This is a news story I thought I'd never see: The US is on the verge of becoming energy independent. That outlook is gaining realistic credibility. We're that close. Every White House since Jimmah Cahtaa has put forth their plans to get us there, but their plans usually wound up as bird cage lining. This is for real.
Now here's the rub....a lot of the new oil and natural gas we're producing is via a process called hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" for short, and it's becoming more controversial by the day. A chemical goop is injected into the ground under pressure, forcing oil and gas back out. A LOT of oil and gas. But there's also a lot of scary anecdotal evidence, everything from poisoned drinking water to minor earthquakes, that is giving rise to a bunch of activists opposed to fracking.
The day may come when we can retire using nasty 'ol coal to produce our electricity (sorry Appalachia) and instead use much cleaner and cheaper natural gas. This could help revitalize our industries, making them more competitive worldwide. Think CLEAN AIR and JOBS! And more than enough gasoline to power our cars and trucks and trains and buses. We won't have to kiss up to those #$&^*&@ bastards in the Middle East any longer, either. WooHoo!
Of course, the danger is we'll become complacent and go back to driving our land yachts that get 12 mpg, and put the development of new, clean, less polluting non-hydrocarbon fuels on the back burner. Are we going to have the political will to impose enough taxes on oil and gas products in order to subsidize R&D looking for these better energy sources for the future? (I doubt it. Our politicians have never, in my lifetime at least, been known for their stiff spines.)
So do we risk it? Do we plow forward with more fricking fracking (too easy!) and hope we can overcome the pollution problems that come with it, and tell the rag hea....er....Sheiks....in the Middle East to kiss our obese American hineys, or say NO to fracking and just accept the status quo?
In my mind it's touchy, but I say go for it. What say you?
S
Showing posts with label Jimmy Carter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jimmy Carter. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Monday, December 12, 2011
Rudderless
Now for my expert opinion on this year's crop of Presidential candidates: They suck. We're screwed. Now back to you in the studio....
Oh, OK. Details....Mitt Romney is one of "them", the hedge fund/speculator/big money crowd that I generically call "The Bankers". That's his background, those are his financial backers, and that's who he'll fall in line with if he's elected. He likes to point out that in his former stint at Bains Capital he created a lot of jobs, but there's ample evidence his stable of companies were net job losers. Sorry Mitt, but we've given The Bankers free reign before, and look where that got us. No thanks.
Newt Gingrich....narcissist, hypocrite, dangerously smart, totally shameless. He, probably more than anyone else in Congress back in the 90's when he was Speaker of the House, empowered The Bankers to run crazy. He's not even well thought of in his own party. Remember the attempted coup by a sizable number of his fellow Republicans to oust him as Speaker? He tells us he's "reformed" and we can trust him to lead us out of the economic mess we're in. Hell, he couldn't even pay his own Tiffany's bill without collecting $1.6M from Freddie Mac for "consulting". *wink* Umm....no.
Ron Paul....the only one of the bunch I respect. He'll take a stand on an issue, regardless of how unpopular, and stick with it, the polls be damned. I admire that. I even like some of his positions. Most, however, are way out there. Not electable at all.
Rick Perry....where do I start? Smartly dressed, great hair, dumber than a box of rocks. He wants to bring the hammer down on "those Pakastani countries". Huh?
Santorum, Bachmann, that guy from Utah....not even on the radar.
Which leaves us Barack Obama. An incredible orator, a graduate of the Jimmy Carter School of Leadership, totally ineffective. He's much too liberal to be able to work with any Republican (as much their fault as his), and even a sizable number of Democrats keep their distance from him. Click here to see what commentator Chris Matthews, a "liberal's liberal", has to say about him. Can you imagine how ineffective he'll be in a second term as a lame duck? Ouch! Why is it an incumbent President gets an automatic pass by his own party to run unopposed?
Where are the LEADERS?
That's why today I'm announcing.... :)
S
Oh, OK. Details....Mitt Romney is one of "them", the hedge fund/speculator/big money crowd that I generically call "The Bankers". That's his background, those are his financial backers, and that's who he'll fall in line with if he's elected. He likes to point out that in his former stint at Bains Capital he created a lot of jobs, but there's ample evidence his stable of companies were net job losers. Sorry Mitt, but we've given The Bankers free reign before, and look where that got us. No thanks.
Newt Gingrich....narcissist, hypocrite, dangerously smart, totally shameless. He, probably more than anyone else in Congress back in the 90's when he was Speaker of the House, empowered The Bankers to run crazy. He's not even well thought of in his own party. Remember the attempted coup by a sizable number of his fellow Republicans to oust him as Speaker? He tells us he's "reformed" and we can trust him to lead us out of the economic mess we're in. Hell, he couldn't even pay his own Tiffany's bill without collecting $1.6M from Freddie Mac for "consulting". *wink* Umm....no.
Ron Paul....the only one of the bunch I respect. He'll take a stand on an issue, regardless of how unpopular, and stick with it, the polls be damned. I admire that. I even like some of his positions. Most, however, are way out there. Not electable at all.
Rick Perry....where do I start? Smartly dressed, great hair, dumber than a box of rocks. He wants to bring the hammer down on "those Pakastani countries". Huh?
Santorum, Bachmann, that guy from Utah....not even on the radar.
Which leaves us Barack Obama. An incredible orator, a graduate of the Jimmy Carter School of Leadership, totally ineffective. He's much too liberal to be able to work with any Republican (as much their fault as his), and even a sizable number of Democrats keep their distance from him. Click here to see what commentator Chris Matthews, a "liberal's liberal", has to say about him. Can you imagine how ineffective he'll be in a second term as a lame duck? Ouch! Why is it an incumbent President gets an automatic pass by his own party to run unopposed?
Where are the LEADERS?
That's why today I'm announcing.... :)
S
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