Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, ``Houses were shut tight, and cloth wedged around doors and windows, but the dust came in so thinly that it could not be seen in the air, and it settled like pollen on the chairs and tables, on the dishes.'' Ma and Pa Joad did everything they could to save their farm from slipping away into the dust bowl, but ultimately they lost to a force far greater than any effort they could muster. Mr. Speaker, though this is just one line ripped from the pages of ``The Grapes of Wrath,'' farmers and ranchers today are facing a modern day dust storm--the wrath of the EPA. Just when you think you've heard it all, bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. come up with some hair-brained idea that leaves you scratching your head in wonderment. The Environmental Protection Agency has apparently run out of things to regulate and tax so they are considering new guidelines for regulating ``particulate matter emissions''--more commonly known to you and me as ``dust.'' Now, I know what you are thinking, this just cannot be true. What kind of crazy scheme is this? Well, the EPA ``Dust Police'' would specifically regulate farm dust. Farmers would be required to have dust collectors on their harvesters, planters, combines, and haying equipment. But my personal favorite is the crackdown on dust created from driving a pickup truck down a dirt or gravel road. I am not making this up. The Federal Government is considering farm dust regulations that are caused from driving on a dirt road.…”