When paid by Volkswagen, the fines should go to patent free research of better diesel engines… and emission controls

Sir, Brooke Masters write “Drivers who bought VW’s “clean diesel” engines are now faced with technical fixes that could well reduce both fuel efficiency and power. Their communities have much dirtier than anticipated air” “Lawsuit on behalf of 1m $1 investors is something to fear. Somebody ought to sue” October 3.

Indeed but when suing make sure that if you win it can make a difference, not just make up for something secondary.

Many Volkswagen’s diesel engine buyers, who said they bought it out of environmental concern, many of them just green show-offs, now have a legitimate grievance being left out hanging like fools. But, if they are going to sue, they should at least request that, if successful, all fines paid by VW should go to finance the development of patent free better diesel motors.

Brooke Master’s also writes: “There are many frivolous [and not non frivolous] law suites were the attorneys on both sides walked away with millions of dollars in fees”. And with that she reminds me of that, at least in the case of banks being sued, all lawyers should be paid their fees in bank shares… I mean so that we do not hurt the lending capacity of banks and with that of ten thousands of innocent bystanders borrowers… the sort of civilian casualties.

Perhaps if we start looking into the issue of where compensation payments and fees go to, and how it is paid, then perhaps we will start looking at tort reform from a much more productive angle.

@PerKurowski

What is at risk is our freedom to do what needs to be done.

Sir, Vaclav Klaus in “What is at risk is not the climate but freedom” June 14, is both wrong and right. Wrong in the sense that the fact that people could be ordered by governments to build levees and do things do protect themselves and their children for the future has nothing to do with “replacing the free and spontaneous evolution of mankind by a sort of central planning” and sublimely right in that an abusive exploitation of our environmental emergencies by an often hypocritical green clergy could definitely infringe on our freedom to do what needs to be done.