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Message| (872)    Last July, I penned Part I of this article,
suggesting that consumer discretionary would underperform energy
E&P firms due to higher energy prices stealing limited
opportunity dollars from consumer budgets.  The investment
thesis is still intact. Higher consumer energy prices and higher
taxes, instigated by escalating oil prices, higher cost to
produce alternative energy, and increased taxpayer funded
subsidies for alternative energy projects, will ripple through
the economy. Higher traditional energy prices will become a drag
on consumer discretionary spending.  The update is two fold:
Not much has changed to dramatically increase the US domestic
supply of oil. Natural gas is virtually gushing out of the
ground on its own, but there is no government drive for
preferred fuel conversion. Natural gas for transportation should
be a no-brainer, but it is not. Alternative energy is still more
expensive and still achieves the rare s