Dracula vs. Frankenstein
down, unable to pay suddenly astronomical like Eastern, Braniff, Pan Am, Continental, power bills. Havoc spread across the West, Northwest and TWA. Two aviation experts particularly in the three Pacific Coast states, reported that the losses that piled up equaled as blackouts and brownouts roiled society. the airlines’ profits for the previous 60 years stop. ... We don’t think we can wait to move Not everyone is comfortable with allying Transcripts of Enron telephone calls of passenger airline existence. No one brags forward with aggressive clean energy policy themselves with either side in this battle. On laid out the frauds in detail. States like any more about having helped deregulate the while a state with a lightly-staffed Public one side is the guy Nevada were even pulled into the act when airlines—or about creating competition in the Utilities Commission and who tried to kill net California-generated power was sold to airline industry. There are a handful of big, a legislature that meets metering. On the Nevada, then sold back to California at national airlines left, providing lousy service. only every two years other is a guy who ridiculous prices, something that regulation In the 1990s, Congress deregulated the hammers out the details doesn’t want to pay had prohibited. banking industry and Wall Street. President of a complex and difficult his bills. When it was all over, Nevada’s Valley Clinton recommended it to a Republican transition. And we don’t Democrats regained But Question 3 Electric Association had to pay Enron $14 Congress. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act think that the electricity is coming at Nevada majorities in both million for electricity that the fraudulent repealed the Glass-Steagall Act, enacted by market that results from whether residents like corporation never supplied, and Nevada’s Congress in the 1930s to keep banks out of this transition will benefit houses of the it or not, and it must attorney general went to court against Enron. the insurance business and prevent another small customers like us or be dealt with. legislature, and the 2017 Even Gov. Kenny Guinn, a former utility Wall Street collapse. Congress also passed the environment.” Supporters of president who believed in deregulation, was the Commodity Futures Modernization Many in the environlegislature acted to Question 3 say that shaken by the experience and retreated from Act, exempting credit-default swaps from mental community have predictions of unfaprotect deregulation. regulation. subsequently withdrawn vorable outcomes Nevada’s U.S. Sen. Harry Reid reluctantly their support from net metering. to its enactment voted to repeal Glass-Steagall and later said the measure. are “speculative.” now what? he made a mistake. During the 2008 Wall Another problem That’s certainly Street meltdown, Reid said deregulation plagues Q3. Both it and Initiative petitions were created to give everytrue. The effects of “paved the way for much of this crisis a second ballot measure, Question 6, deal day citizens a tool to be used against rich deregulation are never predictable. But their to occur.” The meltdown was so severe with energy, and both seek to implant their people, arrogant corporations and overbearing predictions of favorable results from Question and the financial institutions involved so language in the Nevada Constitution. government. Instead—and particularly in 3 are, therefore, also speculative. huge—Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, The benefit to their sponsors is presumNevada where business lobbyists convinced “Competition is good,” according to Merrill Lynch—there were those who said if ably to insulate their measures from change the state to make petition requirements the pro-3 campaign’s website. “Don’t they went down, they could take the United by the Nevada Legislature. But that’s not all more onerous—initiatives are used only by let a monopoly like NV Energy tell you States with them. The ensuing investigating it does. It insulates them from correction of the wealthy, corporations otherwise.” commission found deregumistakes or updating of language. or powerful interest groups But there’s an underlying premise to that lation “which effectively It’s not as though there is no example that can afford to gather the statement that demonstrates the unpredicteliminated federal and state available of a mistake in the drafting of an signatures. ability of deregulation—it assumes that regulation” to be one cause. initiative petition. In 2016, a ballot measure One risk of initiatives deregulation promotes competition. The results of deregulaproviding for background checks in some is that they will be used on In 1978, Congress deregulated the airlines. tion are seldom predictable. gun purchases not already covered by existGov. sandoval issues of such complexity that Nevada’s Howard Cannon, who chaired the There’s an example ing law was written to require federal checks the public will be at a loss on Senate Commerce Committee, tried to stop began making more analogous to the and banning state checks. It turned out that which side is right. The rise airline deregulation but was outmaneuvered Question 3 debate. the FBI declined to perform the checks for preparations to of modern public relations by Ted Kennedy. The London Economist During the 1990s and a state that had its own system, and state methods are particularly reported, “Cannon is almost alone in his implement early 21st century, state officials were unable to convince the feds to good at concealing the real skepticism. Sen. Kennedy brushed aside legislatures deregulated make Nevada a “hybrid” state that uses both Question 3. intent of petitions. No one [Cannon’s] questions with an implied questheir power generating types of checks. is campaigning on Question tion of his own: What is wrong with getting markets in varying degrees As a result, the law Nevadans supported 3 with talk of exit fees, lower fares for the public, no matter what at the demand of Enron, has never been implemented. Ballot measures or regional markets, price harm it may do to the present system?” which wielded huge campaign contributions sometimes do contain mistakes, and those spikes, interstate transmissions or stranded Kennedy went around the Nevadan and built errors are far more easily corrected in statand pseudo-intellectual “studies” calling for costs. Those are the kind of things legislators support for deregulation in Cannon’s commitutes than in the Constitution. According to the deregulation. Half the states normally deal with. Instead, the campaign is tee. Unable to stop Guinn Center for Policy Priorities in Clark went along, including Nevada, about “choice” and “renewable energy.” it, Cannon retreated County, of states that have approved energy where deregulation was someWe live in an era in which things no one and said he would deregulation, not one has done it through thing everyone at the legisexpected have come to pass. Renewables are sponsor the bill constitutional change. All but New York have lature “knew” was needed. not only practical now, but their price has himself in order to done it through statute, and New York did it Nevada did it in electricity and dropped dramatically. Does that mean it is keep some control through its regulatory body. gas. Consumer advocates who a group called the time for Question 3, which would eliminate over the process. The Center warned that if Nevadans urged caution were ignored. any ceiling on rates? There is a long line of President Carter coalition to Defeat were to become unhappy with the results (A 2007 Power in the Public other corporations waiting behind the Sands, signed airline of Question 3, “They would have to repeal Interest study of Department Question 3 announced including Tesla, who say they are next. Does deregulation on Oct. the constitutional amendment with another of Energy figures found that it mean that if we deregulate, Adelson’s 24, 1978. It nearly it had been formed to constitutional amendment. This would entail retail rates rose more from version of deregulation is the correct one? destroyed the airline circulation of a new petition to obtain the 1999 to 2007 in deregulated oppose How can an ordinary voter even know what industry. Far from requisite number of signatures to appear on states than regulated states.) that version—and its consequences—are? fostering competiQuestion 3. the ballot and then passage in two successive California partially dereguAs with other instances of deregulation, we tion, as sponsors elections.” Or the Nevada Legislature would lated in the same approximate cannot know. We can try it, or we can leave had promised, it have to process a constitutional amendment time frame. Soon, the families energy policy to the Nevada Legislature. Ω triggered a series through two legislative sessions, and then it of the working poor were of bankruptcies and would have to be approved by voters. Either being evicted from homes because their mergers that put more than a hundred airlines way, it would be a drawn-out process. power bills shot out of sight. Companies shut out of business, including well-known carriers
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