A Boston Tea Party …(Ties That Bind)

I remember the gas lines of the Jimmy Carter presidency. We now see gas lines during the George Bush presidency. Plenty has happened between then and now like the fall of communism, two Iraq wars, and 9/11. One very important thing also spanned that period of thirty years; America did not have an energy policy.

Thirty years goes by without any refineries being built, no drilling in areas with known oil deposits, no mandatory alternative fuel sources, and no conservation. Instead, thirty years goes by with the same result, the kissing of Arab rings. While 9/11 was a tragedy it is a travesty of monumental proportions elected officials have not planned for an energy policy regardless of whether a Republican or Democrat was President.

Will the high gas prices we are now experiencing get America’s attention? One must certainly doubt it. The American constituent never ranks energy policy among any of its issues of importance. Might now be different? I only hope so. The truth is lobbyists, environmentalists, and obstructionism have prevented our elected officials from acting in a responsible manner of making sure America can meet its energy needs now and into the future.

We are told more refineries need to be built to process oil into gas. So why haven’t they been built. We are told we need to drill in places we know there is oil. So why aren’t we drilling? We are told we should conserve more? So why aren’t we conserving? The answer is our leaders fail to lead for fear the other party may get the credit. It is a common theme; our elected officials fail to lead.

Pundits will tell you if you are unhappy with your elected officials then don’t re-elect them. It seems logical but it doesn’t work. We saw that with the “Contract With America”. Wonderful people promise not to give in to the Washington monster when running for election but eventually succumb to the disease of a career politician. The only cure for this intoxicating disease is term limits. Term limits would break the ties that bind and free our leaders to develop a national energy policy, which someday could liberate us from the bondage of Arab countries. Without term limits don’t expect us to be any less dependant on what the Beverly Hillbillies called “Texas Tea” except it will have a distinct Arab flavor.