Fresh off the BP disaster in the Gulf three Republicans have proposed to hand over control of natural resources to the oil companies. They apparently believe that ignoring severe health risks, downplaying damage to the environment and lack of independent oversight is good for their political career. They call it their Domestic Jobs, Domestic Energy, and Deficit Reduction Act of 2011 (3-D Act).

The 3-D Act expedites the permitting process and opens the OCS, a portion of ANWR, and the Keystone XL Pipeline to energy production – potentially creating more than 2 million jobs, $10 trillion in economic activity, and more than $2 trillion in tax receipts.

It needs a K. Then we can call it the JERK Act.

The 2 million jobs are not only a short-sighted pipe dream (pun intended) but they are a joke compared to opportunities for long-term skills in the sustainable clean energy technology industry. This bill also is a trick to give the petroleum companies more control of energy policy in America, despite their long record of anti-Americanism. Firms busy moving their headquarters from Texas to the Middle East have these politicians convinced they should to put them in charge of domestic benefits?

This is no way to manage risk. They will just dig America into a deeper hole.

The equivalent proposal by these Republicans in 1919 would be to increase jobs shoveling horse shit and burning horse carcases instead of promoting new industries that used electricity, steam and other innovative methods of propulsion. Imagine what America would look like if it had turned its back on the opportunity to develop the engines that has driven its success for the past hundred years.