AP photo by David J. Phillip
Welcome to Texas. The modern conservative's wet dream.
Yep, Texas is the poster child for what conservatives want for the rest of America. Deregulation to the max. Smell the freedom. The free market will take care of us if we just get government out of the way and let corporations weave their magic.
In the words of one recent right wing intellect, "how's that workin' out for ya?"
As many have pointed out what is happening now in Texas was totally predictable. They wanted their own power grid free from those terrible federal regulations. Regulations like making sure the companies would invest in safety measures. Regulations ensuring the supply lines and equipment would be protected from severe weather. Regulations like making sure the emphasis was on providing service to the residents of Texas as opposed to maximizing profits.
So here we are. Texas devised a system where there is no incentive for the utility companies to invest in safety or protect their infrastructure from unusual weather events that unfortunately will become increasingly "usual", what with that other reality the leaders of Texas deny - climate change.
There is also no incentive for them to build additional capacity into their system. No profit in that. And since they wanted to be so free, the Texas grid truly stands alone, isolated from the rest of the country. So they are unable to bring in any excess capacity any other regional grid might be able to send their way in times like now. But again this is by design. As their former governor, Rick Perry, opined, the people of Texas prefer being free of federal regulations. Who needs running water or heat when you are warmed by the glow of such freedom?
What's worse we are now learning the Texas leadership knew of all these shortcomings and potential disasters years ago. And did nothing.
So caught with their thermostats around their ankles what did the leaders of Texas do? Lie. Well lie and fly to warm weather in Cancun. But mostly lie.
They blamed everyone but themselves and their disaster-waiting-to-happen power grid system. First it was the wind turbines. Surprisingly a lot of the power used in Texas is generated by wind turbines. Because it's cheaper than gas and coal. The Governor, Senators and others were quick to point the finger at wind power stating it showed how dangerous it is to rely on alternate, renewable energy sources rather than good old reliable fossil fuels.
They have continued to tell this lie even after acknowledging that the wind production was at near full capacity and it was the freezing of natural gas pipelines and other components that was the main culprit. But even after that they went on national television and identified wind and solar as the problem. Fox News and others in the right wing media world have been more than happy to pick up that lie and broadcast it non-stop.
Building on that lie they continued on to one of their favorite boogey-men - AOC and the Green New Deal. This is a cautionary tale they warned of what awaits us all if we implement the Green New Deal. Wait, what?
Did those radical socialists in Texas like Governor Abbott, Lt. Governor Patrick and Attorney General Paxton (Republicans all of course) implement the Green New Deal when nobody was looking? Did the Green New Deal get passed out of Congress and signed into law? Of course not. The Green New Deal is not law or policy in Texas or anywhere else. But it makes for a great rant for the right wing. Do they even teach critical thinking skills anymore?
So the culprit isn't wind power. It's not AOC. It's not the Green New Deal. It is everything that the Texas legislature had already identified back in 2012 as the vulnerabilities and shortcomings of the Texas power system. As other have pointed out, it is working in this disaster exactly as designed.
So much for the GOP being the party of personal responsibility. Because they never seem to take any for their actions or lack thereof.
This is just another example of how modern American conservatives are lousy at is governing. They don't believe in it. So the last thing they are interested in is having government show it can make life better for its citizens. It's difficult to be good at something you don't believe in. So call your incompetence and lack of delivering for your people "freedom" and hope that works on enough voters.
Quick question though, can I use freedom to thaw out grandpa?
Yep, Texas is the poster child for what conservatives want for the rest of America. Deregulation to the max. Smell the freedom. The free market will take care of us if we just get government out of the way and let corporations weave their magic.
In the words of one recent right wing intellect, "how's that workin' out for ya?"
As many have pointed out what is happening now in Texas was totally predictable. They wanted their own power grid free from those terrible federal regulations. Regulations like making sure the companies would invest in safety measures. Regulations ensuring the supply lines and equipment would be protected from severe weather. Regulations like making sure the emphasis was on providing service to the residents of Texas as opposed to maximizing profits.
So here we are. Texas devised a system where there is no incentive for the utility companies to invest in safety or protect their infrastructure from unusual weather events that unfortunately will become increasingly "usual", what with that other reality the leaders of Texas deny - climate change.
There is also no incentive for them to build additional capacity into their system. No profit in that. And since they wanted to be so free, the Texas grid truly stands alone, isolated from the rest of the country. So they are unable to bring in any excess capacity any other regional grid might be able to send their way in times like now. But again this is by design. As their former governor, Rick Perry, opined, the people of Texas prefer being free of federal regulations. Who needs running water or heat when you are warmed by the glow of such freedom?
What's worse we are now learning the Texas leadership knew of all these shortcomings and potential disasters years ago. And did nothing.
So caught with their thermostats around their ankles what did the leaders of Texas do? Lie. Well lie and fly to warm weather in Cancun. But mostly lie.
They blamed everyone but themselves and their disaster-waiting-to-happen power grid system. First it was the wind turbines. Surprisingly a lot of the power used in Texas is generated by wind turbines. Because it's cheaper than gas and coal. The Governor, Senators and others were quick to point the finger at wind power stating it showed how dangerous it is to rely on alternate, renewable energy sources rather than good old reliable fossil fuels.
They have continued to tell this lie even after acknowledging that the wind production was at near full capacity and it was the freezing of natural gas pipelines and other components that was the main culprit. But even after that they went on national television and identified wind and solar as the problem. Fox News and others in the right wing media world have been more than happy to pick up that lie and broadcast it non-stop.
Building on that lie they continued on to one of their favorite boogey-men - AOC and the Green New Deal. This is a cautionary tale they warned of what awaits us all if we implement the Green New Deal. Wait, what?
Did those radical socialists in Texas like Governor Abbott, Lt. Governor Patrick and Attorney General Paxton (Republicans all of course) implement the Green New Deal when nobody was looking? Did the Green New Deal get passed out of Congress and signed into law? Of course not. The Green New Deal is not law or policy in Texas or anywhere else. But it makes for a great rant for the right wing. Do they even teach critical thinking skills anymore?
So the culprit isn't wind power. It's not AOC. It's not the Green New Deal. It is everything that the Texas legislature had already identified back in 2012 as the vulnerabilities and shortcomings of the Texas power system. As other have pointed out, it is working in this disaster exactly as designed.
So much for the GOP being the party of personal responsibility. Because they never seem to take any for their actions or lack thereof.
This is just another example of how modern American conservatives are lousy at is governing. They don't believe in it. So the last thing they are interested in is having government show it can make life better for its citizens. It's difficult to be good at something you don't believe in. So call your incompetence and lack of delivering for your people "freedom" and hope that works on enough voters.
Quick question though, can I use freedom to thaw out grandpa?
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