Excellent diary and illustration of both the power and techniques used by economic incumbents in their attempts to prolong their incumbency.  Politicians are reluctant to speak clearly due to their need for contributions and their fear of counter contributions from economic incumbents. Intellectual apprehension of clear policy needs are grotesquely inadequate to overcome this. Better to use the expected row over transit of natural gas through Ukraine this winter to rouse up support for generation of power through renewables, especially wind, which are more difficult to embargo, and use that opportunity to point up the importance of upgrades to the power grid. Were that adequate, were their gas shut off, people could at least plug in an electric space heater.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."