Political Theatre

With the recent runup in the cost of energy, the politicians are scrambling about attempting to assure that they are seen as blameless for the negative consequences for their actions. While placing about 90% of the sources of energy off limits for development through legislative and regulatory fiat, the pols in the U.S. Congress haul privately owned energy firms' executives before their inquisitions for the sheer purpose of badgering them for attempting to provide a product that virtually everyone needs and is willing to purchase. The inference from this sorry display of political theatre is that profit is an evil motivational force for economic endeavour.

If profit is to be disparaged as these public "servants" aver; what, pray tell is their own motivation? Most all evidence tends to convince anyone who is sentient that the force driving most seekers of office and indeed a substantial portion of the regulatory bureaucracy is the exercise of power and the enjoyment of its concomitant perquisites.

The energy company executives underwent their grilling on 21 May in the Senate and the House of Representatives the next day. In what other venue would a semiliterate and ignorant member of congress such as Maxine Waters D (can we call them socialists yet?) south central Los Angeles, California be able to address a fellow citizen in terms lacking even a modicum of courtesy?

An excellent account of the Senate testimony is posted at Powerline by John Hindraker:

"Every once in a while, Congressional hearings turn out to be informative."