On doing business...

Whenever I go anywhere, whether it's for lunch, a pair of pants, or a new car, I make it a priority of doing business with people who like me. Not that they have to bend over backwards for me, but rather that they treat me with respect, are polite, and generally make me feel like a human being and not some idiot.

The reason I'm giving you this analogy is because of this aggravating little man in Venezuala called Hugo Chavez. Imagine, if you will, the rudest, snobbish, ugliest-acting bully of a waiter you might have ever had and put him in charge of a country. This is a man who has taken one of his biggest customers for his country's oil and has consistently mocked them and basically acting like a rude little boy.

Frankly, I don't like being made to feel like pond scum. And if I go to a place of business where I'm made to feel that way, I usually don't come back... even if the merchandise is good. It's simple common sense.

Now before you go off all half-cocked on foreign policy and all that jazz, stop it. Take a deep breath and realize what this commentary is about. Doing good business. Failure to realize that will result in a serious browbeating by myself and my buddy Pantusso, who is 6-5, diametrically opposed to me politically, and will also back me up whenever I need him (as I do the same for him!)

A couple of CNN commentators suggest boycotting CITGO gasoline, which is owned by the Venezualan government, which in turn seems to be owned by this guy with a supposed massive inferiority complex. Not a bad idea... but I have a better solution.

Instead of having our economy held hostage by this little booger and others who don't think highly of us, why not make ourselves energy-independent? Funny idea, I know, but here is my thinking.

1) Continue to develop biomass fuels like Ethanol and Cellulosic Ethanol as well as Biodiesel.

2) Incorporate alternative engergy sources like wind and solar energy... hey, not a day goes by in South Dakota that we don't have wind... we could be the OPEC of wind energy! LOL

3) Embrace new technologies like hybrid and hydrogen energy that will effectively eliminate our need to buy from these jerks.

I think it would be a win-win for the United States. First, we would enhance our economy in the creation of new, skilled jobs that will no doubt be necessary to do the research, production and manufacturing, operation, and upkeep of these new technologies. Secondly, we could say to Mr. Chavez and all those other rude, crude bullies...

"Sorry, not interested!"

I wonder... if that was the case, would they need US more than we would need them? Something to think about, anyway.