After yesterday's near rant about power politics, I just can't let go of the thought of how much valuable time our political system wastes.

A recent NY Times editorial titled How The Energy Dice Were Loaded does nothing to assuage my feelings. We all know how effectively the Bush Administration has stonewalled Congress, the media and the American public on a wide variety of issues over the years. This piece focuses specifically on the six years wasted since V.P. Cheney first convened his secret energy task force meetings.

Referencing the recently released list of corporate big shots and industry lobbyists Cheney met with, the NY Times opines:

What this list really does is remind us how and why this administration has squandered six years that should have been devoted to finding innovative answers to the big questions of oil dependency and global warming.

Choosing to see the glass as half full, however, the editorial closes with this point of view:

Fortunately, the energy debate itself has moved beyond the vice president’s framing of it in 2001. The energy bill passed by the Senate last month is much less solicitous of big producers and much more favorable to newer, cleaner fuels. Some of the very companies that appeared before the task force in 2001 are now ahead of the White House, demanding more aggressive steps on climate change and oil dependency. Think how much more quickly we could have reached this point had the task force truly opened itself to new ideas six years ago.

Whether it's Cheney's clandestine meetings, or the current power struggle over the energy bill in the House, an awful lot of precious time is being wasted–time that could be much better spent solving real problems and making tangible progress in the fight against global warming.

Somehow, we've got to break the cycle of politics as usual.

Carbon Neutral Journal's rants are brought to you by Vertical Media.

Popularity: 26%