It's really frightening when our government relies primarily on anecdotal evidence and word-of-mouth in deciding on legislation that could finish bankrupting this country. Cap-and-trade legislation is a political response to "excessive" greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. I'm no scientist, but I can read. I see as much or more documentation on natural terrestrial heating and cooling cycles as I do documentation on the effects of greenhouse gasses. Frankly it appears to me that the only thing we know for sure about global warming is that we really don't know anything for sure about global warming. I think the biggest problem here is that the scientific community has been politicized (as has practically everything else) to the extent that we really don't know who or what to believe.

I'm not saying that CO2 emissions are not bad for the environment. However, I very much question the position that CO2 emissions are responsible for its imminent and immediate destruction. I also think that anyone who believes we are single-handedly destroying the planet through our emissions is truly vain.

Cap-and-trade is what has become a hallmark response of this administration. From the banking crisis to auto company bailouts, the administration has advocated speed instead of due diligence in dealing with these issues. in short, this administration discourages Congress from "doing their homework" before voting on critical legislation. We all know that if we don't study and do our homework, that we will fail the test. Congress is no different, as they are failing.

The downside of cap-and-trade legislation is that we will all pay through the nose in higher energy costs. Small businesses in particular will see huge energy cost increases that they will either have to absorb, or pass on to their customers.

We need to reject the rhetoric of people like Al Gore who appear to be knowledgeable on the environment, but in fact is heavily biased. I personally would need to see his credentials before I could pay him any serious attention. We also need to let the scientific community figure out what is going on with our environment, and leave out the politics. Lastly, we need to force our representatives to "read the fine print" on legislation that is presented to them for a vote, regardless of the pressure the administration is putting on them to "git-r-done".

It really bothers me that we as a nation appear to be content to be led to the slaughter. This administration is ruining our economy, apologizing profusely to the rest of the world for the last administration (that kept us safe, by the way), openly thumbing its nose at the rule of law, and trampling our Constitution, and apparently there are a number of people that think that is OK. What's wrong with this picture? This is not the America I grew up in.

I'm a conservative. I mostly want to know that my government is there to help if I need it, but then gets out out of my way when I don't. I believe there is a majority of people in this country that are with me on this. There are problems with both major political parties that need to be dealt with, and dealt with quickly. Let's not remain silent, and watch our America be taken from us. Congress has proven time and time again that they are more interested in maintaining the status quo than in bringing about real change. Let's speak up and convince them that they have no other choice.