Michigan's Rep. Fred Upton fiddles with climate change show as gas prices, oil dependency continue to burn away at our security and economy

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee’s hearing on climate change was today. Nice that the Republicans brought real scientists this time rather than charlatans like Lord Monckton.

The hearing was in advance of a vote on legislation sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan to strip the Environmental Protection Agency of its power to regulate greenhouse gas pollution. (Upton also chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee)

Unfortunately, the committee addressed the wrong issue. As the New York Times’ Andy Revkin points out, the more immediate, more pressing, and more manageable goal should be our “sustained quest to break the economic shackles imposed by enduring dependence on oil.”

But we've  f**cked around for several generations without meaningful action on that, so why start now?

Instead, we got the predictably unfocused questioning and  closed mindedness that served more as a forum for Congressmen to grandstand rather than for scientists to explain. Clearly, the ”Doubt is Our Product" strategy of the fossil fuel lobby and their toadies in Congress will continue to be effective for the foreseeable future.

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