Friday, February 29, 2008

If you have a milkshake and I have a milkshake and I have a straw and my straw reaches across the room and starts to drink your milkshake.

Does anyone else find in ironic that the go to tactic that Republicans always seem to roll out in a political fight is to emulate the terrorists they claim to hold in such disdain by taking hostages? Every debate on Iraq funding, for example, is met by the President pushing the troops between himself and the Democrats pushing for withdrawal and threatening their safety should the Democrats do anything he doesn't like.

This week the Democratic House passed a bill rescinding tax breaks for oil companies and the reaction from Republicans was utterly predictable--

"There will be less investment in American energy, there will be less production of American energy, we will have more dependence on foreign oil, and we will have higher fuel prices," said Rep. Kevin Brady (R., Texas). "Make no mistake: Politicians are shooting at Big Oil, but they're hitting American energy workers, and they're hitting families in the pocketbook."
Excuse me? The oil industry has continued to report record profits and any attempt to reign them in will automatically translate into oil industry workers getting the shaft? Don't even get me started on what it will mean to consumers.

If you check the website of any major corporation and read their statement of principles it will inevitably say something along the lines of "our success is a direct result of our focus on the needs of shareholders, customers and employees."

More often than not these days only the first part of that equation is true. It's not that way through the realities of the market, or some other iron law of capitalism beyond our control. It's that way by choice. It's that way because the people that make the decisions regarding whether their corporations will focus on shareholders, customers or employees are usually also the biggest shareholders in that corporation.

It's time for the oil industry and congressional Republicans to stop taking hostages.

14 comments:

Randal Graves said...

I love these guys.

If you let gays get married, you'll all start sucking dick and munching rugs while eating aborted fetuses!

If you don't let us spy on you, you'll all die by nuclear-powered suitcases!

If you don't let us make more money than anyone ever has, ever, you'll all pay $75 a gallon!

Swinebread said...

These tactics are so obvious nowadays; you’d just have to be dumb not to see it

Don Snabulus said...

I agree with the Republicans. I think we should keep the tax breaks and just send the oil company the bill for all of our Middle East wars instead. They ARE the primary beneficiaries after all; they should foot the bill. Oh, the Republicans forgot that 2nd part I guess.

Dean Wormer said...

Randal-

Exactly. Incidentally: I would've used a quote from Sheriff Bart holding himself hostage in Blazing Saddles but that would've been a little to un-pc even for me.

Swine-

See what?

Don-

That would be awesome. For now we can't even stop directly subsidizing these jerks through tax breaks without these guys whining. It's just insane.

Freida Bee said...

That milkshake straw speech was one of the best, most morbid speeches ever and oh so apropos to Chimpy's ever increasing corporate protectionismings. I thought something along these same lines as I heard the oral assault the other morning. I was morbidly fascinated that his shit flies even one millimeter with even one single person. I wish a sewage truck could pull up and, on the side, suck up Bush's shit from beneath him so we could freakin' quit having to smell the caustic shit.

Dr. Zaius said...

The best way to get rid of petroleum and nuclear power is to make it clear in any public discussion how much both of these industrys are subsidized by American tax dollars.

Dean Wormer said...

Zaius-

Completely agree. We're taking it on both ends from big petro. It really is disgusting.

Dean Wormer said...

freida-

There isn't a big enough sewage truck in the world to contain is shit. But I like the idea...

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