Why shoud you care?

Joe Barton (R TX district 6) got one of every five dollars in campaign money from the petro-chemical industry. Why should you care?

Joe just sponsored a bill called the Gasoline for American Security Act. The bill gives additional tax incentives to the Petro industry to build more refineries and relaxes already weakened pollution regulations.

What Joe doesn't realize is that the industry DOESN'T WANT MORE REFINERIES. According to industry spokesmen, they found it more economical years ago to operate the existing plants on shifts and to improve efficiency. The industry also sees a decrease in demand as prices have reached the tipping point which makes economical autos more attractive than the SUV. In short, the cost of building more refineries will never be offset by sales of gasoline. They're not going to build more, period.

However, the relaxed environmental rules remain. Thirty percent of US oil refineries are located along the Gulf Coast. According to the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife no fish caught in the coastal waters of Texas is safe for consumption by women of child bearing age. One in three fish taken from fresh water in the continental United States is unfit to eat. Doctors advise women of child bearing age to eat less than 4 ounces of farm raised salmon a month.

So, you won't get any more gas and the environment takes another hit.

That bill passed by two votes but only after Lil' Joe and his buddy Tom DeLay held the vote open past the house rules while they twisted arms and finally got the votes they needed.

What these people do affects you. It affects your everyday life. It costs you in taxes and it costs you in quality of life and it costs you in health care expenses and it could cost you your very life.

Joe doesn't care, he eats steak . . .