you're in for a driving challenge today--and not just a legal one.  Here's our suggestions for putting yourself out of harm's way while...

General Motors has three bidders interested in its European businesses Opel and Vauxhall. Among the bidders? Fiat Group, which is busy recrafting itself from also-ran in the European car sweepstakes to a global player that's starting to look a lot like the old General Motors.

For its part, GM is trying to hash out a restructuring plan in advance of a May 31 deadline set by the Obama administration. GM CEO Fritz Henderson has all but said GM will file Chapter 11 by the end of the month, as the task of cutting deals with the United Auto Workers, dealers, creditors and the U.S. government has turned herculean.

As it's preparing the groundwork...

With the ink hardly dry on new 35-mpg fuel economy rules, California's already embarking on the next set of guidelines for emissions beyond 2016.

Reuters reports that the California Air Resources Board is "immediately getting to work on what the standards should be" beyond 2016, said the board's chairman, Mary Nichols.

Yesterday, President Obama said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) would adopt new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards that met or exceeded those planned by the state of California, harmonizing federal and state emissions rules for the first time in a generation...