Misdirected Energy by Jayme Evans

by Jayme Evans

Misdirected Energy

April 29, 2008 02:00 PM EST

While the screws are put to average American in the form of taxpayer bailouts of self-serving, greedy financial interests the government deems too important to let collapse or soaring fuel and food costs, both the Bush Administration and the 110th Congress continue to fiddle while Rome burns.

They pass everything from token measures such as Bush's economic stimulus package to Congress' pet mortgage reform, to Nancy Pelosi's behemoth "comprehensive" energy bill - using economic, environmental and cultural socialism to deal with America's ills. But the reality is that these measures taken by our leadership on both sides of the aisle are anything but helpful. In fact they are quite damaging.

George Bush, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are the ones that are torquing and tightening those screws. Together, they are actually contributing to our ongoing economic anemia through their collective bad decision-making, artificial manipulation of economic determinants and attempts to measure, categorize, regulate and mitigate your emissions.

Let's begin by looking at President Bush's economic stimulus package. As those checks begin to arrive this week, it is only fitting that we analyze the fiscal impact of that mess.

It was supposed to put money in the pockets of Americans so they could then theoretically spend it; purchase electronics or other durable goods from their local Mom and Pop, thus providing a much-needed shot in the arm to our ailing economy. This was supposed to be the tonic that would cleanse our economic life-blood of the poison of lethargy. Many conservatives warned Bush this was not the answer. Many liberals admonished him for supposedly not going far enough. His response at that time was that something was better then nothing.

But in a strange twist of irony which I predicted, events over the last several weeks have caused the supposed benefits of the stimulus to be called into question. Global food and fuel prices have gotten so far out of control so quickly that the very Americans that Bush's plan was to benefit will now be forced to use that money to buy - not gadgets, toys or luxuries (the kinds of things that would stimulate jobs and business), but necessities such as food or gasoline. Those that don't spend it on necessities are likely to save it out of pessimism. And those that would fritter it away on things to stimulate the economy fall into 2 categories; those who can afford it and those who can't. The problem with Bush's stimulus is that it is most attractive to that last category, likely to entice them to spend where they shouldn't, leading to more economic woe.

The end result of Bush's plan is that the business owners he was trying to help will see some small bit of relief. The only true winner will once again be the federal government who will see some nominal returns through federal taxes on fuel, but if fuel costs keep rising, even those tax dollars will become endangered.

Next, we focus on H.R. 3221 - Nancy Pelosi's New Direction for Energy Independence, National Security and Consumer Protection Act. Besides giving away the mammoth nature and massive scope of this legislation, the title is yet another irresistible, childish swipe at the President by Congressional Democrats. They can't resist a single opportunity to take a shot at Bush.

This bill, which quietly became law in December 2007, vastly expands the research and use of bio-fuels. This, in spite of the strain on global food prices we're now seeing due to corn prices.

It calls for studying ways to force producers of corn-only ethanol to retrofit their refineries with expensive new equipment that can make ethanol from multiple sources. It requires each federal agency to inventory and report annually to the E.P.A. Administrator its greenhouse gas emissions for the preceding fiscal year. It further requires that inventory to be subdivided and those emissions from human activities on lands managed by BLM or The Forest Service distinctly categorized.

It requires every building acquired by the largest federal agency, the General Services Agency (GSA) to have energy efficient bulbs and fixtures.

It requires the Architect of the Capitol to construct a fuel tank and pumping system for E-85 fuel at or near the Capitol Grounds Fuel Station. It also provides appropriations for construction of such tank. It requires such tank and system to be available for use by all legislative branch vehicles that use such fuel.

It places significant burdens on the President's Cabinet. It requires the Secretary of State -a diplomat- to report to Congress progress on greenhouse gas reductions and global warming mitigation. It directs the Secretary of the Interior to promulgate a national strategy to assist wildlife populations in adapting to the impacts of global warming.

It sets out requirements to carry out out half a dozen projects to measurably reduce or mitigate aviation impacts on noise, air or water quality at public airports. It sets the federal share of these project costs at 50%, meaning states will have to cover the rest.

Finally, and most troubling, this behemoth amends existing environmental law to:

(1) Eliminate the requirements to provide both advance notice and an invitation to comment from the procedure for prescribing new or amended energy conservation standards.

(2) Authorize the Secretary of Energy to issue what amounts to a federal decree on energy or water conservation standards.

(3) Subject single package vertical air conditioners and heat pumps to specified standards; and

(4) Redefine energy conservation standards.

This legislation contains literally hundreds of burdensome requirements that will never be achieved because of time, money and red tape. In the final analysis, the two-party system is nothing more than a grand ego experiment to see who can contrive the most grandiose bill to fix the nation's problems. It doesn’t seem to matter that the details are too complex, costly, or burdensome to implement.

Considering all of the problems the United States is now experiencing with a war that lacks a clearly defined end, a sour economy that continues to bleed jobs and astronomical costs for everyday necessities, it seems that all of these efforts at stimulation, conservation and regulation are just misdirected energy.