Reply #44: Senators to the rescue

[54anickel]

http://www.prudentbear.com/randomwalk.asp

Where would we be without the U.S. Senate?

With no superheroes around now that Cardinal slugger Albert Pujols is on vacation, last week a bevy of senators came to the rescue. Braving the media spotlight they swooped in just in time to protect us from the Evil Oil Empire. Are we lucky or what?

These brave men and women left the security of their idling limousines to stand up for the American values of honesty, integrity and a marketplace that is free, more or less, sometimes. Fearing nothing but a dead microphone, our leaders suckered the CEOs of America’s biggest oil companies into their lair by asking them to celebrate a new political season with a fresh round of contributions. But once the oil execs were in the hearing room, the clever senators slammed the door and switched on the cameras.

In hindsight the senators realized they had made a terrible mistake. They had turned on the cameras before the oil men could reach for their checkbooks. There was nothing to do but to proceed. So with the oil executives trapped and confused, our country’s leaders peppered them with questions. Hard questions - like, “Why do oil prices go up when oil supply goes down?” And, “Why don’t gas stations give us free glasses with tigers on them like they did on the ‘70s?”

And so it went with the senators looking out for America’s best interests and oil executives looking at their watches. By the end of the day, the senators could claim victory. After all, just the threat of senatorial wrath had already knocked down gasoline prices from a post-Katrina level of $3 dollars to $2.36.

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