It's been a while now that I've considered the House, the Senate, and the Presidency to simply be three different ways to be crazy.
Pelosi, Reid and Obama are only the most recent examples of this lunacy, but as examples go they are prime.
The most recent evidence of this pervasive insanity is the cap 'n' trade bill that was passed by the house on Friday. Granted, this bill needs to make it through the insanity that is the Senate and must be signed by the lunatic in the White House, but I'm almost certain it's a given that it will be done... and never mind what the pathetic people living in the United States think of it, either. The House of Representatives phone switchboard went down due to the pleas of the people... but what do the people know? Leave the governing to the "elite." They certainly know best, right? Representative Charles Gonzalez, a democrat from Texas, voted for the bill while telling CNN, "I can't begin to tell you how many calls we've received. And it's disproportionately 'vote no.'"
It is a certainty that Obama will sign a bill put on his desk. On Thursday, he said, "Now is the time for us to lead. We cannot be afraid of the future. We cannot be prisoners to the past... Make no mistake, this is a jobs bill." REALLY! Don't you just love how everything the president wants can be translated into a "jobs bill?" Hefty stimulus for banks? JOBS. Out of this world taxes on energy? JOBS. Overhaul health care and nationalize it? JOBS. It's really amazing the power of this president, isn't it? Jobs, jobs, everywhere...
But look at what Barack Obama said - before he was elected:
“I was the first to call for a 100% auction on the cap and trade system, which means that every unit of carbon or greenhouse gases emitted would be charged to the polluter. That will create a market in which whatever technologies are out there that are being presented, whatever power plants that are being built, that they would have to meet the rigors of that market and the ratcheted down caps that are being placed, imposed every year.
“So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it’s just that it will bankrupt them because they’re going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that’s being emitted.
“That will also generate billions of dollars that we can invest in solar, wind, biodiesel and other alternative energy approaches.
“The only thing I’ve said with respect to coal, I haven’t been some coal booster. What I have said is that for us to take coal off the table as a ideological matter as opposed to saying if technology allows us to use coal in a clean way, we should pursue it.
“So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can.
‘It’s just that it will bankrupt them.”
"Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it — whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers."
So... he's out to bankrupt the coal industry, he's out to create a new market that will generate billions of dollars for the government... albeit supposedly so that the government can invest in clean ways to produce energy. Past experience would dictate that the money will go elsewhere. But we're not going to go into the ponzi schemes of the past today, are we?
The bill goes further than simply raising the cost of energy, though. It's also another way to redistribute the wealth of the middle and upper classes. Somehow, the CBO has estimated that the average American household will pay an additional $175 per year in energy costs (which is probably a low estimate)... but the poorest households will receive rebates lowering their annual energy costs by $40.
I hate to go off on a tangent (but apparently am going to quickly do it anyway). What is it about the liberals that makes them want to drag down the successful instead of raising up the poor? Do they really think that they're helping to improve the situation of the "working poor" by lowering their annual energy bill by forty bucks? My frustration with the mentality of the leadership in our country is mounting daily... and frankly, my frustration with the mentality of the American people is right up there as well. We still live in the land of opportunity. We still live in a country where a hard working, creative individual can rise up and make something of him or herself. Is it hard work? YES. But that's the whole point... to work hard for something. Are there people out there who work hard and don't make much from it? Sure. But if that's your situation, you need to do something different. Don't just keep digging the same hole and filling it back in... and then wait for a government check. That's stupid.
But back to cap 'n' trade. The market created by this incredibly irresponsible bill is not to be worried about. Because it's going to be regulated... yes, regulated. Whew! We were all worried that there wouldn't be enough regulation of the regulating markets. Not only will it be regulated, but it will be regulated by three different federal agencies. The Environmental Protection Agency, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Don't you feel better now?
The bill "devotes billions of dollars to new energy projects and subsidies for low-carbon agricultural practices," according to the New York Times. I'm almost afraid of what kind of research they are doing to reduce cow emissions.
According to the Global Guru, Al Gore, "This bill doesn't solve every problem, but passage today means that we build momentum for the debate coming up in the Senate and negotiations for the treaty talks in December which will put in place a global solution to the climate crisis. There is no backup plan." Wow. How frightening is that? The fate of the world rests on Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Barack Obama's energy plan - and there is no backup plan. I'm feeling chills up and down my spine right now.
Back in June of 2006, Gore gave us ten years... I guess the clock has been ticking down ever since. Only seven years left to live... what will you do? Huh... well, it looks like we'll pay more for our energy in our waning years.
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