More catching up

I saw a few headlines that I wanted to capture and make comments about.

The EPA has concluded that greenhouse gases pose a threat to the nation’s health. If upheld, this would require regulations to rein in emissions. I can hear Republicans’ heads swelling at the thought of government ‘intrusion’ into business decisions. Hey, if emissions are so good for us, why don’t we have ‘tailpipe bars’? It’s just what plants inhale, after all.

Colorado’s health care commission is set to report to the legislature. What’s at stake? Hundreds of thousands of uninsured and underinsured Colorado citizens. What did citizens overwhelmingly recommend to the commission? Single-payer care. What will we get? Well, nothing this year as even Gov. Ritter seems too scared to act on one of our most pressing issues. Which tells me the Governor and others are likely receiving signals that Democrats will win even more State House and Senate seats; at the least, they seem unlikely to lose enough to switch control back to the kids (Republicans). Ritter has said he’s hesitant to implement a plan while Democrats look likely to win back the White House. He doesn’t want to burden Washington with another state health care plan with no federal infrastructure. Um, Governor? Maybe 20 different plans will drive home the necessity of implementing a federal single-payer system. Let’s do what’s good for Coloradans and let the feds work their own issues out, huh?

Finally, the energy industry in Colorado is threatening to take their ball home and not let us play with them anymore. Cry babies, the lot of them. What’s got their diapers in a twist? “Colorado’s oil and gas industry is hopping mad about new energy development regulations being written by the state…” ‘”If the rules were approved as proposed, “We would be very, very disappointed,” Collins said. “I’d feel aggrieved that our industry was not taken into account.”’

That’s correct: all the mean Democrats never let the poor, abused extractive industry put in their opinion on what the rules should be. Here’s the real problem, ya’ whiners: Gov. Owens and the previous joke of a state legislature allowed, nay invited, your industry to walk all over the interests of the citizens of this state for eight years. My opinion wasn’t taken into account to any realistic degree prior to this.

But let me put this another way: take your freaking ball home and go drill in someone else’s state. My state would be better for it. The future does not lie in your direction and I know that irritates and scares the crap out of you, but the sooner you realize it, the better off we’ll all be.  Which reminds me, the Saturday Rocky Mountain News had a good article about renewable energy yesterday I want to write about.  Next post.