Regulation, certainly in this case, is following reality, not creating it. Coal is incredibly inefficient, and incredibly dirty, and dangerous to mine, and whatever regulations people think are the boogey men with coal, that has no bearing on China, which is aggressively trying to move off coal too.

Anymore than regulation is the reason that the world's biggest oil producer - Saudi Arabia - is trying to take extraordinary steps to diversify away from oil.

This is just another example of Don the Panderer, promising for the dying coal industry exactly what Bern & Co are promising the striking Verizon landline workers. Somehow, I'll keep you in an industry in decline if you'll just pretty please vote for me.

It's as bad as bad regulation or stupid tax incentives that cause the economy to miss crucial signals. Let's keep WVa's economy reliant on coal, so that when the inevitable bottom for that industry comes, it can truly be an unmanageable shit storm there.

I sympathize with Paul Ryan (who I am sure will fall into line eventually and is just doing some intelligent posturing for the sake of his majority) - the repub party is becoming unrecognizable. Especially on economic policy. Seems to be moving to roughly where the Bern sits.

If the Bern pulls off the upset, we'll have a first in American history - a choice between two socialists - one more of a communist, and the other more of a national socialist.