Friedman returns, "Dumb as We Wanna Be"

Mr. Friedman graces us with his opinion in today's NYT, focusing on energy policy. The long and short of it is that our politicians are failing us in a serious way. With Clinton joining McCain in calling for a gas tax holiday and the Bush-Congress inability to figure out a compromise on tax credits for renewables, we are faced with an energy policy that is working directly against our long term sustainable interest.

The McCain-Clinton proposal is a reminder to me that the biggest energy crisis we have in our country today is the energy to be serious — the energy to do big things in a sustained, focused and intelligent way. We are in the midst of a national political brownout.

I hate to focus in on the word Serious (I know Mr. Mel-Anon loves to abuse it), but I really think Friedman is on the money in this instance. Political pandering, or transactional politics, or whatever you wish to term it isn't horrible in and of itself, but when it encourages and incentivizes behavior that is against our long term public interest it really gets my goat. I'm not suprised that the McCain camp would stump for a shortsighted and ass backwards policy, but Clinton joining in is truly disappointing. I don't see how a campaign that highlights it's candidates policy credentials can keep a straight face when it comes to such a silly proposal.

If you want to help Joe and Jane Sixpack, start by developing an energy policy that reduces our reliance on non-renewables and focuses on conservation.