Coal-ition Of The Greedy

Well, well, well, it looks like a coal-ition of the greedy is quietly getting together to plan another attack on our American government. Their goal; to get taxpayers to pay for the development of a coal-gasoline-like fuel that is actually dirtier than gasoline. And if their semi-covert operation succeeds, they might even get us to subsidize the construction of their coal liquification “plants.” (The term "plant" just doesn't seem appropriate here. These pollution conversion factories will actually end up killing real plants.)

Apparently, these greed driven sociopaths will not stop. We've already let them know we don't want this. We don't want to replace gasoline with dirty old coal. We want to replace gas with a form of energy that doesn't pollute our air, endanger miners, devastate the environment where the coal is mined, and belch out twice the global warming pollution as gasoline. So, if we want to stop these manics from stealing from us in order to poison us, we had better be ready to reinforce those in our government who want to do the right thing.

Personally, I really don't care if the coal industry wants to develop a new fuel from coal – if they pay for it themselves. Just don't make me pay for it! Don't promise the coal industry sweetheart deals with the Air Force! And don't set us up to believe that this fuel is cheaper than it actually is!

Pardon me for not having the actual numbers for how much we would really have to pay for this liquified coal (if anyone really knows, that number is a closely guarded secret). What information I do have, from Discover Magazine, is a report of: “a 1998 study by the International Center for Technology Assessment showing that unsubsidized conventional gasoline would cost consumers $15 a gallon.” Now, before you celebrate that the price at the pump isn't that high, realize that Big Gas isn't doing without. Your taxes pay the remainder. We're paying $15 a gallon, we just don't realize it. Worse, when you think about it, who doesn't pay their share of taxes? That's right, big corporations. You're subsidizing their gas consumption! And if you drive a small car, you're subsidizing your neighbor's Hummer gas bill too! This is what the coal industry covets.

Do you think for one moment that the coal industry won't lie, cheat, and steal for a piece of Big Gas' multi-billion dollar profits? Do you think for one moment that the coal industry would be above getting us to pay to set them up to overcharge us? In these insanely greedy times, this is apparently just “real-world” business sense. Of course, in the real real-world, money is just paper – and real wealth is natural and life-giving. If we Americans can't get together and fix our system, eventually all that will be left will be the filthy-rich and the dirt-poor – and we'll all end up buried in our own toxic waste.