Tom, Stop Being Such A Hypocrite

A friend posted a screed against President Bush claiming it's all his fault that gas prices are high. I know you are all aware I'm no fan of Bush, I think he's one of the worst presidents we've ever had, period. But Tom's post was purposely inflammatory and degrading, and some of my other friends took the bait.

Attempting to insert some logic and reasoning and facts into the flame war, I posted this comment:

Well truth be told, there are several reasons why gas is so high, not just because of Bush. Sure, Bush isn't doing much to correct the issue, but as a libertarian, I'm not so sure it's the government's responsibility to tell an industry how to operate, even an essential one like oil.

Issues that Bush has zero control over that are affecting the cost of oil:

* A huge increase in demand from China and India where the economy is exploding. These are also the cause for a skyrocketing price in steel (another reason why the cost of new construction in the US is going up).

* Civil unrest in the oil-producing countries in Africa are cutting off those sources of supply. Oil workers in Africa are constantly getting kidnapped and pipelines bombed.

* Lack of refining capabilities in the US hampers the flow of crude pumped out in the Gulf of Mexico and other regions, and produces an inflation in price of oil. The problem is that not many people want a refinery in their backyard and most states these days fear a refinery would become a terrorist target so they block new construction. The one serious effort to build a new one in the Arizona desert on an old military base is stalled because apparently even coyote and vultures suffer from the NIMBY attitude.

* OPEC are a bunch of shitheads. They obviously like the high prices and like having the US by the short hairs and so they're not increasing production. Economics clearly states that a limited supply inflates prices. Until their last meeting they were slowing production.

* Buying by traders. Traders the world over are bidding for oil reserves they feel are coming to an end, so their bidding drives up the price of oil.

Now, given the high price of oil, yes, hybrids are becoming more popular. Toyota just announced they're going to make more hybrid models available. Oil exploration is on the rise, and the pumping and refining of once unprofitable types of oil (shale and sand oil) is also increasing. Canada has, in terms of sand oil, the largest untapped oil reserves in the world. Biggest ever seen.

It's a mixed picture, and while it does suck to have to drop $2.77 a gallon right now, I'm taking the long view, and so should you. It's convenient to blame Bush (trust me, I blame him for a lot. I'm not fan of his. I voted for Badnarik) but he's not the only reason we're in this mess.

I figured it was even and balanced and fair. Silly Mo! No, Tom instead replied that he supports free speech and abhors censorship, but it's his blog, and he doesn't have to display it. True enough. But what's the point in claiming you believe in free speech and support it if you're going to censor everyone that doesn't agree with you? He's content to hide behind his blog and holler at people, but when they get mad and holler back he mutes them. It's hypocrisy in the highest order and it sticks in my craw; as a writer, as a libertarian, as a thinking man. Society is always served better when people have full and free speech. I know that doesn't mean that you have to support someone's right to yell on your lawn at 3am, or to piss on your shrubs. I understand that someone's right to free speech ends at someone else's driveway, but seriously, a website has such a low cost of ownership, and it costs me almost nothing if someone replies to something I wrote, so I'm not going to sweat it if they write an entire dissertation on my blog. Cool! Being involved in that discussion will probably make me a better person, and maybe even some other people too.

That's why I've always had a policy of allowing every legitimate comment to go through. I do remove the "spam comments" but that's because I don't authorize people to advertise on my site without giving me some sort of cut, and they don't. So I consider that a separate matter. But if someone reads something I wrote and wants to call me an asshole, they can, and I'll publish it. Maybe they'll make me think of something I hadn't before. Maybe they'll help me come to a new conclusion about something that's been bothering me. Maybe I'll continue the discussion with them, and I'll help them learn something.

So Tom, stop being a hypocrite, open your mind and open your blogs to comments. Either you support free speech and mean it, or...you're the asshole.