Want to see ugly? Go here, beginning on page 11, and look at the four pages of fine print breaking down the heaps and heaps of pork being larded out by the Lieberman-Warner rationing bill in order to corral special pleader, er, public, support.

We can thank green think tank/pressure group World Resources Institute for this walk-through of how the trillions in energy-tax revenue will be spent. Check out the extensive new corporate welfare being earmarked in the name of global warming — which even climate alarmists have explained (in Nature magazine) will in fact likely continue to take the form of global cooling for some time to come, casting the entire premise of the enterprise, with its very expensive, computer-programmer-generated scary scenarios, in ever deeper doubt. Then remember that this is a scheme that no one dares claim would actually do anything about global warming, even if it were happening.

It’s comforting to see the Senate spending a week killing this beast. But it will rise again next year, doubtless, presumably with fewer Senators ready and willing to fight back. I repeat my belief – possibly just wishful thinking – that at some point the public will pay attention.