Drill, Baby, Drill

They told me if I voted for McCain we would have offshore drilling all over the US...

MORE:  More from the Times.  Greens can relax - if any oil companies actually try to drill anywhere, activists and enviros will file a million lawsuits, joined by amicus briefs from Eric Holder's Justice Dept.

Comments

[aircaronit]

McCain is a loser. He's also a dem. There isn't much Republican left there. He just goes along. Hopefully Palin can recover from carrying him, move on and get elected. How about two females P and VP?

Drilling is stupid. If it's near Florida they're all gonna die.

[narciso the harpoon]

But if the Chinese do it off the Cuban coast or the Russians in the Gulf of Mexico that's Ok, right

[Buford Gooch says Stupak sucks]

Isn't there a moron filter on this blog?

[Ann says Obama Sucks!]

Memories, This is to easy:

A little Streisand for the tea parties: Let the Tea Parties Sing Her Song at Every Rally. How fun to turn her song around for a good cause.

Midnight. Not a sound from the pavement.
Has the moon lost her memory. She is smiling alone.
In the lamplight the withered leaves collect at my feet
And the wind begins to moan. (wind farms)
Memory - all alone in the moonlight. I can dream of the old days (Constitution)

Life was beautiful then.
I remember the time I knew what happiness was.
Let the memory live again.
Every street lamps seems to beat a fatalistic warning. (Al Gore)
Someone mutters and a streetlamp sputters and soon it will be morning (kim)
Daylight - I must wait for the sunrise. I must think of a new life (JOM island anyone?)
And I mustn't give in.
When the dawn comes tonight will be a memory too. (2010 or forget about it)
And a new day will begin.
Burnt out ends of smoky days
the stale cold smell of morning. (All Dems)
A streetlamp dies
another night is over
another day is dawning.
Touch me - it's so easy to leave me. AU. alone with the memory
Of my days in the sun.
If you touch me you'll understand what happiness is.
Look
a new day has begun.(Our congress doesn't read the bills, nor do they want to vote on them (Slaughter House Rules)

Here is an example of: "Burnt out ends of smoky days
the stale cold smell of morning":
Democrat Maxine Waters threatens socializing oil companies

And don't miss RUSH on it: Rush Limbaugh / Maxine Waters /socializing "big oil"

[Dave (in MA)]

">http://www.hotstocked.com/articles-img/small/oil_rig_offshore.jpg">
I'll believe it when I see it.

[BR]

Great, Ann!

[bgates]

Gee, guys, I don't know if this drilling is such a good idea. I mean, I used to think that global warming was overblown, but then I read this:

UK 'Climategate' Inquiry Largely Clears Scientists

The House of Commons' Science and Technology Committee said Wednesday that they'd seen no evidence to support charges that the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit or its director, Phil Jones, had tampered with data or perverted the peer review process to exaggerate the threat of global warming
...
The e-mails appeared to show scientists berating skeptics in sometimes intensely personal attacks, discussing ways to shield their data from public records laws, and discussing ways to keep skeptics' research out of peer-reviewed journals.

See, the emails only appeared to show scientists discussing ways to keep skeptics' research out of peer-reviewed journals. There's no evidence that they tampered with the peer-review process.

the committee found no evidence of anything beyond "a blunt refusal to share data," adding that the idea that Jones was part of a conspiracy to hide evidence that weakened the case for global warming was clearly wrong.

I don't get how anybody could leap to the conclusion that he was part of a conspiracy to hide evidence just because he had secret discussions about refusing to share data.

The lawmakers said they decided to investigate due to "the serious implications for U.K. science."...Lawmakers stressed that their report — which was written after only a single day of oral testimony — did not cover all the issues and would not be as in-depth as the two other inquiries into the e-mail scandal that are still pending.

I don't think nitpicking over how many minutes they spent investigating is helpful. The important thing is that they took a day - morning and afternoon, probably - and heard from somebody - probably somebody really important - that there's no problem.

Other than global warming, I mean. That's still as big a problem as ever.

[liuying]

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[unseen]

this means the push is coming for cap and trade. this was Obama's fig leaf to get some GOP senators on board to pass his cap and trade bill. yes that's graham for short.

this is not good. The Obama admin needs new taxes to fuel his agenda. He can not sustain this red ink and still continue on his socialist takeover.

The GOP can not get sucked in here. The rigs will never get built they will be help up in court but the taxes on energy will start on day one.

[Tom Maguire]

his means the push is coming for cap and trade.

Agreed, but... will either Big Oil or some Republicans really climb aboard the Obama Express just for this? Cap and trade (or whatever Kerry and Graham contemplate as its successor) seems DOA.

[Soylent Red]

Republicans need to latch on to this and send a bill up NOW.

Do it before drilling becomes a bargaining chip for cap and trade, and Republicans are subsequently accused of blocking new drilling to derail Obama's historic and unprecedented energy policy/presidency/wonderfulness(because they are bitter partisans and racist, dontcha know).

Beat these transparent d-bags to the punch and burn them with their own words.

[Jane]

will either Big Oil or some Republicans really climb aboard the Obama Express just for this?

If they do, it's because they are just so certain this president is a man of his word. Sheesh could anyone be that stupid at this point?

[narciso the harpoon]

Well let see what the Mama Grizzly in the room, has to say about it. It seems like
a fig leaf after all the other measures

[Rick Ballard]

According to Bloomberg, Obama is offering nothing.

A federal ban on drilling off the East and West Coasts and in parts of Alaska expired in 2008. Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, a Republican, supports offshore drilling off his state and this month signed legislation on how to distribute royalty revenue from energy production.

Under Obama’s proposal the Department of the Interior will allow drilling 50 miles off the coast of Virginia and open up the rest of the outer continental shelf in the south- and mid- Atlantic to oil exploration, the official said.

In Alaska, Obama is proposing to cancel leasing in Bristol Bay, and cancel sales in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas to allow for further scientific study, the official said. A sale in Cook Inlet will proceed.

The Chukchi and Beaufort plays have the best potential for strong production.

Obama remains, as always, a liar.

[Jane]

I just have this picture of him in meetings talking about how they can pull the wool over the American people and make republicans look bad at the same time. Nothing else seems to get his attention.

[daddy]

Just came upon this ADN story on ">http://www.adn.com/2010/03/30/1206014/interior-department-set-to-release.html"> Offshore drilling in Alaska.

It's got Polar Bears and Endangered whales and comments about how Bush recklessly approved drilling which destroyed the Environment, but that now has been safely defeated by Enviro Lawyers.

A useful example to keep in mind is the tentative approval Salazar gave Shell in December to drill in the Chucki is still not approved. It was a big announcement back when Salazar supposedly said "Yes", but zero headlines since about the continuing holdups and probable denial of permission for the project. Funny how that works. I'll keep looking trying to figure it out.

My impression, is that just like the water in California shut off for the smelt, this Administration cares not a whit for the smelt or the environment. When they need votes, screw the smelt, we promise to open the water spigot if you vote our way. They will do the same thing to sucker Repub's into voting for some BS Bill that will lead to cap and trade. If the Repubs are stupid enough to believe a word out of this guys mouth they oughta' be hung.

[Like Beauty.]

Omigod, Ann, I thought that was bgates.

bgates, it's politics and it's whitewash. Graham Stringer, the chemist on the committee, understood it all. As I told Syl on a Watts Up thread about it, the Truth will our eventually. It can't help itself.
===============

[Things have gotten slippery, lately.]

Once again, I like the slip, 'our' for 'out'.
==========

[Just when we can afford it. The Puppetmaster's Gone Mad.]

They can't hammer the green junk over national security when the obvious response is drill, baby, drill, so he'll throw up this mirage and block it by the EPA or private lawsuits, meanwhile mandating and subsidizing wind and solar chimera. What a waste!
===============

[Ranger]

My take is its a desperate and cynical attempt to claw back a few points in the polls and get people talking about anything but Obamacare. I think they wanted to hold this bullet until mid summer when gas prices were spiking to show that Obama was "doing something" about it.

[narciso the harpoon]

That's about what I figured, don't drill where the oil is, and do drill where there
is practically no oil. One can't be cynical
enough with this crew

[Captain Hate]

More UNEXPECTED news:

Private payrolls unexpectedly fell by 23,000 in March, according to a report by payroll giant ADP and consultancy firm Macroeconomic Advisers.

The ADP number compares with a 50,000 gain projected by economists in a Dow Jones Newswires survey. The survey tallies only private-sector jobs, while Labor Department data to be released Friday include government workers and are expected to show gains amid hiring for the 2010 census.

[Ranger]

The way to attack this is to point out between now and November how everything Obama and the Dems propose is just like Stimulus and Obama care. The public has already decided that both of those were not what Obama and the Dems said they were. So, the response to this should be:

'This off shore drilling proposal is just like Stimulus and Obamacare. We all can now clearly see that the Stimulus bill had nothing to do with stimulating the economy, and that Obamacare had nothing to do with improving healthcare or bringing down costs. This off shore drilling proposal has nothing to do with increasing the amount of domestic energy we produce.'

[Ranger]

To further develop the argument:

'Just like the Stimulus bill actually has made the economy worse, and Obamacare tries to improve healthcare by cutting medicare, this off shore drilling proposal will reduce, rather than increase the amount of oil we can drill off of our own shores.'

[Jeff]

notice the missing name in the announcement ... ANWAR ... proven reserves, drilling on land which could commence in months ...
also notice no mention of the Western states and oil and gas drilling which is being blocked by Obama ...

[Ranger]

Ok, one minor refinement:

'Just like the Stimulus bill actually has made the economy worse by destorying 3 million more jobs than we would have lost by actually doing nothing, and Obamacare tries to improve healthcare by cutting half a trillion dollars from medicare, this off shore drilling proposal will reduce, rather than increase the amount of oil we can drill off of our own shores. When Obama and the Democrats propose something, we now know it will do exactly the opposite of what they claim it will do.'

[Pofarmer]

Captain, Rick, and others. I know this is all anecdotal-but. One of our friends is head of the local YMCA, another runs the after school program at our school. Both have said that enrollments are down considerably. I talked to the major local electrical supply shop yesterday morning, and they said they have not one new residential construction job they are supplying right now. You used to go in their between 7 and 8 in the morning and all the local contractors would be in their getting supplies for the day and drinking coffee. Last two days? Ghost town.

[narciso the harpoon]

Also look at this snippet, and wonder what's really going on

[Captain Hate]

Po, it may be "anecdotal" but it's not being countered by any positive news in the private sector that I've seen.

[Pofarmer]

there, dammit, there.

[Pofarmer]

The really scary thing, Captain? Two of the major employers in this town are mail order fluff companies. A third makes parts for the Auto industry, a lot for Toyota and Ford. If any one of those 3 go, it's gonna hurt.

[Janet the slingshot]

narciso the harpoon (love the fighting name!)

So Energy Secretary Chu says, don't wait for the 'perfect' climate bill..."Get it going.".

This from the comments - "Sounds like Something from the Comedy Channel, "Get 'er Done!"
and "Yeah, let's just pass another piece of cr@p like the health care and stimulus bills."

[narciso the harpoon]

I know, Janet, too violent right, found the name through one of those other mob name
generators, also seems appropriate

[Janet the wrist rocket]

No, not too violent at all! I really do love it. Actually, I think I'll upgrade...

[narciso the harpoon]

So no drilling in ANWR, or apparently Bering and the Chukchi, let Lukoil lap it all up

[Janet the wrist rocket]

LUN is Boehner's statement.

[I hope Maurice Strong is under house arrest.]

Another clue AGW was a scam. The Chinese are busily locking down fossil fuels worldwide.
============

[narciso the harpoon]

of course they are, Kim, they know they can't power their cities with unicorn dust, same for the Russians

[Bill in AZ]

"notice the missing name in the announcement ... ANWAR ... proven reserves, drilling on land which could commence in months ..."

Not to mention new episodes of Ice Road Truckers - even more new jobs!

[We'll be safely fossil fueled for awhile, depending upon how potent a greenhouse gas CO2 turns out to be.]

Yep, they both caught on, n. So did the Indians. Brazil and South Africa weren't uninformed. Russia has vast gas, but the others not so much. China has lots of low quality coal; they import better from Australia. Brazil now is finding offshore oil, and they have a peculiar relationship with biofuels.
===========

[Present evidence does not convincingly demonstrate an anthropogenic CO2 signal in the temperature record. Such as they are. Heh.]

Of course, I think CO2 has a small climatic effect and will protect us in the projected near term cooling by its slight warming effect and large crop fertilizing effect. CO2 will save millions if it gets cold enough.
=============

[Rick Ballard]

Pofarmer (and anyone else who cares to),

Check Little League sign-ups. The local District is reporting more than a 20% decrease across the board (fifteen leagues). The area includes everything from mill towns to pricey exurbs with participation costs running from $75 to $150. No green shoots there.

I noted yesterday that the current mode in happy, clappy business "reporting" is to cheer when a further decline beats the "projected" decline. "This is great news - we projected a 48% decline in revenue and we only had a 44% hit! We're up 10% above projections!!!"

The economy is still bleeding, albeit much more slowly. I won't call it a double dip because it never, not for one moment, actually improved. Tax deposits prove that assertion to be true.

[Hybris come his hybrid narcistic way.]

Here's the interesting thing and something I could see coming after reading an article in a Houston energy journal around June of '08. Those BRICSA countries were all still in the pool for 'reparations' over Western carbon guilt. I believe they still played the game for that advantage and the clear commercial and industrial advantages from which they'd flow, whether it were direct payments or lesser restrictions on CO2 use. But I believe they sensed or knew that the role of CO2 in climate has been badly exaggerated. It's like they could bluff high, reparations, with the knowledge that they had a winning hand with low climate sensitivity anyway.

But it all failed at Copenhagen. And look who Obama was dealing with at the end, poor fool that he is. Look who was left out, the Europeans, and why? Good question. Either they had their own doubts or Obama just stupidly ignored them as is his wont with the colonial masters. I think the latter is more likely.

Tales told and played by idiots.
============

[JM Hanes]

TM:

"Agreed, but... will either Big Oil or some Republicans really climb aboard the Obama Express just for this? "

It only takes one Republican to climb on board. This one will be a lot easier to justify than healthcare, and the "incentives" won't be nearly as controversial. Big Oil doesn't have to climb aboard, they just need to be sucked in. Are they going to resist drilling in the U.S.? After that, it's all downhill sledding.

Big (Evil) Oil will have to pay their fair share, which, of course, will reduce the deficit and underwrite green jobs. Cap & Trade, naturally, will also ensure that drilling does not contribute to global warming. Obama will confirm his commitment to environmental stewardship -- by incidentally taking the Alaska hot button off the table. This President, unlike his predecessor, has always insisted that we can develop our natural resources in a responsible way.

Best of all, even the Republican Gov. of Va. wants exploration sooner than later, because it will create jobs! As Ranger notes, the issue will come to a head during the summer price hikes (at the height of the campaign season), which the Democrats will use to advantage just as Republicans did last with Drill, Baby, Drill! Any Republicans who resist will simply prove, beyond a doubt, that they are determined to obstruct this President, regardless of the cost to the American people. All they wants to talk about is healthcare, when jobs are obviously Americans' number one priority! The bigger both domestic wrangles get, the less time to talk about national security and disastrous foreign policy.

What's not to like? Alas, this is brilliant politics for a change.

[maryrose]

Don't count out the republicans just yet on this proposed sleight of hand by Obama. They've seen this movie before and are becoming wise to the ways of Obama. Don't rule out the enviros and the left wingnuts for putting a fork of delay with lawsuits et all

[Clarice]

I think cap and trade really is dead, jmh. I think this is a p.r. sop w/o as much significance s the headlines suggest though.
I think Obam just skirted sudden death on hcr..and will concentrate asa[ on immigration "reform" while pretending to deal with the concerns of the middle as he did in his drill announcement.

[Dave (in MA)]

Clarice, I'd like to believe that C+T is dead, but weren't there premature HCR obituaries in these pages a few weeks ago?

[Charlie (Colorado)]

I have been trying to write about the Climategate story (hint: the report doesn't say what the PR says it does) and about the drilling story (hint: it doesn't mean much, especially since the Administration is pushing carbon regulation via EPA) all day, and there's always some other damn thing happening.

[Clarice]

I hate that, Chaco. Go take a break and come back to it later.

[cathyf]

yeah, except it's probably us that he needs to take a break from!

[daddy]

Here's how the competition does it:

">http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE59C0OG20091013"> China, Russia bolster ties with gas, trade deals worth 3.5 Billion Dollars, and

">http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hxwJb58LDBm9oEZuxHnCeeeTXC2g"> Russia, China sign landmark $25 Billion oil pipeline deal.

"We need to build oil and gas pipelines, increase downstream and upstream cooperation and increase cooperation in the nuclear sphere," said Zhang, head of China's State Energy Bureau."

Wouldn't you love to have an Energy Secretary who talked like that.

[Old Lurker]

Probably right, Cathy, but it would have been nice to have him around when Sylvia was pestering everybody that walked by earlier. Not many are quite as good as Charlie when twisting a knife is in order.

[daddy]

">http://www.adn.com/2010/03/31/1206793/bristol-bay-off-limits-arctic.html"> This ADN story has a nice map inset to give you an overall look at the Alaska Offshore drilling locations. (ANWR is not depicted)

You'll notice that in each area that the President has given lip service to, there are major qualifications preventing drilling.

For instance, of the Chukchi and Beaufort Sea fields it states: "New lease sales on hold pending study of environmental and oil spill risks." Then below it says: "Development could disrupt subsistence whaling; questions of ability to clean up oil spill in icy waters."

That statement right there is enough to enviro/legally lock up full permission to drill for a decade if not permanently.

Of Bristol Bay, It gets shutdown before it even opens. As to Cook Inlet, the ADN forgets to mention the current effort to make the Cook Beluga a separate species, thus locking up 3000 miles of the waterway under Endangered Species Legislation.

This following paragraph from the story leads me to know I'm correct that Shell still does not have full permission to do exploratory drilling this summer in the Chukchi. That remains simply previous lip service from Salazar:

"The decision would allow Shell, a Dutch oil giant, to drill several exploration wells in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas this summer, if the company can get federal permits it still needs and withstand legal challenges from environmental groups and several North Slope villages. The groups oppose the drilling due to concerns about how it could affect bowhead whales, polar bears and other Arctic wildlife."

[Frau Atomkraft]

Daddy, yes, yes, and more yes! We *could* have one (head of the energy bureau) and her name rhymes with "sailin'."

Russia and China? There are no Deemocrats there, even though they cozy up to the European Social Democrats. Why do we get the enviro-wimps?

[Jane says obamasucks]

Daddy,

I got a call from someone today who raved about your travelogue. He absolutely savors them - reads each one at least twice. He couldn't say enough good about them.

[narciso the harpoon]

yeah it's about what I expected, daddy, how did that SNL skit put it, 'jack and squat'.
Answer Frau, they either imprisoned or shot
them, they don't necessarily believe in democracy, but they are invested well enough
through the Siloviki and the PLA not to fall
for this marxist garbage

[JM Hanes]

Clarice:

"I think this is a p.r. sop w/o as much significance s the headlines suggest though."

While I don't think Cap & Trade has breathed its last, Obama's attempted positioning on oil doesn't look nearly as brilliant to me now as it did this morning, before I discovered that he's only opened things up to "exploration," not drilling.

[Clarice]

I think I can save a lot of time from now on by mentally inserting carets with the word "not" in every pledge he makes. I won't have to wait for soe sharpie to find the lie/catch/weasel words .

[Clarice]

daddy's travel reports are the shizzle as Iowahawk might say..

[narciso the harpoon]

You kind of knew this was going to happen, just like poking a grizzly with a stick, in the LUN

[daddy]

Thank you Malaysia Jane et al for the kind words about my road trips.

Narciso,

I was going to try to put up a pop-quiz by posting a comment from the Chinese Energy Head and then posting 1 from our Energy guy Chu, and humorously seeing if you guys could identify which is which. But wading through that Zakaria interview with Chu, I couldn't even find a sentence that even remotely sounded anything like an energy policy. It's all windmills and unicorn farts, and nothing except that we have to tax carbon, which will magically make us find new non-carbon energies which will put all Americans back to work and the rest of the world will then love us and buy our products. There is not the dimmest glimmer of reality or common sense in the entire interview. Its an economic recovery scheme based on finding the gold the Leprechauns buried under a Carbon Tax rainbow.

So I gave up trying, but I did come across this quote from Begich from yesterday, so here's a quiz for you. Which quote is from Begich?

1) "Drill Baby, Drill!"

2) "I strongly urge you (Secretary Salazar) to ensure the balance you strike in Alaska continues a strong leasing program in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas."

[Clarice]

Heh, daddy--SMOOCH.

[narciso the harpoon]

The fact that he didn't know that oil and gas were in his department's purview, or that he thinks painting roads and roofs white, were any kind of solution. I'm disinclined to trust his work at Lawrence Livermore

[hit and run]

Not that I don't love the Daddy travelogues,(because I'd put my love for them up against any one of you wannabes) but I am waiting for the one that begins..."It all started when I hit the radio...'Permission to buzz the tower'...and it all went downhill from there".

Not that I'm trying to incite an international incident or anything.

[DrJ]

Lawrence Livermore

Lawrence Berkeley. While this sounds like a distinction without a difference, there really is. LBNL was Lawrence's lab, and LLNL was Teller's. That means they pursue very different agendas. LLNL was always the bomb lab, whereas LLNL has a wider (but fruitier) technology emphasis.

Disclosure: I was employed by LBL (as it was called when dinosaurs roamed the earth) as a graduate student.

[Chu's just a silly fool for Holdren and the like. I've even heard his Nobel, elegant enough, was partly purloined.]

Inhofe nailed Chu over the origin of Arctic oil reserves. Chu thought tectonics had moved them from the tropics and Inhofe knew they'd mostly formed near there. The Dems all thought that Chu had made a fool of Inhofe, and the facts were the other way around.
=============

[narciso the harpoon]

sorry about that, Dr. J, " I was rolling" and
I didn't stop to check

[Janet]

LUN You guys have probably seen this...Congressman worried if Guam gets too overpopulated it might tip over. Really. God bless the military guy for keeping a straight face and answering respectfully. We are doomed.

[Pofarmer]

Its an economic recovery scheme based on finding the gold the Leprechauns buried under a Carbon Tax rainbow.

Funny, sad, and true, all at the same time.

[daddy]

Believe it or not Hit in about 1985 I was requested once by Tower to do a low flyby over a 4th of July Parade down the main street in Butte, Montana.

Who in the world would have thought that horses would turn out to be so skittish.

[hit and run]

Heh,Daddy.

Now I'm not saying I don't believe the Butte,MT story Daddy...but...

Can you do the same in Driggs,ID this 4th of July?

It's maybe a couple hundred miles south of Butte.

I'll say pretty please,if that would help.

[daddy]

"Congressman worried if Guam gets too overpopulated it might tip over."

Janet,

The greatest deliberative body in history strikes again.
Watched it, and still don't believe what I just saw.

Hit,

Let me think about it.
How are they fixed for Horse Pooper Scooper's in Drigg's Idaho?

[Strawman Cometh]

He got the seat of Cynthia "Wild Eye" McKinnon, so he no doubt feels the pressure to push the crazy.

[Ann says Obama Sucks!]

Its an economic recovery scheme based on finding the gold the Leprechauns buried under a Carbon Tax rainbow.

That needs to be framed, daddy!!!

======
Wow, did you guys see the tea party lady being interviewed by Letterman? She was terrific. Hot Air has the video. Letterman is such an a$$.

======

Janet:

That made me miss Rumsfield.

You know, making the congress look like fools!

"Arguments of convenience lack integrity and inevitably trip you up." - Rumsfield

[scott]

Ok - so there I was ...

I was climbing on Donner Summit on the 4th of July '95 or '96. I was pretty gripped at the time, about 15ft runout over a rusted 1/4" bolt and pretty much lost in a sea of granite when over my shoulder I see something coming.

Its a Blue Angels F-18 not 50m off and just below my left shoulder. I could see the pilots helmet and visor clearly as he nodded to me (I think I'm at around 8'000ft there?).

Then another climber pops over the top and yells down "Awesome!", see's me "Alright, Skywalker!" I knew this to be the name of a local hard route I definitely did not want to be on so I collected myself and retreated to the belay (I'm almost blind with adrenaline at this point).

I then collected my girlfriend (wife these days) and a six of bud and headed to the lake to watch the fireworks. That was enough for one day.

Still have to go back and check that one off. Good times (I later learned they fly over San Fran bay every 4th).

True story....

[DrJ]

I later learned they fly over San Fran bay every 4th

They sure do. A lot of us watch the Blue Angels on the 4th from tall ships that locate in the Bay. Lots of other ships bobbing around then too. I had no idea they flew out to Donner Summit -- a fair drive by car, but not too far by jet, I suppose.

The Blue Angels are an odd anachronism for the Bay Area, as is Fleet Week: both are decidedly militaristic, but loved by the (very liberal) Bay Area denizens none the less.

[Pofarmer]

Hmmm.

Stewart Varney is apparently reporting on Fox that Obama will sign an Executive order next week to mandate CO2 restrictions.

Can't find an actual link on Fox.

If he wants to start a hot revolution, he couldn't be doing a better job.

[daddy]

Just came across ">http://www.alaskadispatch.com/news/energy/4691-shell-still-hopes-to-drill-this-year"> this story which includes a statement by Shell Oil on their 2010 Exploratory Drilling Status in the Chukchi.

They do not yet have full permission as they are still waiting on Air Discharge permits from the EPA, but if those come through in time they believe they still can drill this summer. Will try to keep you posted on this.

[Jane]

Daddy,

Can you fly into DC on the 15th? (And if possible can you stop by MA on the way and pick me up?)

Okay the last part was a pipedream.

[cathyf]

Jane, I think you need to cram yourself into a fedex envelope to make that work. Plus change planes in Memphis!

[Pofarmer]

I'm sure this won't hurt a bit.

WASHINGTON, April 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. federal government is accelerating goals for fuel economy, moves U.S. President Barack Obama said will save 1.8 billion barrels of oil.

Obama spoke ahead of Thursday's scheduled signing of rules from the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation setting average fuel economy targets of 35.5 miles per gallon for 2016 car models.

The rules supplant a 2007 law that set a target of 35 average mpg by 2020, which itself is about 10 mpg higher than current standards.

Obama promised that over the program's term -- it covers model years 2012-16 -- "folks (will) spend a little less at the pump" as it also cuts into the United States' foreign oil dependence.

The EPA will also be putting out its first limits on greenhouse gas emissions by vehicles.

The rules signing comes about a year after Obama was joined by car makers in announcing a "historic agreement" that required manufacturers to increase average fuel efficiency by 5 percent by model year 2012 and pushed standards to 39 mpg for passenger cars and 30 mph for light trucks
and sport utility vehicles.

There are also some sort of Carbon limits involved.

I don't know about you all, but I'm thinkin my current truck might just last practically forever.

[Jane]

I think you need to cram yourself into a fedex envelope to make that work. Plus change planes in Memphis!

Only if I can fly in the cockpit.

That would be fun.

[Bill in AZ]

So there I was - wondering when Preznit Socialist's herds of volunteers hauling 1000 lbs of SAR gear in their Priuses were going to take over volunteer Search and Rescue so I could take a break once in a while. Then halfway down this wall it hit me - there was only one potential dem voter at the bottom of this canyon, and worse, he was still alive.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Believe it or not Hit in about 1985 I was requested once by Tower to do a low flyby over a 4th of July Parade down the main street in Butte, Montana.

Who in the world would have thought that horses would turn out to be so skittish.

ROFL.

Remind me to tell you about my Dad herding the cattle at round up with a Piper.

[caro]

Scott and BinAZ-- I love,love,love the climbing talk.

[Ignatz]

--I had no idea they flew out to Donner Summit--

The Hwy80-88 corridor is a very active one for west-east-west traffic, Doc.
Less so now that Mather and McClellan AFBs are gone.
Used to watch trios of C-141s doing very low level runs out my backdoor as a kid.

[Bill in AZ]

I thot this was the "so there I was" thread...
caro, here is the rest of the story.

[Clarice]

Great work, Bill. You make us all proud to know you.

[Bill in AZ]

awww shucks... just something I enjoy, and a way to pay back for all the fool things I survived in the mountains over the years.

I'll tell you what though - we're all proud of you, the fight you put up, and the fight you encourage in the rest of us.

[Clarice]

double shucks,Bill.

[scott]

Right on Bill,

For those who may not be aware, high angle rescue is mostly volunteer in the states and requires a great deal of training and dedication by groups like Bills.

Nice job snagging the dog too.

I generally try to avoid folks like you...if you know what I mean :)

[Pagar]

Amazing pictures of an amazing rescue, Bill.

[Bill in AZ]

heh - I've successfully avoided folks like me too :)

[daddy]

Bill,

That is great stuff. By any chance is that Tonto Canyon you're doing the rescue at near ">http://www.jdburgessonline.com/arizona/images/tonto.jpg"> this old Tonto Anasazi dwelling?

It was the only old Indian dwelling I was aware of which 15 years back you could still walk up into and go though the rooms. Amazing scenery. And mentioning that gets me thinking about which bit of man-made CO2 Global Warming back in 11th Century Anasazi days was responsible for the Climate change that supposedly caused them to abandon all their settlements.

Perhaps there was an Anasazi LaCrosse stick before their was an AGW Hockey stick.

Either that, or Hopi and Change?

[Bill in AZ]

Box Canyon is on Christopher Creek, about 50 miles north of Tonto National Monument. It's a popular place in the summer, lots of falls and pools (when the water isn't running so high and dangerous). We haul a few folks out of there every year. This mission was easy, maybe 3 hours total from callout. One last year was over 8 hours, Another 1/2 mile down the canyon, where we had to do multiple haul and lowering setups. We can't get a helicopter anywhere in there for a long or short haul because of the walls and unpredictable winds.

This area illustrates the stupidity of the globull warming nonsense. 900 years ago, everyone left for lack of water. By tree ring analysis (my brother is a forester) we were in the same conditions during the last part of the 1900's. In my lifetime, I have seen springs dry up that were always dependable for water. Just in the last few years, those springs have started to come back, and this winter we have had amazing snow and rain. Snowed yesterday, in fact.

Now, in those same conditions, this same area supported 5M plus people thanks to foresight that built the dams and lakes that the libs would love to get rid of. It got pretty sketchy a few years ago when Roosevelt Lake got down to 5% capacity and they had to shut down the generator. Now, all lakes are close to 100%, and they are releasing water for the snowmelt.

I suppose the introduction of horses could have contributed to the Anasazi LaCrosse stick. There are some sketches on rocks around here that I'll have to go back and check out again. Maybe there was an Anasazi Al Gore medicine man.

[daddy]

Thanks for that good info.

It struck me that I'd never heard mention of the Anasazi during all this AGW climate gate stuff, and I wonder why not. Perhaps it unsettled the science.