Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by P.G. on November 3, 2008 at 6:29

"Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it"

Where will mineral owners stand if energy becomes a crisis (due to Obama's policies) and he decides to nationalize our energy industries?

Obama predicts his policies will drive up the prices of utilities but that would be because of his forced costs on the energy producers. I doubt if higher prices, caused by that, would mean more drilling or higher royalties, huh?

Permalink Reply by Grillin' - MmmMmm on November 3, 2008 at 7:21

This surprises you?? Has anyone listened to anything this guy says? Unfortunately, there appears to be 50%+ who don't understand or won't listen to what he says. He said he wants to "bankrupt" the coal companies...yet the stupid coal miners union supports him! I guess they think the union will get them a job when the coal mining company is bankrupt! But this is what happens when the uneducated and untaxed get to vote themselves Christmas presents paid for by us!

Permalink Reply by Martin on November 3, 2008 at 9:50

Folks --
OK -- Just what would you do? Or do you think climate warming is a nonevent? The party is over folks! The fossil fuel punch bowl is shutting down! We are fortunate that NG happens to be the lowest CO2 producer of the fossil fuels on a per Btu basis -- so it will still be in high demand -- with a strong potential for vehicle use.

Permalink Reply by ALongview on November 3, 2008 at 10:38

There is virtually no infrastructure for any of the alternative technologies that are available and no money to pay them with the size of the debt that this nation carries. You can't tax the bankrupt. Current "cleaner" energies are the only viable option we have that will power the nation AND lower pollution.

Permalink Reply by Martin on November 6, 2008 at 15:34

I suspect that if we can scare up 700 billion to save the finance industry, we can produce a similar amount for improving the electric grid ... which is the only infrastructure needed for wind and solar power. Other than the actual production plants: turbines, solar cells or solar powered steam plants. Which aren't really infrastructure. Forget hydrogen --too expensive to produce, and it does nasty things to steel that would be used in pipe lines.

Permalink Reply by P.G. on November 3, 2008 at 11:33

Yes!
That's what common sense would be!
Apparently though, common sense doesn't have much to do with it!

Man's contribution of CO2 to the atmosphere doesn't amount to a bean fart in the whole scheme of things! The whole world is constantly spewing CO2! Plants love it! I heard some green house
operations increase CO2 levels to get lush growth!
But I know! Some government funded scientists insist man is the only cause of global warming!

One thing is for certain, politicians are certainly going to use CO2 as an excuse to get you to pay them money! And guess what? The planet is still going to keep getting warmer if that is the cycle we are currently in!
NG, the cleanest of the fossil fuels, still emits CO2 when it's burned and Obama will hit them with that carbon tax, which of course, will be passed along to you and me!
So much for him swearing he won't raise our taxes, huh?

Permalink Reply by ALongview on November 3, 2008 at 12:56

P.G. You are right about those taxes, they are coming at us like a freight train. It isn't just income taxes or capital gains either, just look at all the embedded taxes people pay every day without even knowing it. There are many ways for the Government to pick your pockets.

Permalink Reply by Raybies on November 8, 2008 at 3:32

Sure you can pump in additional CO2 to increase production. A greenhouse could also increase ozone levels to increase production. That doesn't necessarily make it a good thing to do.

The difference between mankind produced CO2 and CO2 produced by the planet, the planet's CO2 was in balance. This CO2 produced was then used in the breakdown of rock, by plant matter, absorbed into the ocean (in cool climates), etc. The CO2 produced by humans has "overloaded" the system, if you will.

Imagine a scale that is more or less balanced. It sways to one side or the other by 1% or less, but never topples. Now add 5% more mass to the left side of the scale. The scale will usually topple. Welcome to mankind's impact on the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere.

Carbon sinks (natural reactions that remove CO2 from the atmosphere, some were stated previously) cannot compensate for this additional 5%, as a result the atmosphere is now carrying a burden. This burden will only increase exponentially as more sinks (deforestation mainly, but a rising ocean surface temperature is also contributing) are destroyed and the percentage of increase is directly related to industrialization.

Essentially humans are attacking both ends of the scale and making it tip faster and faster. Adding to one side, and lessening the other.


Personally, my family pays more per kilowatt in order to have the energy come from a renewable resource. If everyone volunteered to do this, it would be a good start to reducing the problem AND not having higher taxes.

Permalink Reply by Jack B2 on November 3, 2008 at 12:33

Climate warming is an inevitable event or the gas under our feet would not be there in the first place. We may be contributing the the problem, but those that believe that they can reverse the natural evolution of the planet short on nuclear winter is fool hearty at best. What is able to be done is make trillions of dollars of the inhabitnats on the planet from a natual event in the futile effort. It is all about the money, if it was not they would not tax it in the first place. Just my opine.

Permalink Reply by Rick on November 3, 2008 at 13:16

On this issue, Obama is doing the same thing he has done on every other "hot item" topic, he's saying whatever he thinks liberals and enviromentalist want to hear to get a vote. Having worked in the electric utility business for over 20 years, I can assure everyone concerned that if there were a good, viable, cost effective way to produce and deliver the huge amounts of electric power needed each summer, the electric companies would be doing it. What most people, voters, customers and Obama's don't take into account is that the power industry is regulated by the government and in most states in the US they are limited to a certain percentage of profits, in LA it was 12% the last time I checked.

These companies are under far more scrutiny than most companies especially O&G and other big money businesses, every thing that goes on at a power plant is monitored by some arm of the state and federal government. If you owned a business and the government forced you to pay back any profit you earned over 12%, how likely do you think it would be that you would want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars retrofitting pollution control systems. These companies hands and minds are tied by the things the government already makes them do and Obama wants to tighten things and make it even worse.

I don't have the figures at hand but if my memory is right, over 70% of all the electricity in America comes from coal and natural gas. If anyone remembers the power outages during the hurricanes then multiply that by several million people and that is what we will have when they start shutting down coal and gas units. Go back in history and find the last time a nuclear unit was built in the US. The government has regulated them to the point that you can't get one permitted for construction and if you could, they take from 8-12 years to build because of all the FERC and NERC and NRC and other federal regulations, so if the great Obama shuts down coal, what is the nation going to do for power while we wait 10 years for permits and construction. Believe me, there would already be move nuclear units if it weren't for the same kind of government regulations Obama is suggesting inplementing on coal.

America, we better wake up, it may be too late to prevent an Obama election but if these kinds of rules are put into effect, it doesn't matter if you are Democrat or Republican or whatever; whether you're for McCain or Obama, or black, white, yellow or green; you--we, will be negatively affected by these kinds of regulations. Just try turning off your power for a couple of days, then extend that to a couple of weeks and imagine businesses and hospitals and churchs and schools and every other organinzation trying to operate without power or share what limited power there is on a "rolling black out" basis. Then tell me that this won't affect everyone, from the innocent young to the elderly in hospitals and nursing homes.
I know some might not agree with this and it's fine to have your opinion; I agree that we need alternate sources of electric power and there are companies that are focusing on that option 24 hrs a day. But if you feel there are alot of great, efficient, enviromentally safe ways to produce MILLIONS of megawatts each hour, please, by all means, step up and let all the engineers and designers know your plan, I am sure they would be more than willing to pay a huge, handsome bonus for your knowledge, because so far everything they are doing can't be funded on 12% returns or is shot down by idiots like Obama and his other ultra liberal friends like, Polosi, Reed, and Gay Franks.

Permalink Reply by Martin on November 6, 2008 at 15:41

Please note that the electrical utilities are motivated by just one thing: profit. Not what's good for the environment. You increase the cost to the utilities for dumping Co2 and other climate changing byproducts into the atmosphere and they'll find an alternative very quickly. That's president Obama, friend.....