Political grandstanding is ingrained into Wisconsin's political landscape. If you're not convinced, check out some of the exchanges within the state Legislature lately. If anyone has faced the horrifying prospect of getting news exclusively from press releases, he would by now be convinced the outside world must be caught up in an epic battle. The forces of good and evil clash regularly as some parties are hell-bent on breaking the backs of American consumers while others proudly slaughter babies for political sport.

Every once in a while, it is refreshing to see a political power play that addresses the real concerns of Wisconsin citizens, rather than how to best see that gays are totally pawned. On Dec. 1, executives from the world's five largest oil companies testified in Milwaukee after Governor Doyle challenged them to justify their record profits in the midst of natural disasters. Okay, so legally the state can't do much more then forward their concerns to Congress, and it is easy to imagine melodramatic lectures by local officials to half-asleep millionaires. (Actually, that is a pretty accurate description of the proceedings.)

Some have suggested these types of hearings are ultimately bad for the consumer, as punitive actions against oil companies give them disincentive to lower prices. If only we would roll over so oil companies finally give us that treat we've been jumping around for. Is the alternative to this hearing to have another hearing begging big oil to increase their profit margins? After all, this would give them great incentive to reinvest in local communities and explore renewable sources of energy! Plus if we've learned anything from the past 30 years, it is that market forces will ultimately solve all of humankind's problems.

I'm begging you to watch a stream of the hearing online. To make it more bearable, find a friend to join the fun. Skip to the middle and every time one of you hears "market forces" take a shot; the other should listen for "supply and demand." But be careful not to change the rules. For example, if one of you takes shots every time the executives imply we really shouldn't be angry with them and instead should go after that jerk capitalism and your friend drinks for every time you're made to feel like socialist scum for not having faith in the divine market force, you're totally not going to get through the hearing.

U.S. Representative and gubernatorial candidate Mark Green has been keeping busy with grandstanding of his own. After Gov. Doyle vetoed legislation that would have enacted a cap on damages awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits, Mr. Green let him have it via press release.

"Jim Doyle was given a clear choice between quality medical care for Wisconsin families or big pay days for lawyers. Unfortunately, Jim Doyle chose trial lawyers over the rest of us."

Oh that evil man! Although it does seem ironic that Rep. Green, so willing to blame it all on trial lawyers, criticized Doyle in an earlier press release for the "beat up on the oil guys rhetoric."

Never mind that during Mr. Green's self-vaunted tenure in the state assembly, one of every four poor children was uninsured in the state according to a Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services survey. Well, so much for quality medical care.

But hey, as Mr. Green's press release says, "Jim Doyle has no excuses for his veto other than his steadfast support of lawsuits."

Before you start leafing around the Internet for the speech Gov. Doyle made proclaiming his undying love and borderline fetish for malpractice suits, just know I couldn't come up with any. (This despite my highly influential campus newspaper press credentials.)

In fact, Rep. Green's statement is a bit ironic, a bunch more ridiculous, a tad sad, a smidge comical, and quite frankly, a pile of horse shoes. The veto actually spared the state from a lawsuit that would have inevitably nullified the malpractice caps. That is what the state Supreme Court did to a previous cap $5,000 less then this one. Among the court's concerns were that the cap did not have a rational basis. Well, now they do. $445,775 is completely irrational, whereas $450,000 is a nice even number.

But that wouldn't do it for Mr. Doyle's lap dogs and UW law professors Walter Dickey, Heinz Klug, and David Shwartz, who claim the new bill "only half heartedly attempts to address only one of the several constitutional problems of its predecessor, and clearly fails in that attempt."

And surprisingly no, this is not an election year. But isn't it great that our elected officials are always acting like it?

Bassey Etim ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in journalism and political science.