From: Andrew Long Sent: Thu 1/27/2011 8:20 PM To: kynews@NKY.com Subject:
Mr. Rob Hudson's commentary in ``Viewpoints'' (1/27/2011) was so over-the-top that I had to respond. Entitled ``We need to curb hidden federal rate costs'', he asks whether we can afford to pay for more regulations. He gripes about federal agencies issuing regulations, whose costs we are then forced to bear, and suggests that Congress (which funds federal agencies) should have a say over everything those agencies do (if it means a taxpayer has to spend any ``significant'' money). One wonders, indeed, why we need any of these wasteful federal agencies at all! Wouldn't it be better if Geoff Davis and Congress decided how to ensure our safety? Why not let Geoff Davis and his colleagues determine if we can afford to keep our water and air healthful, our work environments safe, our futures secure from predatory financial institutions, etc.? Why should we tolerate -- let along support -- these federal monoliths like the EPA, OSHA, and the FDA telling us that we need expensive regulations that just end up costing us money?
Ironically, the same day as Mr. Hudson's commentary appeared, an article appeared in the New York Times describing the report of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Committee, which was charged with investigating the recent national financial meltdown: ``The 2008 financial crisis was an 'avoidable' disaster caused by widespread failures in government regulation, corporate mismanagement and heedless risk-taking by Wall Street, according to the conclusions of a federal inquiry.'' Mr. Alan Greenspan was singled out, for ``advocating deregulation''. The report noted that ``the decision in 2000 to shield the exotic financial instruments known as over-the-counter derivatives from regulation, made during the last year of President Bill Clinton's term, is called 'a key turning point in the march toward the financial crisis.'''
That's right: a lack of regulation allowed the corporate bandits to drive the ship of state into the toilet. Where was Congress? Where was Congressman Geoff Davis? Shouldn't he have been there, fighting for us, demanding that we regulate these institutions? Of course not! Mr. Davis is only opposed to regulation -- there's no parallel act, the REINS-IN ACT, requiring that each time an industry is deregulated Congress check to make sure that Americans' interests are not being derailed to the profit of some industry.
Let's take a look at a few other interesting recent events where ``deregulation'' (or a lack of government oversight) resulted in disaster: Massey Energy owns the Big Branch Mine, where 25 miners recently died in an explosion. Massey was ``written up more than 50 times'' in the preceding month for safety violations, according to the Washington Post. ``Twelve of the citations involved problems with ventilating the mine and preventing a buildup of deadly methane.'' Again, regulations existed, were in place, but if companies can flaunt them with impunity, what good are they? They are toothless regulations. It's a joke to say that companies are paying to comply with them. In the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, we find that ``since July 2008, seven regularly scheduled safety inspections -- inspections planned ahead of time and not the surprise or 'spot' inspections also carried out by federal inspectors -- turned up 614 safety violations, according to records of the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration.'' We have regulations because companies like Massey don't care about safety; they only care about profits. It's just too bad we don't enforce them.
Similarly, the BP oil spill resulted when three companies -- Halliburtan, BP, and Transocean -- went off-road with our environment. According to ABC News, the president's National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill ``attributed the causes of the largest oil spill in U.S. history to a 'culture of complacency,' leading to human errors, engineering mistakes and mismanagement by BP, Halliburton and Transocean as well as a lack of stringent offshore drilling regulation.''
Do I detect a theme here? When we let any corporations -- financial, mining, agrobusiness, whatever -- operate in the shadows, without scrutiny, without regulations -- the public gets the shaft. Miners die, beaches are despoiled, economies melt down so that some CEOs and shareowners can rake in big gains, consequences be damned. I'm afraid that the record of corporations looking out for the interests of the public in spite of their own self-interest is pretty bare....
Mr. Hudson suggests that we encourage Davis's REINS Act, which would ``require Congressional approval of all new regulations before significant costs can be imposed.'' Then, whenever we need oversight of Bear Stearns, or Fannie Mae, or Massey, or BP, or Halliburton, we can check with Mr. Davis (and his cronies) and see if it's okay with him. Every time we need to keep Massey Energy from blowing up a mountain for coal, we can check with Mr. Davis. Never mind that fellow energy companies Koch Industries and Ashland Inc have given $69,750 to Mr. Davis over his career (so far). I'm sure that Mr. Davis can ignore that. And that $61,000 contribution from Humana won't affect his judgement when it comes to regulating the insurance industry; nor will the money he's been given by the American Bankers Association, American Financial Group, Bank of America, Fifth Third Bancorp, or CNG Financial affect his thinking about regulating the financial markets (see opensecrets.org for his -- or any Congressman's -- campaign contribution history).
Ideally, regulators look out for us. Doesn't always work, but it's a lot better than trusting Congress to make sure that their corporate buddies treat us swell.
Andy Long 495 Rossford Avenue Ft. Thomas, KY 41075 859-781-3916