The General Gist, Boo Dominion

To save you having to read the previous essay, I thought I'd summarize.
The goings on in Virginia have never been so Grey's Anatomy-scandaloucious. Dominion, our resident omnipresent electric company, is the largest contributor to political campaigns in Virginia (ai ai ai!) put together a "Re-Regulation" scheme which it put on the floor on the last day of meetings, giving the bill no time to be debated or have real public comment!

Here's the text summary of the Bill from the House. Basically, Dominion will be guaranteed profits, guaranteed no losses and guaranteed to be a monopoly.... Hmm, see antitrust laws.... No competition, which I believe is socialism, is a bad idea...especially when set up with a for-profit, socially-irresponsible company. (Dominion is the 20th largest polluter in the SP500, and if it were a country, it'd be the 34th biggest polluter..from Washington Post)

Dominion asserts there are 2 problems - Virginia's energy demand is growing and it needs to build more coal plants to meet it, and that without regulation, it can't be assured of enough profits to keep truckin'. Well, Dominion has provided no proof of "Virginia's growing energy demand". Even if there is unmeetable growth in energy demand, we can meet it with current energy production and cheap conservation measures.

Sadly, the bill allows Dominion to build coal and nuclear plants a'plenty, with no talk of environmental regulation or abetting costs of pollution (health care, environmental clean up, smog, etc.). And, no talk of investing or encouraging renewable energy, for which the market is projected to double by 2013.... A whole host of organizations have come out against the plan; Washington Post, CCAN, environmental groups, etc. Needless to say, me no likey the plan. The photo shows hazy skies from... air pollution.

(***Aside*** coal plant pollution already is destroying Virginia’s Shenandoah Park, which has nearly 2 million visitors a year. It frequently experiences harmful ozone concentrations, decreased air visibility, and acid rain, all from air pollution from coal plants (NPS). In the 30s and 40s, you could see Washington Monument on a clear day from a mountain in Shenandoah. Now, you're lucky to see 10 miles. Ok, aside done. ****)