God Save America

By Alan Caruba

In early March, President Bush, addressing an International Renewable Energy Conference, was widely quoted saying that the United States has to “get off oil.” Earlier he had said that America was “addicted” to oil. These are such huge lies one wonders why he is telling them, unless perhaps he has quietly been investing in ethanol production.

For the record, “renewable” energy refers to solar and wind energy for electricity, and biofuels for transportation. None of these options can ever be expected to provide the electric energy America uses, nor will biofuels ever replace oil for transportation.

In one of the most brilliant analysis of America’s dependency on oil, “Gusher of Lies”, by Robert Bryce, the author spells out the realities of a world in which, not just the United States, but all nations are going to be importing oil for as long as crude can be pumped from places around the world that include the Middle East, Russia, Africa, South America, and the deep ocean waters.

The problem is not a lack of known reserves of oil. The problem is the way the lack of knowledge by the consuming public is being exploited.

Yes, the price of a barrel of oil has reached and surpassed $107, but that price is subject to a myriad of factors that have nothing to do with scarcity. As OPEC president, Chakib Khelil, told reporters recently, “There is sufficient supply. There’s plenty of oil there.”  He’s telling the truth. One factor is the falling value of the U.S. dollar. Oil that is priced in Euros has not risen nearly as much.

“Energy independence,” says Bryce, “is hogwash. From nearly any standpoint—economic, military, political, or environmental—energy independence makes no sense. Worse yet, the inane obsession with the idea of energy independence is preventing the U.S. from having an honest and effective discussion about the energy challenges it now faces.”

Nowhere is this more obvious in the campaigns of the Democrat and Republican candidates. John McCain, the GOP nominee, is committed to the global warming hoax that is based on the lie that the use of all forms of energy is contributing “greenhouse gas” emissions at such a rate the Earth is warming dramatically. It isn’t. There isn’t a scintilla of scientific data to demonstrate this. It has warmed about one degree Fahrenheit—naturally—since the end of the mini-ice age in 1850.

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By Alan Caruba

The provision of electrical power nationwide has become the chosen battleground for environmental groups laboring night and day to insure there will not be enough of it to meet our needs.

The U.S. Department of Energy predicts that overall energy demand will grow by 45% between now and 2030.

The effort to insure Americans will not have enough electricity is deadly serious. Take, for example, the exultant news release (Jan 17) from the Rainforest Action Network, “Proposed Coal Plants Losing Steam” celebrating “59 coal plants cancelled or shelved in 2007.”

Since coal-fired utilities provide over 50 percent of the electricity generated in America, the need for additional plants would seem obvious. A May 2007 Business Week article about coal noted that, “Today, making electricity from coal can cost half as much as using cleaner-burning natural gas.” Half as much at the plant translates to half as much in the monthly energy bill to homeowners and others.

The Greens, however, using the utterly bogus “global warming” hoax and asserting the false notion that carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions will transform the climate of the earth, are successfully denying Americans electrical power.

There is no global warming and CO2 constitutes about 0.038% if the earth’s atmosphere. In past eras there was a lot more CO2 and the result was the lush vegetation that kept a lot of dinosaurs munching away for several million years.

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By Alan Caruba

Let’s understand a simple fact. You cannot squeeze any more energy out of a gallon of gasoline than already exists. If you mix it with an additive which itself provides less energy, what you get is less energy.

So, when Congress passed a so-called energy bill in mid-December that demanded more “fuel efficiency” by a measure of forty percent, requiring that automobiles be built to get 35 miles per gallon in 2020 as opposed to the former mandate of 25 mpg, it was essentially telling American auto makers to start making cars out of paper mache or something so lightweight that the driver and passengers will have to be extracted from a crash with a sponge.

Then, too, there’s a strange notion that 300 million Americans, some of whom have been known to drive cars and trucks, are somehow going to be able to “conserve” their way to “energy independence.” You can’t save or conserve the energy in a gallon of gasoline or any other fuel. You either use it or you don’t. If you don’t use it, you better find another way to get to work or anywhere else.

Democrat Majority Leader, Steny Hoyer of Maryland, said the energy bill will cut demand for foreign oil and promote non-fossil fuels that will reduce greenhouse gases linked to global warming. This is worse than just being stupid, this is dangerous nonsense because (1) there is no global warming and (2) one way to reduce the importation of foreign oil is to encourage the discovery, extraction, and refining of the oil sources that are known to exist in and offshore America.

Does the new “energy bill” permit for drilling and extraction of the millions, perhaps billions, of barrels of oil in Alaska’s ANWR? No. Does the new bill encourage the exploration for oil and natural gas off the nation’s continental shelf on our vast east and west coasts? No. Did it give the oil companies any tax breaks to build the billion-dollar refineries the nation needs? No. Did it encourage the building of nuclear plants? No.

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By Alan Caruba

There is an effort in Congress—mostly thanks to the Democrat leadership—to strangle the energy baby in the cradle.

Why they and some addled Republicans would want to do this defies an answer beyond the hatred environmentalists have for all forms of energy other than windmills, solar panels, and crops which should be eaten instead of poured into one’s gas tank.

Let’s start by understanding there are now three hundred million Americans. More people increase the need for more electricity. America currently must generate 15.43 trillion kilowatts of electricity and is in immediate need of more.

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By Alan Caruba

The midterm elections were held on November 7^th and by November 10^th the Associated Press reported that California Senator Barbara Boxer was promising “major policy shifts on global warming, air quality and toxic-waste cleanup as she prepares to lead the U.S. Senate’s environmental committee.”

“Time is running out,” said Sen. Boxer about global warming “and we need to move forward on this,” during a conference call with reporters. Noticeably missing from her Chicken Little pronouncement was any scientific evidence that (1) there actually is a global warming threat and (2) why any of the draconian proposals to deal with it would have the slightest effect.

“Boxer said she intends to introduce legislation to curb greenhouse gases, strengthen environmental laws regarding public health and hold oversight hearings on federal plans to clean up Superfund hazardous waste sites across the country.”

I call this the “Californication” of the economy because Sen. Boxer would model federal legislation on a new California law that imposed the first statewide limit on greenhouse gases, seeking to cut that State’s emissions by 25 percent in an effort to return them to 1990 levels by 2020.

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By Alan Caruba

In late October I attended a luncheon briefing in New York sponsored by the Middle East Forum. The speaker was R. James Woolsey, former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and currently a vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton. The room was filled with men who represent a class of citizenry known as “influential.” Woolsey’s topic was “Energy Alternatives and the War on Terror.”

Normally, I give men like Woolsey a lot of respect because they’ve earned it. However, it didn’t take long before I began to hear views that made me begin to question, not just the wisdom of what Woolsey was saying, but why he was saying it.

“The way strategically over the long run to weaken the enemies of Israel, such as Ahmadinejad, is to weaken the role of oil,” said Woolsey. “Oil makes it harder to avoid genocide in Darfur because the Sudanese have a deal with China, and it makes it harder to deal with Iran, because China and Iran have an oil deal.”

Say what? Weaken the role of oil? Genocide in Darfur has something to do with China? Iran will not pursue its lunatic Islamic apocalypse because it has an oil deal with China?

A lot of what Woolsey told the attendees is fairly common knowledge. He noted that natural events such as hurricanes can affect the amount of oil available and that terrorism—he called it “malevolent interference”—could provoke a war that would interrupt the flow of oil out of the Middle East.

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When you fill up at any CITGO gas station, you are filling the coffers of Venezuela's Socialist President Chavez. He is the sole owner of CITGO, and has pledge to bring down and destroy the United States. He has strong allies with Iran and Communist Cuba and had an alliance with Saddam Hussein.

From his latest televised speech:

In some of his strongest recent comments aimed at Washington, Chavez condemned the Bush administration and said his audience should work toward ending U.S. dominance.

“Enough already with the imperialist aggression!” Chavez said, listing countries from Panama to Iraq where the U.S. military has intervened. “Down with the U.S. empire! It must be said, in the entire world: Down with the empire!” (MSNBC.MSN.com)

Chavez's rhetoric should not be taken lightly, in light that Hezbollah are now freely operating and recruiting in Venezuela.

The morning and evening news shows on ABC, CBS, and NBC haven’t been just reporting consumer discontent about higher gas prices but also actively stoking public outrage. A new study by the Media Research Center, released today, shows that the three networks combined broadcast 183 stories about rising gas prices from April 12 through May 2 yet most of these stories were geared to fueling public fears with hyperbole, no evidence and hysterical claims. Among the findings:

• The networks’ used loaded language in their promotional teases, e.g., “pain at the pump”; “skyrocketing” prices; “soaring” prices; and “sky high” prices.

• Ignoring supply and demand, many of the networks’ stories blamed “Big Oil” for higher prices and discussed “gouging” by gas companies without evidence.

• ABC showcased a woman who claimed she pawned her wedding gifts for gas money.

• CBS, relying on an outdated AARP poll, reported that the elderly were skipping food and medicine to pay for gas.

Research conducted by the MRC’s Free Market Project only amplifies the networks’ anti-Big Oil mindset. For instance, the Free Market Project has previously found:

• NBC and CBS repeatedly reported that gas prices are at a “record high,” but gas prices have not topped inflation-adjusted highs. Gas prices are actually lower than in 1981.

• During the Hurricane Katrina gas scare, the networks repeatedly broadcast gas prices on screen that were 75 cents per gallon higher than average.

• After the Hurricane Rita peak, gas prices fell 45 cents but CBS, NBC, and ABC continued to report on high gas prices four times as often as falling prices.

Source: Media Research Center 

To schedule an interview with MRC President Bozell or an MRC spokesperson, please contact Tim Scheiderer (x. 126) or Colleen O’Boyle (x. 122) at 703.683.5004.

by Karen Boyer 

Heavens, what are we up against?

It seems these days that we are inundated with worsening situations, not just in Canada but worldwide:  Increasing terrorism threats; Global arrests of Al Qaeda operatives; More corruption in our Canadian Liberal federal government; A backlash against Official Bilingualism resulting in Mini Official Bilingualism referendums, that incidentally are overwhelmingly against implementing Official Bilingualism in Canada’s Capitol; A new Republic of Western Canada demanding separation of the West from the Canadian Constitution.  Worrisome issues that all Canadians should be concerned about.   

Take heed, people. 

There is another pending crisis that may be even more serious than all of the above that you should be aware of.  A threat looms on the horizon that mainstream media mentions only in blips.  A crisis that will disrupt our lives and could possibly destroy our way of life.  It is time to pull our heads out of our parochial issues and understand what is happening in the rest of the world and how it will impact our lives. 

Not many of we ordinary people have been paying much attention to the corporate battles raging in the oil industry.  Yes, we have been angry as the price of gasoline has risen, going to almost a dollar a liter this spring.  In the U.S., Americans are paying more for gasoline than at any other time in history.  Perhaps it is time that we paid more attention to what is going on in the oil industry.  Especially since I have seen some predictions that the price of gasoline could go as high as $10 per gallon in the U.S.  And according to my research, they may not be wrong. 

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by Peter Kopitz

The world has been experiencing record high oil prices for a while now. Is this a temporary phenomenon, or an issue we have to adopt to in the long term? After all, the oil price was a quarter of the current price just a few years ago. Sadly, the geopolitical and technical factors pushing the price higher and higher every month seem unlikely to disappear in the short term.

One of the major factor is the growing tensions between the US and Iran. Tehran’s main weapon is not its nuclear program, it is its oil market, which is the fourth biggest in the world. Not only would any more serious tensions disrupt output, furthermore could Iran block the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic weak point for oil exports. Any disruption would be hard to swallow, given that most oil producers are already working close to capacity.

Then there is also Nigeria, which has been experiencing increased tensions in the Niger Delta, resulting in a 80% deduction of the usual standard barrel-per-day exports.

Moreover, there are refining capacity shortfalls, as no new refineries have been built in Europe and the US over the past 30 years, and existing facilities are old an desperately need repair. In addition, most oil producers are finding it hard to meet the surge in demand, and spare capacity is very limited. Further demand growth from the US and China will also not put a damper on future demand, further complicating things.

Overall, it’s anybody’s guess what will happen in the short and long term, and there is no consensus on the future trend. But one thing is certain, oil is a commodity, and it will be more and more difficult in the future to meet the high demand for this black gold; so prices are not yet set to rebound to lower levels.

Peter Kopitz is currently living in Bangkok, Thailand after graduating with Honors from the University Of Chicago Graduate School Of Business with a Masters Degree in Business Administration. He is actively involved in researching economic and political development in Thailand, focusing primarily on property development, security analysis and investment banking. Hawaii Home Loans | Honolulu Realtor | Hawaii Rentals

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