The “powers-that-be” in Washington and corporate America are selling our children and grandchildren down the river on a minute-by-minute basis, especially when it comes to the issue of energy creation and consumption.

Gasoline hovers at $4 a gallon and diesel (which is merely a by-product of gasoline production) is at a record $4.70 a gallon. Our entire economy is dependent on fuel consumption, and our national leaders do nothing.

It's time for state governors to take the lead. In Alabama, we have the most fertile soil in the nation, indeed the world. Our growing season is longer than more than 80 percent of the world, and we have abundant rain — even in times of drought — for crop growing.

Alabamians can be free of the fuel crisis for this reason only. How? It’s simple. The oil companies have soured Americans on the idea of ethanol with a lie. They tell you ethanol is too costly to produce. The truth is corn-based ethanol is too costly. The oil companies have bought up all of the ethanol companies, and they’re artificially tying the price of ethanol to the price of gasoline.

The future of ethanol and biodiesel isn’t corn, it’s soybeans. Cellulose ethanol produces 35 times more energy than it takes to produce it. Alabama can grow soybeans in abundance, harvest the beans to sell for food and then take the left over plants and make ethanol. The state of Alabama can go into the ethanol business. The state can build ethanol plants and process cellulose-based ethanol and biodiesel.

Imagine Alabama selling “Alabamanol” and “Alabamabio” products to the world. The retail cost of these two bio fuels would be 50 percent of the current cost of gasoline.

If Brazil can become completely energy independent of the Middle Eastern oil that is causing all of the havoc in the world’s economy, then Alabama can do it.

Governor Riley, let’s the get the ball rolling.

Foley