Party of wack

Here in Sacramento, we still claim Cake as our band—and why not? The guys recorded their latest, Showroom of Compassion, in a Sacramento studio powered by solar energy (a fact reported early by SN&R’s Rachel Leibrock, and now tossed out as factoid by the Los Angeles Times). Auntie Ruth applauds the lads as much for their practicality as their idealism.

Their enviro values aside, Cake was fairly matter-of-fact about the whole thing: “We just looked at the situation and realized there was no reason not to do this.”

Green can be common sense—that old chestnut—something ya just do, something devoid of a preening ideology, regardless of whatever -ism drives your car.

Except, evidently, if you are Republican. Why are the Republicans so wack? Smaller government? Well, maybe. Depends. Not when it comes to, oh, tsunami-warning devices. Mother Jones reported that in February, Republicans voted a 28 percent cut to the National Weather Service that would have resulted in staffing cutbacks to Hawaii’s Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

And what about twirly light bulbs, gotta problem with those? We have to figure out where old bulbs go to die—mercury is the problem—but it is clearly the right technology to be forwarded through regulation. But not if you are Sen. Mike Enzi, the Wyoming Republican who is pushing a bill to repeal the 2007 law: “Government doesn’t need to be in the business of telling people what light bulb they have to use.”

Well, government doesn’t have to tell its population a tsunami is coming, either. Let the People figure it out in the marketplace.

It’s gotten so bad that Rep. Ed Markey D-Massachusetts, responding to the ridiculous Upton-Inhofe bill that would overturn the Environmental Protection Agency’s rules on climate pollution, addressed Congress thus: “Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to [the Upton-Inhofe bill]. … However, I won’t physically rise, because I’m worried that Republicans will overturn the law of gravity, sending us floating about the room. … I won’t call for the sunlight of additional hearings, for fear that Republicans might excommunicate the finding that the Earth revolves around the sun.”

Auntie Ruth knows sensible Republicans; you’re out there, Auntie Ruth knows for sure. But you sure are getting shouted down by the crazier side of your party. Auntie Ruth says stop doing that. Soon. Quoting a Republican phrase from when Republicans seemed more reasonable, Auntie Ruth is begging ya: Just say no.