If we’d had a “Department of Lighting”, back before Edison invented his marvelous bulb, I’m sure we’d have the finest kerosene conservation methodology on the planet. Bureaucrats cranking out memos on proper wick trimming, kerosene storage and tips on opening our curtains during the day to conserve kerosene. Government cannot mandate innovation. They can only stifle it through over-taxation and over-regulation.

Say Anything » Would the Last Person to Leave the Department of Energy Please Turn Out the Li

All this talk about (and begrudging nostalgia for) Jimmy Carter and his handling of the “energy crisis” of 1977 should have taught us something.