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Loudoun County Democratic Committee Chair Tim Buchholz has been employed since March 2009 with a contractor

Providing consulting services for the Office of Risk Management, Office of the CFO, Department of Energy. Supporting the 2009 Recovery Program.

Good for Tim, being employed that is. With Obama at the helm, any job should be considered a good job.

However, in light of the effort by Supervisor McGimsey to put Loudoun taxpayers on the hook for a new “energy plan” justified in part by the promise of federal dollars from the 2009 Recovery Act, it is worth asking whether Democrat Party Chair Buchholz has played any role as cheerleader for the Loudoun energy plan or as liaison between this county and the federal government.

Since he works for a contractor his role as LCDC chair likely does not rise to the level of a Hatch Act question, but because he is being paid to “support” the 2009 Recovery Act under the Department of Energy aegis it seems fair to say Loudoun taxpayers have a right to know what role, if any, he has played in supporting our “energy strategy.” It’s not necessarily a matter of conflict of interest, but simply the public’s right to know who all is in the pipeline to make this energy plan happen.

Over the past three weeks the “science” of “global warming” received a mortal blow – the coup de grace stunningly symbolized by Al Gore’s abrupt decision to cancel his scheduled Dec. 16 appearance at the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. We should all have some questions for Al Gore, chiefly “why have you not yet been prosecuted for fraud?” But Loudoun County residents and particularly those in Potomac District should also have some questions for Supervisor Andrea McGimsey.

Man-made global warming has now been revealed as a massive fraud, which

never existed except in the minds and hearts of grant-seeking scientists and academics, ratings-obsessed television networks and their misinformed viewers and opportunistic eco-activists.

[For a complete understanding of exactly what happened during the past three weeks, first read this excellent overview of the "ClimateGate" e-mail scandal, and then read this more detailed analysis.]

[To browse the smoking gun e-mail messages from the Climate Research Unit (CRU) at the University of East Anglia, click here.]

[For objective reporting and actual scientific analysis of the global warming scam, visit Climate Skeptic, Climate Audit, Canada Free Press, and JunkScience.com.]

The fraud attempted on American taxpayers is a series of stupendous tax increases – both direct and indirect – penalizing use of our major energy sources, all in the name of saving our planet from the effects of supposed man-made global warming. Energy conservation is a valid and worthwhile goal, but the climate alarmists are attempting to ram through unprecedented new “cap and trade” fees for using the only sources of energy that American consumers and businesses currently have access to. This household-budget-crippling and job-killing agenda is being justified via a ginned-up emergency to reduce carbon emissions.

Potomac District Supervisor Andrea McGimsey has been a foremost proponent of the effort to move Loudoun County in a “greener” direction during the past year. As chair of the Board of Supervisors’ energy and environment committee, she has led the effort to develop the County Energy Strategy (CES) which includes a cap and trade provision at the local level. (Click here to review proposed draft energy strategy document.) The Loudoun Independent reported “Despite objections from others, she said, cap and trade will remain in the plan until it is fully vetted.”

Ms. McGimsey is a participant in a Loudoun County “Green Enterprise” discussion group. At the January 2, 2009 meeting, she addressed the group on the topic of “A Climate Prosperity Strategy for Loudoun.”

A source for background information on her talk is listed as Climate Prosperity Alliance, which describes itself as follows:

The Climate Prosperity Alliance, a volunteer, global network of financiers, businesses, economic development authorities, scientists and NGOs is based on earth systems science, showing the widespread evidence of destruction caused by the now-obsolete technologies of the combustion-based Industrial Revolution and its extraction and exploitation of the Earth’s capital: oil, coal, gas, minerals, forests, water, land and biodiversity.  Human societies are now gradually re-industrializing our economies using the Earth’s income – the renewable energies of sun, wind, ocean/hydro, geothermal and non-agricultural biomass – based on human capital: new knowledge of planetary processes and ecosystems, designing our economies with Nature.

Leaving aside the questions of whether it is economically or rationally defensible to consider the technologies of the Industrial Revolution “obsolete,” or whether “earth systems science” should be a foundation for public policy, it is worth noting that Ms. McGimsey’s reference to “climate prosperity” in January 2009 was fortuitous.

Because in June 2009 this note in a press release appeared on Reuters regarding the St. Louis, Missouri based Climate Prosperity Project, Inc.:

Andrea McGimsey has been named as Climate Prosperity Project’s Executive Director. McGimsey has an extensive background in environmental and regional planning issues, currently serving on the Loudoun County, Virginia Board of Supervisors, chairing their Energy & Environment Committee. She previously held senior management positions with America Online (AOL), and owns a Virginia-based consulting firm. She is based in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Sterling, Va.

Climate Prosperity Project, Inc. is self-described as “successor” to the Climate Prosperity Alliance, having significant personnel overlap with the earlier group’s principals.

Supervisor McGimsey’s new employer states in its mission

The urgency of the climate challenge calls for greenhouse gas reductions across the United States as soon as possible. Localities and regions control or directly influence many of the policies, laws, personnel, and infrastructure needed to move forward on opportunities from renewable energy to building codes to transportation. People at the local level know how to encourage innovation and economic development.

We look forward to working with our many civic partners in fulfilling the potentials of Climate Prosperity, Inc.

We can assume that Climate Prosperity Project, Inc. is not seeking to do business in Loudoun County, and that if it did Ms. McGimsey would recuse herself from any discussion or votes on the matter. Conflict of interest is not the issue.

But it is fair to ask the obvious question of whether running a Missouri-based organization has any effect on Ms. McGimsey’s ability to represent the residents of the Potomac District of Loudoun County. She became a Loudoun supervisor in January and was announced as taking the job with the Missouri-based company in June: How has she performed on our Board of Supervisors? Is she plugged in here, or is she a nominal “resident” whose main livelihood is halfway across the country?

A further and probably more important question to ask is whether the now-discredited climate alarmist ideology regarding “greenhouse gases” that seems to underly the Climate Prosperity Project is part of Supervisor McGimsey’s plan for Loudoun County’s taxpayers. Are we going to see massive new expenses for electricity, services and fuel because our county government is rushing blindly to save the Earth from a man-made warming trend that has no basis in reality?

With the current economic situation in our country we need to be very careful about measures that would make it more difficult for people to get by and for businesses to grow. Government-sponsored financial penalties on our struggles to live day-to-day life should be ruled out of order, immediately and with no further discussion. When we’re all fat and sassy and the revenues are streaming in we can discuss fine tuning.

Anyone who would disagree with the above must be either incredibly wealthy, totally unfeeling and obtuse toward the common citizenry, or living in another jurisdiction – like St. Louis – and not giving a fig about those of us who live in Loudoun County.

Following is some background information you might find of interest.

Loudoun County received a grant of $2 million from the U.S. government as part of the “stimulus” plan, for green initiatives. So far the grant has resulted in exactly one job, that of Peter Garforth, a consultant who was paid $250,000 to explain that residents of Loudoun County use more energy than people in Europe – while ignoring the inconvenient fact that Europe produces far less products and services than America and therefore needs far less energy.

The next time you get to take an 8-week vacation, you should regret the fact your carbon footprint is larger than that of your European brethren.

News report on Peter Garforth’s work for Loudoun County:

While preparing the plan, the consultant determined that Loudoun produces about 15 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions per resident annually. The average is 23 tons nationally and 10 tons in Europe. The objective in Loudoun’s plan is to reduce that amount to seven tons per resident over the next two decades.

“It’s a challenging goal, but not in the realm of fantasy,” said Peter Garforth, the consultant behind the plan.
To lower Loudoun’s output of greenhouse gases, Garforth is suggesting the county turn to more renewable power, such as biofuels, solar and wind.

He also suggests the county encourage greater residential density in mixed-use communities and around future rail stations; urge builders to construct homes that are at least 30 percent more energy efficient; and create a program for selling emissions credits in Loudoun, otherwise known as cap and trade.

Devised as a means to control pollution and used widely in Europe, cap and trades set limits on greenhouse gas emissions. Companies can exceed those limits by purchasing credits that are equal to one ton of emissions from companies that pollute less. Critics charge, though, that companies that do this will simply pass the cost on to consumers….

Here is a presentation by Galforth – note the reference to the now-discredited “ice core data.”

An article published by Loudoun County consultant Peter Garforth on November 2, 2009, inconveniently just before the ClimateGate scandal was revealed:

The evidence is increasing that added greenhouse gases caused by human activity have produced an average increase in Earth’s temperature, in turn affecting climate. Some people hold the view that this isn’t the case. About 30% of man-made greenhouse gas emissions are caused by changes in land use by agriculture and forestry, about 60% from energy and the balance from non-energy related industrial processes and waste management.

Legislation aimed at reducing man-made greenhouse gases by about 80% from current levels is in discussion in the United States. In other industrialized countries, similar legislation is in place or in discussion, and increasingly China and India are open to some mandatory limits on emissions. The next round of global negotiations will be in Copenhagen in December 2009.

If the U.S. legislation passes, plants producing more than 10,000 tons of emissions probably will have to cap their emissions against an annual target. If they fail to do so, they’ll have to buy emission credits from others; if they beat the cap, they can sell credits to others. Other emitters might be required to report their own emissions. The details of how both the reporting and the cap-and-trade will operate are still in flux. The effects of the various proposals on energy prices and other costs are unknown.

“These uncertainties give rise to a wide, some would say wild, set of opinions ranging from neutral or positive effects to extreme cost increases and loss of global competitiveness. All too often, the degree to which an individual accepts the science of climate change is reflected in the opinions they listen to. So what should a company do to be sensibly prepared?

If one assumes that climate change is underway, some places might become vulnerable to extreme weather events. This can include raised flooding risks, wind and rain damage, energy supply unreliability and unavailability of critical employees. Insurance premiums also might rise as the underwriting effect of climate change grows. At a minimum, your plant should be assessed for changing weather effects and appropriate precautions taken. Some, such as on-site generation, might both reduce overall emissions and address reliability.

Looked at this way, without the emotional baggage that surrounds the climate debate, most of these activities fall into the category of common sense. They shouldn’t overburden professionally qualified teams. If they do, there might be other issues beyond climate change risks that need addressing.

Here is what the Loudoun County Energy Strategy proposes ( more here:

To both educate the market and to raise the market transparency of the actual energy
performance of homes and buildings, voluntary Energy Performance Labeling (EPL) is
recommended. A current EPL would be available anytime a building is sold or leased.
Wherever this approach has been adopted, a steady improvement in energy efficiency occurs over and above the expected gains from changes in construction codes …

The plan outlines ways some of those projects could take advantage of the more than $2 million that could be awarded by the DOE. One example is the Moorefield Station and One Loudoun projects, which the plan suggests could utilize a Decision Grade-Integrated Energy Master Plan, which would be created in conjunction with the developers to become a future energy system operator for the two sites.

Each IEMP would cost between $150,000 and $250,000 but could in turn reduce energy costs by as much as 40 percent and greenhouse reductions by almost 50 percent. The CEP suggests that IEMPs could become a normal part of the permitting process for similar projects with the two key developments serving as models.

So imagine you run a business or want to sell a house in Loudoun County: that IEMP of “$150,000 or $250,000″ is your new little contribution to saving the Earth from greenhouse gases.

Are you on board with “climate prosperity?”

Finally, a glimpse into the world view of the climate alarmists. If you have an opinion, tell Supervisor McGimsey what you think about this.

In the city for a few days for a conference, here are some snapshots ….

A huge Army convention is taking place, lots of American heroes all around, and lots of interesting suppliers.

In a tent across the street from the hotel is the new Sikorsky X2 “Tactical” Helicopter:

At the Historical Society – “Quilts for Obama”.

Quilts for Obama. Heh. So 2008.

I think the current state of the nation would be something less comfy for Obama.

Next, morons on parade:

I wanted to get some photos of the actual morons at this event, and maybe get some video answers to questions along the lines of “what about the fact the temperature of the Earth is decreasing?” – but the pity factor kicked in so I backed off. Stupid people.

Hillary Clinton, Obama’s top diplomat was told by India to go pound sand.  Given the current data, Obama’s green energy ideal is something the Indians will do without.  With Europe back pedaling from Kyoto as fast as they can.  One can only wonder about the Democrats obsession with green energy and carbon caps.

India on Sunday night rebuffed an appeal by Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state, to embrace a low-carbon future in which the two countries would work together to devise new ways of consuming and producing energy.

I guess that whole stay poor so you can be greenjust is not working out for the Indians.  Given that India is still suffering from pre-industrial poverty they are just not getting the enviro-whacko vision to go straight to post-industrial poverty.  In case you are wondering, post-industrial poverty is where we in the U.S. are heading.  Look at Waxman’s Cap and Trade industry killer of a bill.

“Adversely affected employees in oil, coal and other fossil-fuel sector jobs would qualify for a weekly check worth 70 percent of their current salary for up to three years. In addition, they would get $1,500 for job-search assistance and $1,500 for moving expenses from the bill’s ‘climate change worker adjustment assistance’ program, which is expected to cost $4.2 billion from 2011 to 2019.”

According to P. Roff of US News:

Instead of being a the source of millions of new jobs of “green jobs”—as House Democrats are fond of saying over and over again—the provision is a hidden admission that their effort is a job killer, not just a massive new tax on energy.

The Indians and the Chinese are looking to first achieve some post industrial wealth and decadence.  This wealth and decadence are what all those nasty dead white people achieved in the past 250 years. It was by their blood sweat and tears that we saw in past 70 years the elimination of starvation and disease in this great land.

If you are wondering what post industrial wealth and decadence looks like, recall the late 20th century United States.  We saw the average home size in 1950 to 2005 go from less than 600 sq. ft. to 3000 sq. ft.  You know, like the whole McMansion disgustingly large homes of NOVA.  Us wealthy hoi polloi have no business being so wealthy.  We are the upstarts the current Duke of Wales, Charles Windsor, is so upset about.  He claims the world will come to an end in 99 months due to our consumption of energy and resources.  This consumption must be drastically curtailed.  He then flew off in his private jet.

What are us non-elites thinking?  You know, according to Charles and the rest of our betters its our place in life to live in near starvation while toiling in the fields.   We are supposed to live in 300 sq. ft. hovels with little heat and absolutely no air conditioning.  Nowadays we also bathe everyday,  the great masses are supposed to unwashed.

In some places when the industrial age and the associated wealth wants to come to town, the enviro-whackos show up, file suit in the world court and claim the multinational economic offer will destroy the local culture.  According to the enviro-whackos the local culture is poverty, that’s their place in life.  Read Eco-Imperialism and you will get the point.

The Green movement is about control, not the environment.  The data shows that the global temperature index is more a function of solar and volcanic activity than human enterprise.  But why let data get in the way of a good ideal?  Al Gore is the high priest of carbon credits.  He owns the company.  He will make a mint.  GE- they bring good things to life – is heavily invested in green energy.  They also control NBC.  Control and greed.  These are two of the real drivers behind the enviro-whacko movement.  The useful idiots are just window dressing.

The national suicide legislation commonly known as cap and trade has passed in the US House of Representatives and next goes to the US Senate.

The laws would radically increase prices throughout the United States and would serve the sole purpose of a short-term feel-good for romantic liberals who believe mankind is making the Earth dangerously warm.

If you are not informed about the insanity, please read this, this, and this.

Certainly this.

And definitely, this.

Essentially, cap and trade would change America for the worse forever in the pursuit of a fairy tale.

The best action Virginians can take is to contact our Senators and let them know the legislation is insanity grounded in a hoax.

I recommend calling their local offices repeatedly.

MARK WARNER
459A RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-2023
Web Form: warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Contact

OFFICES

Washington, D.C.
459A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-2023
Fax: 202-224-6295

Abingdon
180 West Main Street
Abingdon, VA 24210
Phone Number: 276-628-8158
Fax Number: 276-628-1036

Norfolk
101 W. Main Street
Suite 4900
Norfolk, VA 23510
Phone Number: 757-441-3079
Fax Number: 757-441-6250

Richmond
5309 Commonwealth Centre Parkway
Suite 401
Midlothian, VA 23112
Phone Number: 804-739-0247
Fax Number: 804-739-3478

Roanoke
129B Salem Avenue, SW
Roanoke, VA 24011
Phone Number: 540-857-2676
Fax Number: 540-857-2800

---

JIM WEBB
248 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-4024
Web Form: webb.senate.gov/contact/

OFFICES

Danville
308 Craghead Street
Suite 102A
Danville, VA 24541
Phone: 434-792-0976
Fax: 434-972-0960

Hampton Roads
222 Central Park Ave.
Suite 120
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
Phone: 757-518-1674
Fax: 757-518-1679

Northern Virginia
1501 Lee Highway
Suite 130
Arlington, VA 22209
Phone:703-807-0581
Fax:703-807-5198

Norton
756 Park Avenue, N.W.
Norton, VA 24273
Mail to: 756 Park Avenue, N.W.
P.O. Box 1300
Norton, VA 24273
Phone: 276-679-4925
Fax: 276-679-4929

Richmond
507 East Franklin Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Phone: 804-771-2221
Fax: 804-771-8313

Roanoke
3140 Chaparral Drive
Building C, Suite 101
Roanoke, VA 24018
Phone: 540-772-4236
Fax: 540-772-6870

Washington, D.C.
248 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-4024
Fax: 202-228-6363

Toll Free Number
1-866-507-1570

This is for the benefit of the “undecideds” and any sensible folks who are planning to vote for Barack Obama.

If you have not yet gotten the full measure of the Democrat candidate for president, recall (in the left sidebar) that he believes religion and gun ownership are signals of despair. If that is not enough to convince you not to vote for him, consider the mindset that would cause him to say this:

“We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times … and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK”

And if THAT is not enough to send a shudder up your spine about Obama’s vision for America, then have a listen to this interview from January: Obama promising to bankrupt the coal industry.

Via Drudge (and I don’t understand why it is not a headline – maybe saving it for tomorrow am?)

Three weeks ago the mortgage securities scandal was not even on the radar of popular culture. Now, it is issue number one and Congress is poised to pass quick legislation to address it. That fact right there should give everyone reason for pause.

By way of comparison, our energy crisis has been brewing in the open for decades, and even seven years after 9-11 Congress is still stalemated: We have no nuclear plants being built, no new oil refineries, no new areas opened for drilling, no new shale oil operations.

When Congress is poised to act quickly, to paraphrase the old maxim, we should all reach for our guns. What sort of lunacy might our federal government be about to introduce?

Case in point: Barney Frank is currently one of the leading legislative figures in the debate. In a sane world, Barney Frank would be sitting in the corner with a dunce cap on his head.

[via The Jawa Report]

Key quote by Barney Frank defending government sponsored entities such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:

The more people in my judgment exaggerate a threat of safety and soundness, the more people conjure up the possibility of serious financial losses to the treasury – which I do not see, I think we see entities that are fundamentally sound financially, and withstand some of the disaster scenarios, and even if there were a problem the federal government doesn’t bail them out – but the more pressure there is there, then the less I think we see in terms of affordable housing.

So the priority has been, above all else, affordable housing. Think about that. Then think of the zeros involved.

Events are progressing so quickly in Washington, D.C. right now that there has been no opportunity to explain the current financial crisis in context. Legislation that has not even been thought through is on the verge of being passed.

Yes, something needs to be done quickly – I understand that. Banks are going to fail. Bad, bad thing.

But here’s where the zeros come in: The basic fact that a movement which began in the 1990s to provide home loans to people who should not have received those loans was suicidal for our economy is being glossed over. When you’re dishing out $200,000+ loans to millions and millions of people who did not qualify for those loans, you are creating a liability figure with a LOT of zeros.

And now that exposure is being offloaded to American taxpayers. The dream of affordable housing has been revealed as taxpayers footing the bill for everyone in the U.S. who could not afford a house.

Maybe a bailout has to happen to secure our economy: I don’t have the expertise to know if that is the only solution. But as the details of the bailout are being debated and incorporated into the pending legislation, we need to keep in mind that at the root of the crisis are loans to a great many people who should not have gotten them, morons in the financial services industry who treated those loans as assets, and government officials who nurtured the hari-kiri economics. It needs to be reported far and wide that that’s why we are in this mess.

If we are about to pass new laws that will fundamentally change the U.S. economy for years to come, we need to be sure the American taxpayers who have played by the rules do not end up footing the bill for those who were chasing ghosts.

And let’s also be sure everyone knows the ghost-chasers, those who made this all happen, include the same Democrats who are now attempting to steer the hastily-crafted legislation.

UPDATE: Check below the fold for informative comment by Blog Fu.

continue reading…

Mr. Perfect Timing:

“If you’re a young person looking at the future of this planet and looking at what is being done right now, and not done, I believe we have reached the stage where it is time for civil disobedience to prevent the construction of new coal plants that do not have carbon capture and sequestration”…

Talk about having one’s finger on the pulse of our nation. There are still energy outages and gas shortages throughout the South. The second-most-threatening crisis of the day is America’s inability to produce enough home-grown energy, and, as winter approaches, Gore is worried about the temperature.

As Glenn Beck observed tonight, the energy crisis is going to soon reach the point where Americans will suddenly rise up and “chase the hippies off into the mountains.”

The Oil Drilling Ban finaly expired today, despite Pelosi’ best efforts.  Nancy got a black eye.  Still in the final analysis, the Democrats managed to step back from the precipice on this one.

“this capitulation by Democrats following months of Republican pressure is a big victory for Americans struggling with record gasoline prices,” said House GOP leader John Boehner of Ohio.

Democrats had clung to the hope of only a partial repeal of the drilling moratorium, but the White House had promised a veto, Obey said.

Just last week, the House passed legislation to open waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to oil and gas drilling but only 50 or more miles out to sea and only if a state agrees to energy development off its shore.

Republicans called that effort a sham that would have left almost 90 percent of offshore reserves effectively off-limits.

continue reading…

Global warming is forefront as an issue.  So is oil, alternative energy and fat people.  I still have the brick mark on my forehead where this one hit me.  It is just so easy to understand and resolve.

We start out with “We The People” to the understanding that our forefathers were in actuallity talking about “we the politicians”.  This is an undeniable truth.  If it were otherwise then we the people would be able to force our elected officials into doing what WE require-not what they deem is best.  If you doubt this understanding then I believe that you need to take this to the Supreme Court for an irreputible vauge decision.  Because we the politicians know what is best for us and they do make the rules, it is time for you slackers to get in lockstep and stop your whinning.  I have the solution that will work and it comes from my liberal ways and understanding of things.

First, everyone gets a house.  One floor of at least 2000 sq.ft (for a family of four) is considered the subsistance floor.  There will be exercycles mounted with alternator units to run the household.  100 sq ft will be dedicated to the storage batteries with a reserve of 5 hours (we don’t want you getting lazy).  The batteries and exercycles will power YOUR unit (unless there is an emergency of which time all energy will go to power the grid).  So now if you want heat above 60 degrees or air conditioning below 85 degrees, get off your fatass and get to work.  It is now on you.  Did I say fatass?  Oh but not for long.  Since you can’t control your eating habits and you want your refrigerator to keep your food chilled, you will HAVE to work for it.  And the pounds will melt away.  The batteries will be made of an ecofriendly substance so that at the end of their lifespan, they may either be buried in the yard (if you have one) or eaten.  And if eaten, the carb levels must be low and the protien levels must be high but without causing GAS!  This is most important!  No gas!

The rest of the floor will be covered with plants.  No pets.  Some of you (especially Asians) will think about eating your pets and that creates pounds and gas.  We can’t abide by that. You may choose what plants you want but don’t be foolish because these plants are what you will subsist on as far as intake.  They will also scrub off your co2 emissions and give you life maintaining oxygen.  We will supply water at a nominal price to bath (water must be used 3 times then poured onto plants), drink and water plants.  You can grow plants according to NORML  but you cannot give/sell those plants to others.  After all, what would happen if we had an emergency and need everyone on the grid, hum?

I know.  Some of you only have single floor homes.  Too bad.  You should have thought of the country’s needs long before you bought, you self-centered individual.

The only thing that can be nuclear is the Alka-Seltzer in your water glass.  Wind is okay and sun is also.  Matter of fact the sun is your new best friend.  It will handle your transportation needs.  Commercial planes will go by the wayside.  They don’t work on solar (but if you invented a way, we will think about bringing them back and giving you unlimited flights-excluding blackout periods of course-for one full year) and we don’t want anymore pollution in the atmosphere.  After all, “if man was meant to fly…”.  Military aircraft will use only ethonal and when the land on aircraft carriers, they will no longer be able to dump fuel to lighten the plane.  We’re sorry if you crash and die but we don’t want the environment polluted and we don’t want to waste good fuel.  And if we lose a plane, well, we don’t like the military anyway.  It gives the rest of the world the impression that we are a hostile people.

Farming will be for the soul purpose of plant growth for fuel-no food stock.  What the fatcats (they are the ONLY ones to remain obese) don’t use in their vehicles, we will sell to support our backrupt country.  Not even the grid will use fuel.  That is why we have citizens.  Professional sports will disappear and professional atheletes will use that energy for the grid.  They will be the only ones compensated for the making of energy-all others will either live or die by it.  Oh, and there will be open borders so that we can support the grids industry (read fatcats vacation homes, personal homes and concubine abodes as well as the lighting for the “general good”) because there will enevitibly be an increase of heartattack related deaths but once we get those whimps out of the way, the grid should stabilize and everyone will be skinny but healthy.

Anything not covered will be figured out later.  “Ask not what your country can do for you..” are the greastest words ever spoken and we mean to have you abide by them.  This has been thoughtout to the end of my nose so it is a proven way to proceed.  We will have a happy, healthy and energy producing country in spite of what you may think or feel.  It is what is necessary.  Get on board and start enjoying life again!

George Bush said ‘Drill!‘ and the price of crude dropped over nine dollars in a single day, and it continues to fall.   The market knows that the U.S. has huge, untapped energy reserves. The United States has more than three times the amount of Oil the Saudi Arabians do. Due to a masochistic energy policy brought on by environmental extremists we are now importing 70% of our oil from people who hate us, and indirectly funding our foes in the war against Islamic Extremism. The more energy independent we become, the less money we will be putting into the pockets of those who wish to kill us and end our way of life.

The need for energy in the long term will require a shift in technology.   We need to move away from our dependence on fossil fuels.  The most viable short-and-mid-term avenue currently is nuclear power. The other commonly discussed alternatives are wind and solar power.  These have yet to demonstrate economic viability, but should be pursued none the less.  Government funding of research for these and other ideas such as Algae_Fuels is a must.  With our economy growing, and our population expanding we will need more energy.  Conservation alone will not be able to cover the increase in energy needs. Therefore, until the future alternatives are found, we must make full use of our natural resources.

We are the only nation in the world with access to known oil deposits on our own land or off our shores that essentially refuses to tap those resources.

Giving our own people access to these resources should not be a political football.  However the Democrat party is seeking to further politicize the energy debate by couching it as a class warfare issue and giveaways to the wealthy.

Currently it is easier for the Chinese to drill in the Gulf of Mexico than it is for any American Oil company; this is ridiculous.

While Washington dithers over exploiting oil and gas reserves off the coast of Florida, China has seized the opportunity to gobble up these deposits, which run throughout Latin America, the Caribbean and along the U.S. Gulf coast.

…

There are new reports out circulating that Chinese firms are planning to slant drill off the Cuban coast near the Florida Straits, tapping into U.S. oil reserves that are estimated at 4.6 billion to 9.3 billion barrels. This compares with 4 billion to 10 billion barrels believed to be beneath the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge

Nancy Pelosi is more worried about Exxon being able to drill than she is about the Chinese pirating our very own oil reserves.  From an article in the Herald Tribune …

“We have chosen to lock up our resources and stand by to be spectators while these two come in and benefit from things right in our own backyard”

The Cuban regime at least is prospering from our policies.  Neat trick, someone finally figured out how to bring a profit to Castro’s Caribbean gulag.

Obama’s idea to fix our energy woes is to, ‘Implement an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions‘.  Great!! The patient is bleeding, Dr Barak’s brilliant idea is to apply leaches.  The Democrats in both houses of Congress have proposed a windfall profits tax, considering what a raging success this was under James Carter, I am surprised they are even considering it.  With help like this we should be on our way to the guilt-free third-world economy the left has always wanted.

The Democrat party is currently against drilling in ANWR, the Atlantic Coast, the Pacific Coast the Gulf Coast, the Rocky Mountains and Montana.  So what is left?  With the other alternatives even more economically unsound than $140/barrel oil, we need to tap into this reservoir now, while we still have an economy to save.  Waiting for the alternatives which are at least 30 years away from becoming available will sentence our children and grandchildren to contending with a crippled economy.

Any economy is dependent upon energy.  Currently our energy comes primarily in the form of fossil fuels (oil, coal, natural gas).  These fuels have made modern life possible. Without them we would still be huddling in the winter around wood fires, in cramped quarters.  In the summer we will perspire copiously and experience mosquito bites in our bedrooms as we try to sleep.  This life style romantically is also known as medieval.  The lifespan of an individual is 30 to 40 years under this technological regimen.  For those who wish to return to this level of existence please vote Democrat.  Their policies are putting us on a trajectory back to the past.

Our energy policy over the past 30 plus years has been abysmal. We have gone from having a robust electrical grid that had margin in the system to allow it to meet summer peaks in demand, to a strained system with rolling brown-outs in California. We have been in a state of paralysis due to competing economic, ideological and political interests, and the NIMBY mindset. Having oil from overseas coming in at $27 per barrel also made it easy to do nothing.

In a previous post I began to lay out some of the energy issues confronting our country, and how nuclear power is the most logical choice as an alternative to oil. In this article I expand on the feasibility of deploying nuclear power, its current availability, and some of the safety concerns. The hopelessness of attempting to use other alternatives such as wind, given the current state of that technology, is also touched upon.

Oil is now over $140 per barrel; much of it going to countries whose regimes are openly hostile. The economy is being impacted negatively by the price of oil and its corresponding $500B per year drag on the economy. It will only get worse. Not planning for this day to come is an epic failure on the part of our political leadership from both parties. For the past three decades, this threat has been on the horizon. The collective lack of vision, cowardice, and pandering to partisan supporters has brought us to this predicament. The failure is tragic, because it was ever so preventable.

Currently the United States has 104 Nuclear Power Plants. These power plants provide us with 97.4GW of electricity, which is ~19% of all electrical power generation in the country. These power plants are operating in 31 states, in 65 locations. There are 27 shutdown reactors, many of which can be brought back on line with some overhaul. In 1972 the United States had 42 commercial reactors, the number of reactors rose steadily to 96 by 1985. The number of reactors peaked at 112 in 1990, with a peak in percentage electrical production of 21% occurring in 2001. The French currently get 78% of their electrical power from nuclear reactors.

For us to achieve the same level of independence from fossil fuels we would need to build over 250 new reactors. McCain proposes 45 new reactors, which can be charitably characterized as a ‘good start‘. Obama proposes no new nuclear power generation, this defies charitable characterization. According to Westinghouse, the time it takes to bring a modern class reactor on line is 3 to 5 years.

The AP1000 design saves money and time with an accelerated construction time period of approximately 36 months, from the pouring of first concrete to the loading of fuel.

The 5 year number is intentionally pessimistic so as to account for site preparation etc. Furthermore, if we start building 45 let alone 250 such plants the construction time is likely to decrease. When compared to the most optimistic estimates as to when the other zero emission powers sources will come on line this 3 to 5 year wait appears wildly optimistic; for other alternative energy sources such as solar, wind or bio-diesel will start to produce electricity on this scale in some 30 years, maybe. Can we afford to bank our nations future on such whimsy?

The peak number of plants we had under construction was 5 per year from 1980 to 1985. The nuclear industry outside the U.S. has not been idle, there are many modern designs to choose from, all of which are far safer than the infamous TMI design (whose safety systems were successful in stopping the problem from escalating). If we where to bring 5 or more new reactors on line for the next 20 to 40 years we could retire the use of fossil fuels. Such a pace is not beyond the industry’s capacity, and, if commitment is made to pursue this known technology, the rate of plant construction can be greatly increased over time.

Our need for energy will increase over the coming years. According to the DOE, the number of households will increase by over 25% by 2030. This increase will require the production of electricity in the US to accelerate. Considering that US production has stagnated over the past decades, this is a worrisome prospect. We are on our way to a having third world energy grid if we do not take decisive action now.

FORECASTS INDICATE that the U.S. will need about 335 billion W of new generating capacity by 2025, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy, Science & Technology.

That is a huge increase in needed capacity. To ensure we meet this need, we must turn to a source that can cover the current shortfall and expand on an industrial scale to meet the growing future needs. Conservation alone will not meet our needs; wind power, typified by 2MW wind mills that require 1200 such wind mills to generate as much electricity as a single modern 1GW nuclear plant, will never meet our needs.

To match nuclear power, wind power would need to build 240,000 2MW windmills. At three months per windmill, it will be a century before wind power could meet our needs in 2025. When the forecast calls then for an increase of some 50 new nuclear reactors just to maintain the current 20% of electrical production, how many more fossil fuel based plants does this then indicate? If we choose to ignore the current inadequacy of other alternative power how much economic misery will this bring?

Generation III and IV Nuclear reactor designs are far and away safer than their predecessors and are thereby building on a very solid foundation. The generation II reactors have an excellent safety record.

Generation III systems were developed in the 1990s and feature enhanced safety systems. They are more economical to build, operate, and maintain than the previous generation …

… a vast amount of effort is going into enhancing the safety of advanced generation III+ reactor designs that are now evolving and the revolutionary generation IV technologies. They all incorporate what is known as passive safety systems.

The current coal fired plants put more Thorium and other radioactive debris into the atmosphere as part of their typical operation than will be generated and contained by a nuclear power plant. Japan is in the most seismically active regions of the world, and they have made the decision to develop this for power. Europe has also made the decision to press ahead despite the fact that they are far more densely populated than we are.

We are approaching a crossroads where we need to make some hard choices. Nothing is guaranteed in life, that is why the founders sought to protect our right to pursue happiness, note they did not guarantee happiness, just its pursuit; to continue to be paralyzed by ignorance, fear and the hope that the problem will just go away will lead to an economic collapse. Along the way to this collapse, by not choosing, we then do nothing and watch our wealth continue to line the pockets of those who hate us via the oil we will then buy and use.

The alternative is that we, like other first world nations, begin the long overdue path to becoming free of these parasites. Considering that the during last oil embargo we imported 30% of our oil, imagine the impact of such an embargo now — we import 60% of our oil today. At the very least, nuclear power can buy us the time to develop a power source that would satisfy even the most militant environmentalist.

That’s right.  It even hits those that distribute to the public hard in the wallet.  This is his answer.  Although I don’t think that it is cost effective yet and the distance to time ratio is a little lop-sided, the view is incredible! Like minds think alike and this is where the idea showed first fruition!

The Democrats have told us that ANWR is off limits because the size of the 16 billion barrel deposit is too small to risk the absolute purity of the barren, frozen waste up there. Considering that existing pipelines have NOT changed the caribou migration patterns nor have they had any appreciable effect on the herd size one can only wonder what the fuss is all about. The track record of these pipelines is excellent; yet the the claim of the environmental activists is that the opening of ANWR would destroy the wilderness. The likes of Green Peace, and other environmental activists along with OPEC lobbyists have found the Democrats in congress eager to do their bidding and keep ANWR closed.

When one takes into account the shale oil reserves in the Rockies, the United States has more than three times the amount of oil than the Saudi Arabians.

The United States has an oil reserve at least three times that of Saudi Arabia locked in oil-shale deposits beneath federal land in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, according to a study released yesterday.

One would imagine that this resource is big enough to bother with. Though the study was recently released the US has known of this reserve for some time.

The vast extent of U.S. oil shale resources, amounting to more than 2 trillion barrels, has been known for a century. In 1912, the President, by Executive Order, established the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves.

This resource is enough oil to last us to the next Century. The only trouble with this potential resource is that the Democrat controlled congress does not want to make it accessible to development. They and their masters in the Green lobby would prefer to see us paying $4 dollars or more at the pump.

We need a new energy source now. Windmills are for Don Quixote to tilt at, and are not meant for industrial energy production. The Indian and Chinese economies are growing fast. This economic growth has greatly improved the lot of the average Indian and Chinaman, but, these same folks are now competing with us for ALL the worlds resources. The time has come to increase the size of the pie. With Al Gore increasing his electric bill by 10%, we need to act fast.

Shell Oil Corp has a new idea for the extraction of oil from shale that potentially has a lower environmental impact than traditional methods. This new method is called the en situ extraction process. Since this is a new approach, there are risks in both development costs and schedule. As the method is new, the claim that this will be a more ecologically friendly approach remains to be proven.

The other trouble with this potential bonanza of energy is that our Democrat lead congress has recently voted to stop development of this resource.

The Senate Appropriations Committee today narrowly defeated Sen. Wayne Allard’s attempt to end a moratorium related to oil shale development in Colorado.

Apparently the need for oil is not great enough yet. We need to suffer, when the people start giving up their cars, living without heat or air conditioning then our betters in Green Peace and the Democrat party might be satisfied.

We have an energy crisis in the making; the world wide demand for oil is growing. Actually it has doubled every 20 years for the past 80. We are sending money to dictators and religious fanatics who hate us, in short we are financing our enemies. This is hubris on a grand scale. The Democrats in congress are in the pockets of special interest groups like ELF, PETA, The Sierra Club and Green Peace.

The only domestic sources of energy currently available for expansion are coal and natural gas. Coal is not an energy source known for being ecologically friendly, so why are we being forced into a corner to use it? Natural gas production cannot make up the need for more energy alone and foreign oil is getting more and more expensive.

Shale oil was not economically viable when oil was below $35 a barrel; at $100 a barrel we need to invest in this resource and clear the way for this to get to market. It will take time, so the longer we wait the worse our economic situation will get.

The price of gas should force us to invest in alternative energy sources on economic grounds alone. The fact that much of the world’s readily available oil supply is in the hands of would be dictators like Chavez, or established dictators like the Saudi’s or outright religious lunatics like the Mullahs of Iran should force us to invest in alternative sources of energy, on security grounds alone. The fact that the much of the Western World (Britain, Germany, France Japan) already have adopted nuclear energy as that alternative should give us pause as to why we have not. That a ‘carbon-free’ source of energy would improve air quality by reducing emission particulates, ozone and carbon monoxide is established fact. The impact of carbon dioxide emission leading to Global Warming, while not a proven fact, is something to consider. If we reduce our carbon footprint, without buying carbon credits, Al Gore will go broke; such a laudable goal is worthy of a Manhattan Project.

Nuclear power is the only alternative that is anywhere near cost effective. The rest of the current crop of alternatives are economic losers. Research and development will be required on a massive scale for many of these ideas. Solar and geothermal power are untested in the market on an industrial scale. Wind power has been tried in CA and required huge capital expenditure for little energy, and is economically uncompetitive; even with $100+ per barrel oil, it will require a technological breakthrough to become viable. These lines of development effort have all three of the economic millstones around their necks: high-cost, high-risk and indeterminate schedule. All of these economic millstones make the alternative energy schemes attractive to the Democrats and their friends in ELF, Green Peace and the Sierra Club.

Nuclear power is a proven source of power that is used world wide. Nuclear power has been used for years. Proven nuclear power plant designs exist. In short, in comparison to the other alternatives nuclear power is low cost, low risk, and critically, has a determinant schedule. In a market that has not been politically skewed, as ours is, this power source would not be confined to less than ten percent of the energy production. This skewing is the result of lobbying by the likes of Green Peace and pandering by the likes of the Democrats.

In France and Japan nuclear energy accounts for the majority of the electrical energy production. Britain, Germany and Scandinavia are not far behind. All of these countries (and regions) are far more heavily populated than the United States. Why are we waiting? These countries’ nuclear programs, along with our current aging nuclear power plants, have provided us with proven, safe, and reliable field-tested designs. These countries are not as heavily impacted by the current energy crisis as we are because they have a nuclear cushion. Why are we allowing our economy to be wreaked?

What are we waiting for? We only lack the political will to overcome and defeat the Sierra Club, Green Peace and ELF and other members of the environmentalist/anti-humanist lobby. We also need to over come the coal and oil lobbies that work behind the scenes with the enviro-whackos. This is the irony, the self anointed champions of the environment are actually harming it due to their ignorance and fear. Ignorance and fear have lead to many stupid and evil outcomes in the past, this is one problem that has an ‘on-the-shelf’ solution, need we wait for things to get worse?