“The Ruling Class simply can’t have the Peasants roam around the country however they please, whenever they please.”
Several years ago I was listening to a CSPAN recording and a senator said, “We simply can’t allow every American to have an air conditioner.” I live in Florida in a mobile home. I own several mobile homes that I rent. You can’t live in a mobile home without an air conditioner. It’s like living in a toaster oven. I was very angry as I’ll bet this pompous ass has never worked a day in his life.
The thing that juiced the American economy from the 1940’s on was how cheap energy was. The cheaper energy is, the faster GDP grows. Make gas a dollar a gallon and watch the economy explode.