Your November Viewpoint section was rife with letters that mischaracterize conservative Republican thinking. Beginning with the false analogy in the letter comparing whale oil to coal, this would only apply if the demand for coal was lessening and/or the resource was depleted. It isn't. There are no technological or market forces at work here. What we have is an overbearing political party dictating "change" in our national energy policies and using you-can't-build-that-style regulations to shut down fossil fuel production.
It's alarming that anyone can see the damage done by the EPA and still describe federal regulations as "puny." They have successfully damaged several small farmers and small businesses such as the Northern California ranchers and the Gibson Guitar Co., to name a few. Be aware that they have every intention of going after natural gas producers at their first opportunity. This is political tyranny.
We dislike tyranny. We embrace healthy change. We fully realize that historical and economic shifts will phase out some jobs and create new ones. We understand that progress is the end result of individual innovation, initiative and hard work. What we resent is a political class that steals the fruit of our labor and gives it away under the guise of fairness. That is why it is so painful to find a letter which references the Founding Fathers and the Bill of Rights while promoting a Democratic agenda that is so blatantly anti-Constitution.
We like good government. The one offered by the current crop of Democrats is not forward. It is backward. In fact, it is early 20th century Soviet-model government. It creates massive debt and poverty while claiming to help the needy. It is anti-religion, anti-individual rights, and anti-private property. The founders were none of the above.
Forward thinkers are those who have learned from their history. I worry about our nation's future.
Helen Hofawger
Washington, W.Va.
