AM, I have no idea what's in store...I think I know what I'd like to see happen, but unfortunately I don't carry a lot of weight with enough legislators to push it through myself!

The "gas" I was referring to was more in the vein of "hot air"...gifts that have little meaning or actual value, beyond the symbol. I wasn't referring to petroleum...because there have been no gifts to anyone but the big three oil companies in that regard.

If the goal is to make petroleum consumption drop, which would obviously solve a ton of problems, especially national security issues and pollution, then they have to require better efficiency from automakers...every time it comes up, they say they can't do it, and every time they've been required to do it, they do it almost out of hand.

Step one is an "energy task force" that is not secret, and not made up of oil company execs.

Step two is a plan for the reduction of consumption.

Step three is funding the plan, and step four is implementing it.

It's sounds a lot like the Iraq problem...staying the course is a total loser, and saying we have a plan, or are getting better, when we have no plan, no plan is being implemented, and no end is in sight...that won't work.

Goal, plan, funding, implementation, monitoring, tweaking if monitoring shows that the implementation of the plan is not accomplishing the goal...that's how problems are solved, whether the problems be a war in Iraq, or an energy policy domestically.

Fish on...

Todd