[Torie]

I am a big Bush fan, but the next thing I will be criticising him for is signing onto this hideous uneconomic massive expansion of the ethanol boondoggle, which was discusssed at length in the WSJ on Friday. Bush does have a tendency on these more marginal issues to go along to get along.

I also want to see the evidence about the state of Iraq's nuke program before we go in there, and have a clearer statement of exactly what the causa belli (sp) is. That is a much bigger issue of course.

[Miss Marple]

Well, the ethanol thing is something I have never been too sold on. I prefer outright drilling for oil, which, of course, Daschle won't let happen. So, Bush compromises on a boondoggle (ugh) for reasons we don't understand yet.

One thing I have learned about him is that these compromises are done for reasons not always apparent. I don't like ethanol either, but I am certain there were reasons Bush felt it necessary to compromise on.

Also, sometimes the WSJ takes the side of one industry over another. This is not necessarily wrong, but it sometimes helps me to understand their motivation for their opinions.

I will wait and see what's up with ethanol. I really would prefer that oil shipments from the Saudis be curtailed, with an announcement to the public for the reasons and an accompanying announcement of rationing, followed by an executive order to drill in all 50 states.

Probably a fantasy on my part, but it would be most satisfying, wouldn't it?