SUV's still taking their toll

Here's a toll plan for the Brent Spence Bridge replacement that we should all be able to get behind.

The American Jobs Act would have eliminated the need for tolls, but after the Tea Party killed this bill, tolls seem like the only option. But I know one way we can make tolls an easier pill to swallow: Charge tolls for SUV's, but not for regular cars.

You may remember the Bush regime giving tax breaks for gas-guzzling SUV's. Well, it's only fair that SUV's give something back. Some roads already have a "per axle" toll policy: They charge large semis more than they charge passenger cars. So there's certainly a precedent for charging vehicles more based on their bulk.

And why shouldn't there be? SUV's imbibe more fuel, contribute more to climate change, and create more wear on our roads than an average car. It's only fair for SUV's to pay their share. That's the price of living in a society, where we have a social contract.

Despite the strong precedent, I'm sure there'd be some serious attempts by right-wing congresscreatures to abuse the federal muscle to say the states can't charge SUV's extra. But they're the states' roads - not Congress's. The Right has a problem understanding the concept of ownership. It's much like how Google doesn't understand how they don't own your years-old Internet posts and have no right making money from them (not even the posts that were modified without your permission by third parties).