A Stitch in Haste

I mocked Congress' attempt to stop price gouging by oil companies in this post. As you may recall:

The House-passed price gouging legislation directs the FTC to define price gouging and calls for penalties of up to $150 million for refiners and other wholesalers and $2 million for retailers who violate the law.

Who knew that the FTC would be even more mockworthy than Congress?

The Federal Trade Commission on Monday said it found 15 examples of gasoline price gouging after Hurricane Katrina, though the agency said it has not identified any widespread effort by the oil industry to illegally manipulate the marketplace.
...
For the purpose of the report, and as mandated by Congress, the FTC defined price gouging as "any finding" that the average price of gasoline in designated disaster areas in September 2005 was higher than in August 2005.

Good grief.

So the fact that a major domestic refinery was knocked out during Katrina isn't responsible for higher prices during that month. The fact that transportation channels were disrupted isn't responsible. The fact that local workers in the petroleum industry -- like everyone else in the region -- simply packed up and left isn't responsible.

No, it was price gouging by the "wicked, bad, naughty, evil" energy companies. Yes, you must give them all a good FTC spanking! And after the spanking, the oral testimony (i.e., before Congress or, worse, before a judge and jury for their supposed "crimes").

None of which, of course, increases the supply of oil -- the only effective way to lower gas prices -- by a single drop.

Lovely.