Regressive Progressives?

Progressive regression is the coin of the liberal realm. The world appears awash in liberals resisting change and progress. Some might say that improvement and progress aren't really what 'progressives' seek. Fact is that liberals are the 'Amish' of politics. Liberal political thinking stopped with Marx and Engels. Liberal political activity reached its high point with Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Mao, and Fidel Castro. It's easy to understand that the current crop of liberals, Schavez, Sheehan, Dean, Murray and Cantwell, McDermott, and Gore and the Clintons are psychological children and political ignorants when compared to their pedagogues.

Monday's Wall Street Journal's 'Review & Outlook' speaks to regressive progressives by exposing the World Bank board's effort to keep corruption in loans and payments to third world nations; speaks to Richard Branson's 'Virgin' commitment to green energy causes; and Europe's effort to destroy Microsoft after the Clinton Administration's failure to do so here.

The WSJ writes that at the annual World Bank meeting in Singapore, European elites let it be known "that they prefer a (current) lending system that gives lip service to ending graft but in fact turns a blind eye to corrupt government officials on the receiving end of billions in foreign aid." Worse, "British Development Secretary Hilary Benn threatened to withhold $94 million in funding next year to protest the transparency and accountability conditions that Paul Wolfowitz (former Bush administration member) is implementing." Imagine that so called progressives attempt to continue corrupt and failed ways? That's regressive progressive behavior.

Then the WSJ says that "There's plenty of reason to cock a sceptical eye at Richard Branson's pledge, announced last week in New York in the company of Al Gore and Bill Clinton, that he will devote 10 years and about $3 billion of profits form his Virgin airline and railroad businesses to combat global warming." While it all sounds like Branson is supporting Gore and Clinton on questionable climate claims, he's actually investing in energy businesses like rapeseed and ethanol production. The WSJ questions "There are serious doubts among scientists whether biofuels can serve as safe and reliable substitutes for current fossil fuels. There are also real questions about the environmental impact-in deforestation and intensive farming-of switching to biofuels."

Again, the liberal progressive obsession with fossil fuels 0vershadows the often unintended negative and costly side affects of just doing anything to feel good. The replacement of cheap and powerful fossil fuels requires more than a few cottage industry wind farms and corn growing fields. In fact, it's now estimated that all the world's corn and other biofuel feedstocks can generate about 5% of the world's current energy demands and less than 2% in the next decade's time.

Then the WSJ explains Europe's Neelie Kroes' effort to: "ensure a level playing field." That's liberal progressive regressive speak for keeping innovations and improvements out of products unless regulators and oppressors direct it. This is of course a return to the Soviet style "command economy." Ms. Kroes feels that she and her fellow "know it alls" say that they know what the people need and at what fair cost. and they are willing to use our tax dollars to get their way.

The fight is over Adobe document functions and file security. While the liberal progressive regressives attack Microsoft (for beating Apple like a drum) for lacking security features to protect users from hackers, the same drum beaters say that any new security features must be kept separate and must cost accordingly. Then Microsoft asked Adobe to provide a document security function in Vista, the new and improved Windows, which Adobe declined to do. So Microsoft offers its own document security feature along with the free Adobe reader. Ms. Krores screams bloody murder because this will improve Windows and will give Microsoft a market advantage. Duh! It's an earned market advantage due to Adobe's business strategy. In the words of the venerable (loony) Al Gore: "How dare they; who do they think they are?"

We are living in the days of the regressive progressives that pine for a Cuban 19th century style government and economic environment. Seems that when the world gets too complicated and too filled with opportunity and hope, the liberal progressive regressives will find the energy to stop all this progress.