Here's one of the most appalling stories you'll ever see: tax credits that enable ambitious tax-avoiders to get free golf carts courtesy of the United States government. The Wall Street Journal sums it up well (subscription required): "We thought cash for clunkers was the ultimate waste of taxpayer money, but as usual we were too optimistic."

The tax credit of $4,200 to $5,200 is enough to offset the entire cost of some lower-end golf carts. And if you hold onto it for a year and then sell it, you can actually make money once you include the benefit of the tax credit. According to the Journal, "The golf-cart boom has followed an IRS ruling that golf carts qualify for the electric-car credit as long as they are also road worthy. These qualifying golf carts are essentially the same as normal golf carts save for adding some safety features, such as side and rearview mirrors and three-point seat belts. They typically can go 15 to 25 miles per hour."

Three products that are probably bad bets in this environment are private jets, helicopters and golf carts. Add in a large captive finance arm and an auto parts unit and you have Textron (NYS: TXT), the latest hobgoblin to join the dividend slasher parade and corporate Deathwatch. The Piqqem Sentiment on Textron is hard negative. The good folks at Ockham's Research hammer home these points and more.

Textron has had trouble in the past accessing commercial paper markets (and it's surely not having trouble now, right?) and raising equity capital. More than 50% of the assets on the books of its captive finance arm are non-performing and that could worsen as more companies that owe it money start to tip over in the various blighted industries it services. Add a slashed dividend to spook value and institutional investors. The upshot? Textron is basically ready to keel over, unfortunately.

You knew it had to happen at some point: the neighborhood street becoming dotted with whizzing golf carts.

With monthly gasoline bills exceeding car payments in some areas of the country, Americans have started to substitute tiny electric cars -- including golf carts and smaller electric vehicles -- for their local transportation needs, The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reported Thursday.

People are using them for local errands, to visit friends, even for trips to work if the destination is short, The Journal reported. And the habit may turn into a trend if cart use in challenging regions is any indicator: people in the nation of Texas are using them, as well!

Sees robust cart sales

Economist Glen Langan told BloggingStocks Thursday he's not surprised. "The previous rises in gasoline prices this decade, one [Hurricane] Katrina-related, one refinery-related, were viewed by the public as temporary. Not this time," Langan said. "Americans are convinced that four buck [$4] gas is here to stay, and oil use patterns around the world suggest they're not deluded in that assumption. Golf cart and mini-cart sales should increase at double-digit rates through the end of this decade, and most likely, longer."