Well…Grist has done it again! Another down-to-earth assessment of the proposed climate change legislation presently brewing in Washington D.C.

…and they’ve detected a not-so-surprising but oh-so-disturbing counter current in these negotiations:

Electric Utilities, the largest polluters on the planet, want to remain exempt from the “fully accounted cost” of their externalities; i.e. we the rate payers continue to pay the electric utilities profitably for their power – and we pay additionally to clean up their mess.

Hmmm…I buy dinner at a restaurant and then have to wash my dishes, sweep and mop the floor, wipe the table, and take out the trash. I sure hope I left enough tip…

Here’s a tantalizing excerpt to whet your appetite for the full blown post on Grist’s Blog:

The power sector is terrified. After putting off needed investments in new, cleaner generation for years and years — aided and abetted by simpatico regulators in D.C. — all the sudden they’re going to have to start making those investments. And quickly! They might have to scramble, and innovate, and maybe even change their business models! Some of them might even have to … gasp … raise rates (which have been artificially suppressed for years)!