C060501b Out of Touch Leaders

Information, news and opinions about

"our" federal government, and how to

bring about a return to leadership!

At a time when unemployment is below 5%, the stock markets are
near all-time highs, and the first quarter GDP was 4.8%, can Congress
be any more out of touch than with the idea of giving us a $100 rebate
because the price of gas is near the inflation adjusted cost of two
decades ago and most of the world pays more than $5 a gallon?

Normally I'm glad whenever Congress wants to give us money since
they usually only want to spend it, but don't additionally tax an industry
that is our primary source for energy on our own soil because we're
paying a few more dollars for gasoline. Insufficient world supply and an
over anxious oil futures market scared by the rhetoric of leaders of
nation's with large armies and oil supplies has us in this situation.

We helped create the problem by ignoring alternative fuels for 30
years, not raising the minimum "miles per gallon" (MPG) standards
on cars for the last 20 years, reducing the transportation of goods by
rail, and allowing some of the worst MPG offenders, the SUV's, to
have reduced standards to help our poorly competing, over unionized
automobile industry compete with the world. A gas shock will
hopefully kick us in the pants to conserve so we can also stop
throwing entirely too much money at Middle East dictatorships.

Congress thinks we're so dumb as to not recognize the pandering by
both Republicans and Democrats on this issue. An out of touch crowd
of long-term representatives that have staff filling up their cars with gas
and drive the worst gas guzzlers. You have a vote this November. Use
it to elect citizen-legislators again that will not seek long-term non-term
limited careers in Washington D.C., and have filled up a gas tank in the
last 15 years.