Yellowstone River Catastrophe

Yet another tragic blow to America's most treasured habitats from the oil industry's negligence. Just like with the Deep Water Horizon rig, there were a lot of warnings from regulators that the oil company did not take seriously, presumably because proper rectification of the findings would have been costly and disruptive to the flow of oil and profits. Just like the Gulf of Mexico, disaster, the oil company's first response is to deny and lie about the scope of the matter.

When is this going to end? When are we going to stop using taxpayer dollars to line the coffers of oil companies that want only to make a profit, companies that show little regard for protecting the environment until AFTER a trajedy like this happens?

Of course, in the aftermath there is talk of new regulation, just as with the Deep Water Horizon incident. But have the regulations changed anything? The answer is no. More Gulf drilling permits are being given, even though a fix to the problem has not been found. In fact, permits are being given at a faster rate, for deeper drilling, and the issuance of permits has since been made private. This is extremely shady maneuvering by the oil companies, and it is only a matter of time before another - perhaps worse - disaster occurs.

If we the taxpayers have to part with the money that's subsidizing the energy industry, the money should be invested in the creation of new energy technologies so that America can compete with other countries that have beaten us to the punch.

This is not rocket science, nor is it "liberal thinking" as some may try to label it. This is just sound policy resulting from the current state of affairs that are afflicting our country.