Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Jordan
That, unfortunately, is easy to answer: Money. We committed our money and resources to oil and coal, to such an extent that efforts to switch to other forms of energy were easily deflected back to the oil/coal track by the ones holding the purse-strings.
Our governments are literally hogtied by Big Oil and Coal... and worse, they are totally willing and submissive to it. They buy our leaders off with wine, women, mansions and Hummers, and our leaders are more than happy to go along with it. They have been behind every effort to slow, kill or ridicule alternative energies for the past century or so, and in return, the govt has given them subsidies and tax breaks that are lavish compared to those of other industries. Until our leaders have the stones (or the public manages) to lock them out of the chambers long enough to get some honest governing done, that won't change.
That's why we desperately need lobbying reforms, as well as a commitment to put leaders in office who are willing to make the tough choices, which we have to be willing to follow. We have to stop the dirty money trail.
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I couldn't agree with you more. You would think, though, that the media would want to press the issue of Big Oil and Big Coal more than they do. The threw daggers at Pres. Bush for 8 years because they disliked him so intensely (and no, I'm not going to debate his presidency). Why not point the same focus at the politicians who are helping the energy industry keep the status quo?
As for lobbyist reform, I also couldn't agree more. I had hopes that the new administration would keep their promises in this arena, but it seems I'll be disappointed again. Is it any wonder that I regard both sides of the aisle with a great deal of scepticism?