Sen. Barack Obama explained that a gas tax holiday is a gimmick. Honesty is a novelty.

Short term, officials can lower the speed limit on major highways to 55 mph; and drivers can tune up their vehicles and inflate tires. There is no short-term fix for high gas prices.

The nation can control its energy future by raising the gas tax to keep the cost of gasoline high, or it can entrust its future to unidentified parties.

The increased gas tax should be divided up, with 20 percent to road and bridge maintenance, 25 percent to mass transit and fast rail, 30 percent to fund the war with jihadists, and 25 percent to finance benefits servicemen and servicewomen have earned.

The high price of a barrel of oil is not an act of God, anymore than the subprime mortgage crisis. In both cases, officials need to find out who profited. Regulatory boards that supervise commodity trading and underwriting mortgages need to be fully staffed, and regulations enforced. If further regulation is needed, it should be enacted.

The nation’s transportation infrastructure needs to change, so that ocean and rail are used for long-haul, while trucks are used for local delivery.

Democrats need to stress energy efficiency, health care, regulations that encourage responsible business practices, the rebuilding of the nation’s military (personnel and equipment), caring for veterans, establishing a progressive income tax, and national service to fund education while serving the needs of the nation’s citizens.

John Parsons, Durham