Many of you are old enough to remember the 1970’s…when energy prices skyrocketed, there were long lines to get gas, and your license number, whether it was an odd or even number, determined the day you could fill up your tank. Red and green flags were set out in front of gas stations to inform you whether the proprietor had gas or not. Ahhh yes… the good ol’ days when politicians worked hard to solve the energy problem. Well, if the current Congress gets its way, you younger folks may get to experience these “glory” days first hand.
Congress is now considering so-called energy legislation. But the bills before Congress will do nothing to alleviate our energy woes. We need more energy, not less, and unfortunately if these bills become law, that’s what we will get: less energy, higher prices, and even more dependency on foreign sources.
Don Nickles, a former Republican Senator from Oklahoma, and Charles Stenholm, a former Democrat Congressman from Texas, have written a great piece on the current energy legislation and the need for Congress to restrain itself and not repeat past mistakes. Considering they are from oil-rich states, they should know a little something about energy. Whether Congress listens to them or not is another story. So far, it doesn’t look good.
Furthermore, before you complain about “excess” profits of energy companies and the owners of “big oil,” best you take a look at your investment portfolios. Amazingly, about 43 percent of energy shares (oil and gas) are owned by mutual funds and asset management companies and twenty seven percent of shares are owned by other institutional investors like pension funds. You can read more about who owns energy companies here.
Energy will be one of the many topics up for debate when Congress returns from its Thanksgiving break. Let’s hope they don’t produce a legislative turkey.
Filed under: Energy
