Here we go again. Arnold Schwarzenegger, aka Pete Wilson's Austrian he-bitch, hasn't even moved into the Governor's mansion and he's already talking about resurrecting the energy deregulation policies that nearly crippled California two years ago. (Ok, so Arnold won't be living in the mansion, but never mind. Can we send a robot into the future to kill him?)
Don't these guys ever get tired of fraud, abuse and manipulation? Shame on them for lying to us about deregulation the first time, but shame on us for letting them lie to us again. Remember what they promised? Cheaper, more plentiful energy. Remember what we got? Blackouts and soaring energy bills. Remember what they got? $50 billion worth of market-manipulated earnings.
On a related note, Pacific Gas & Electric announced that natural gas rates will go up 30% this winter, just in time for Christmas bonuses! (Don't forget, this is the same company that declared bankruptcy the same year that its parent company reported record profits.)
Geez, how stupid do they think we are? The story about Schwarzenegger's meeting with Enron's Ken Lay won't be a secret for much longer. And we all know that deregulation was a failed experiment. Deregulation didn't fail because it was poorly executed, or not fully executed as some argue, but just because it was plain stupid. And just another chance for some Texas oilmen to get rich at someone else's expense. With Schwarzenegger, they have another movie star to put a smiley face on their thievery.
Suggested Reading:
"Blackout," FRONTLINE.
"California's Energy Crisis," The San Francisco Chronicle.
"How Californians Got Burned," The Sacramento Bee, May 6, 2001.
"PG&E's Propaganda War" San Francisco Bay Guardian, January 3, 2001.
