Buy a Chevrolet & See the USA?

This is why General Motors may not make it.

It's called the PUMA -- for Personal Urban Mobility & Accessibility -- and GM plans, in association with Segway, Inc., to roll this monstrosity out for widespread sale by 2012.

Maybe the Mayans were right after all.

According to the Wall Street Journal,

The machine, which GM says it aims to develop by 2012, would run on batteries and use wireless technology to avoid traffic backups and navigate cities.

The struggling auto maker, surviving on a government lifeline, is looking to generate enthusiasm for its increasingly uncertain future ahead of the New York auto show this week.

The Segway never achieved the success that many predicted eight years ago because it was slow, hard to see in traffic (many jurisdictions banned its street use), and expensive, at least in comparison to the carrying capacity of a traditional vehicle.

GM is betting PUMA's more car-like traits -- an enclosed compartment and top speed of 35 miles per hour -- will lead to better results. GM didn't say how much the machines would cost, but research chief Larry Burns said owners would spend one-third to one-fourth of the cost of a traditional vehicle.

PUMA would have a range of about 35 miles. GM said it aims to use so-called vehicle-to-vehicle technology to avoid traffic problems and potentially have it navigate itself through city streets.

I'm not a math genius, but I am a thinker. A range of 35 miles and a top speed of 35 mph means that you could be out of juice in an hour, and you better not have a commute of much more than 15 miles, just to be safe.

And safe you would not be, because this puppy, er PUMA, would not handle much more than a strong puff of wind. (Mountain lions should sue for the damage to their reputations as fierce, muscular beasts of speed).

Next question: How much (taxpayer) money is going into development of this?

Related questions: Is this a government idea? Is this why GM's longtime chief car designer quit recently?

Weird Pre-Inaugural Jitters

Mixing his metaphors and obviously full of himself, Barack Obama's train ride to Washington included a chilling phrase uttered in Philadelphia, the cradle of American, according to the Associated Press and Fox News:

He promised to bring the country "a new Declaration of Independence" -- free from small thinking, prejudice and bigotry.

Which naturally evokes this question: What's wrong with the old Declaration of Independence? Was it an example of "small thinking, prejudice and bigotry"?

I know that I'm a hard sell. Obama's going to have to work hard to win me over. Statements like this one, whether he was sincere or not (and I think the jury's still out on that), do not help.

Nor does the efforts of some Democrats to repeal the two-term limits of presidents embedded in the U.S. Constitution:

The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary is considering a bill that would repeal the Constitution's 22nd Amendment prohibiting a president from being elected to more than two terms in office.

Rep. Jose Serrano, D-N.Y., earlier this month introduced the bill, H. J. Res. 5, which, according to the bill's language, proposes "an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to repeal the twenty-second article of amendment, thereby removing the limitation on the number of terms an individual may serve as President."

Methinks we are climbing aboard the crazy train. Obama has yet to take the oath of office yet more and more people are extolling his accomplishments and prepping for an extended tour of duty for the 44th president. Is this not a bit premature - not to mention bizarre?

A cursory review of some of the Oklahoma blogs in the last couple of days indicates a degree of enthusiasm that goes well beyond mere politeness. The Sunday paper this morning was downright appalling in its syncophancy. The TV networks, including Fox News, are not preparing for an inauguration; it's a coronation!

It's weird. Like some old "Twilight Zone" episode where all the neighbors have changed personalities, and the sun is coming up in the west.

I mentioned the "new" Declaration of Independence quote to my wife this morning, and she paled. "That's scary," she said. (So I know that Obamania has not yet infected my household). But I'm telling you right now that people need to pinch themselves back to reality. I do hope Barack Obama has a successful presidential term and that things work out on all fronts. There is no way, however, that he can be all things to all people and accomplish all goals. It is not humanly possible, and he is human.

When things go wrong, and something always does, I don't particularly want to see the mood of the country go from euphoric to angry. You'll be doing Mr. Obama a favor by cutting him some slack right now, even if he himself isn't.