California to Outlaw Black Cars, Communism is on its way! Options

[illriginal]

When the first Model T rolled off the assembly line, Henry Ford was asked what colors were available, to which he famously quipped, "You can get it in any color you want as long as it is black." A century later, California, the Mother of all Nanny States, is telling its citizens they can have any color they want as long as it is not black, or any other dark color, for that matter. You see, you thoughtless dark car owners are killing the planet because your car uses too much energy to cool the passengers. So it's light colored cars for the lot of you.


In a move that will likely get California's consumers in a huff, impending legislation may soon restrict the paint color options for Golden State residents looking for their next new vehicle. The specific colors that are currently on the chopping block are all dark hues, with the worst offender seemingly the most innocuous color you could think of: Black. What could California possibly have against these colors, you ask? Apparently, the California Air Resources Board figures that the climate control systems of dark colored cars need to work harder than their lighter siblings – especially after sitting in the sun for a few hours. Anyone living in a hot, sunny climate will tell you that this assumption is accurate, of course. In fact, legislation already exists for buildings that has proven successful at reducing the energy consumption of skyscrapers.

So what about a red Corvette? Too dark? How about burgundy, or are we stuck with pink? And what about visitors to California? Will Grandpa have to pay a sin tax on his navy blue Cadillac when he visits from Nevada? With all of California's existing restrictive fuel economy standards on large cars, and now color restrictions on the cars you can buy, it seems that in California you can buy any car you want, as long as it is one of these.

This is getting out of hand... and now there's a rumor going around that Plasma TVs are next on the list!

[none345678]

Do you know how many dumb shit laws get mentioned, but never passed? Consider this one of them.

[illriginal]

Do you know how many dumb shit laws get mentioned, but never passed? Consider this one of them.

I really... really... hope so. If it gets to the point that they're going to outlaw colors... we'll be looking at communism dead in the face. Forget socialism.

[Gigi]

It reminds me of that Mythbusters episode where they tested the black cars myth. I think it was "Plausible" or even "Confirmed".

EDIT// after some quick Googling...

CONFIRMED
A fan wrote in and asked a follow up question: "Does the color of a car affect the way it heats up?". The MythBusters used two identical cars, one black the other white and left them both out in the summer heat with thermometers in both. By mid-afternoon the black car had heated up to a temperature of 135 °F while the white car topped off at 126 °F, almost 10 degrees cooler.

Okay, so Mythbusters probably isn't the most scientifically valid show in the world, nor did they make any conclusions about how a black car contributes to carbon emissions and therefore pollution, but with a fairly scientifically accurate test and a significant temperature difference of 10°F (5°C), it's safe to say that it's totally possible. But to what extent? And is it great enough to warrant a law that prohibits black or dark hued cars? Probably not. But the important thing to note here is that merely the possibility of banning colours of cars, provided you have a valid, scientific reason to do so, does not equal to communism.