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S.E. Wood California should How good it is to sit here and pretend to
feel sorry for all those unfortunate people out there in California,
known affectionately as the "Land of the Fruits and Nuts,"
who have run themselves out of energy. Serves 'em right, doesn't
it? After all, it was we who struggled through the snow and sleet
of winter while they were enjoying the balmy weather of the Rose
Parade. We were slipping and sliding our way to work, while the
bikini-clad California girls glided effortlessly along the boardwalk
in Newport Beach. It's about time they got theirs! And it is all their fault, too. The booming
California economy attracted a 30-percent increase in population
while the environmental wackos prevented the construction of
a single new power plant. What did they expect? Then the state
politicians "deregulated" the power industry, allowing
the cost of purchased electricity from neighboring states to
skyrocket, while controlling the selling price at unrealistically
low rates. Obviously, there are more potential voters among power
company customers than there are among power company stockholders.
So the California legislators didn't have the political guts
to take responsibility for doing the obvious - raise consumer
rates; license the construction of more power plants. But before we get too smug in our holier-than-thou
attitude, we might want to look at the similarities between the
California energy crisis and the Tennessee TennCare crisis. The
California power industry was forced by the politicians to provide
services to consumers (potential voters) below their costs. Through
TennCare, our hospitals, HMOs, doctors and insurance carriers
are being forced to provide services to their patients (potential
voters) below their costs. And like California, our legislators
don't have the guts to tackle the failing TennCare program for
the same reason -- fear they might not be re-elected. But California legislators do have an advantage.
The utility companies can't pack up and go elsewhere. How do
you move a power plant? But our medical providers can go elsewhere
-- as evidenced by the pending departure of Blue Cross/Blue Shield
and others. The ultimate consequence in California is a bankrupt
utility system. The ultimate consequence in Tennessee is a bankrupt
state government. And that's exactly where we're headed. So let's hope we can learn a lesson from California. Let's demand that our elected officials act now to put the Tennessee health care program on a sound fiscal basis, and let the political chips fall where they may. |