Is it just me or do the politicians in Washington DC just think we’re all stupid? I’ve been trying to follow their logic for several months now about WHY oil prices are skyrocketing. In their minds, the blame falls squarely on Big Oil because they are making a profit. And if they keep saying it long enough and loud enough, perhaps they will convince of all us that Big Oil is to blame. But I’ve been around long enough to remember otherwise…
For more than 30 years, 535 supposedly intelligent people have occupied the seats of our Congress. You would think these brilliant minds could have solved our gas problems when we first faced them in the 1970’s. I’ll be the first to say that we need to be exploring alternative energy sources while being environmentally conscious BUT we are an oil-dependent nation and converting to another energy supply doesn’t happen overnight. Congress should have been more involved in allowing for oil exploration in our own country long ago. We know it is there – trillions of barrels of it. Yet, for some reason, our politicians think it the responsibility of OPEC to provide us with what we need. Huh?
And when it comes to finding ways to extract it, these hypocritical politicians speak from both sides of their mouths. In one breath they praise the ingenuity and brilliance of the American spirit to accomplish any task imaginable. We can put a man on the moon, a probe on Mars, develop medical marvels, and more…but we cannot be trusted to get the oil out of the ground in an environmentally safe way? Really, are we that stupid? Either we have the greatest minds to achieve the impossible or we don’t. They can’t have it both ways.
The blame here falls directly and incontrovertibly on our Congress – Senators and Representatives. They have neglected to act over and over again on legislation that would have removed America from our dependency on foreign oil. Instead, they have placed our national security in jeopardy – not to mention the possible demise of the American economy – by their unwillingess to act. All of them should be fired for incompetency and negligence!
Congress wants OPEC to supply more oil into the market. Why should OPEC provide the U.S. with more oil when we have trillions of barrels in our own nation? Despite their constant whining over gas prices and U.S. dependency on foreign oil, our Senators and Representatives continue to oppose policies which would alleviate the severity of both problems. Are they really acting in the best interests of our nation OR are they just trying to hang on to power? I’d like to know how much each of our representatives in the Congress has received during their “reign” from environmental special interest groups? or petroleum special interest groups? Because it certainly doesn’t seem like they care to much about the rest of us.
There is one group (American Solutions) that is trying to gather signatures to encourage oil exploration in our own country. You can find out more information and sign their petition on their website.
And it’s not going to get any better. This week, Appalachian Power Company (the major supplier of electricity for the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions) asked for a 23.9% rate increase for their consumers. Democrats are talking about raising taxes on natural gas and coal (the two biggest sources for producing electricity). Food prices are steadily rising. One presidential candidate would like to increase payroll taxes and FICA taxes. Our corporate health insurance will increase 13% in September – the fourth hike in as many years. And our business fuel costs have almost tripled from this time last year.
I guess if I were just another millionaire serving in the Congress, being chauffeured around in my private car with the best health insurance in the country (that someone else pays for), I wouldn’t be too worried about the economy either.