Haven't looked through this thread entirely so I may have missed it but has anyone brought up the movie 'Idiocracy'? This finding would support its notion that the beautiful people procreate the most but as brains and beauty don't necessarily mix, there is another side to all of this...

The Bush Administration has made a habit of bringing people into regulation straight from the field they are to regulate. The justification for this has always been that who better knows the field than those who have had so much experience in it, both working for and lobbying for. This trend has been trickling down to the more local levels of government as well. Unless people start to wake up and realize what has been going on the past several years (and i don't see any evidence that they will) they will continue to have their baser instincts pacified while getting completely cowed and taken advantage of. I don't have any hope whatsoever that a change of parties will ameliorate this trend. My point is, so much for the overseeing of utilities by commissions on behalf of the public.