BUSH BREAKING LAW : CAFFERTY
You go Jack!
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Friday, August 18, 2006
Word Verifications
Ok, I use them too, for commentary on my blog, to help keep from getting messages like this one...
I saw your posting and thought I would share the (job opportunity, penile enlargement system, prescription drug program, etc) that I found with you at www.stuffyoudon'twant.com
I find, however that half the time when I go to enter the letters shown to me I do so incorrectly. The l is leaning on the c and it could be a b or I get them jumbled in my head. How does this work to keep spammers at bay? Are spammers just twice as dumb as I am? I don't get it right half the time, so they don't ever get it right?
I wonder about this a lot.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Richardson Proposes Oil Consumer Protections
Use oil reserve to shield consumers from market jolts
By BILL RICHARDSON
August 15, 2006
Oil prices skyrocketed recently after British Petroleum announced it was shutting down a major Alaskan oil pipeline. It was feared the loss could be as much as 400,000 barrels of oil a day, or 8 percent of domestic production.
Now it appears that the pipeline failure will cut Prudhoe Bay production by only half, taking 200,000 barrels a day off the market. That good news and the Middle East cease-fire have allowed oil prices to settle somewhat.
However, action still needs to be taken now to help ease this oil price jolt and relieve consumers' pain at the pump.
First, the United States should tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Bush administration has indicated its willingness to do this, but compare its reaction to this relatively small loss of oil to the administration response in 2002 when labor instability in Venezuela shorted world oil markets by almost 2.5 million barrels of oil a day. At that time, the White House had to be pressured to stop pulling oil off the market, let alone consider releasing Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil into the market. In fact, Vice President Dick Cheney in the past has stated that he does not think tapping the reserve is necessary except in a "dire emergency," such as the loss of "5 to 6 million barrels a day."
Why this abrupt, 180-degree policy shift? Could the administration, threatened with the loss of Republican control of Congress, be motivated by more than a new-found appreciation for the value of stable oil markets?
The BP pipeline failure drove oil prices to more than $76 a barrel, only a nickel off the all-time high, while Iowa consumers are struggling with gas prices at nearly $3 a gallon.
Second, I would tap the reserve with a significant twist. The federal government should negotiate an oil exchange with BP to repay the reserve with interest for every barrel of oil withdrawn during the pipeline shutdown.
This oil "loan" would keep the marketplace whole for now, with repayment plus interest from BP in the form of a significantly greater quantity of oil back into the reserve at a later date. This would calm markets, stabilize prices and have minimal impact on overall levels of oil in the reserve. Also, in accepting the government's terms of such a loan, BP would be demonstrating that it is trying to be a good corporate citizen.
The reserve should be viewed as a vital tool to increase energy security and protect energy consumers. This was the policy posture that I as energy secretary took in 2000 when our exchange of reserve oil lowered prices from $37 to $31 a barrel in the course of a week. This translated into savings at the pump and adequate heating oil supplies for the Northeast that winter. In addition, this "loan" of reserve oil to the markets was paid back with interest, in the form of a more oil into the reserve, at no cost to the taxpayer.
Short- and long-term solutions exist to our current energy crisis. However, both will take leadership and the ability to lead tough negotiations with "big oil," two things that seem to be lacking in Washington.
In the longer term, our policies and technology investments should acknowledge that we depend on oil at our peril. Breaking our oil addiction will require a major, "man-on-the-moon" type of effort focused on new technologies and renewable energy, including Iowa-grown corn-based ethanol. Long-term energy security will be won only when we diversify our portfolio and keep our petro dollars at home.
In the short term, our obligation is to working families who struggle to make ends meet. This obligation should be met through leadership, recognition of the new realities of the global oil marketplace, a willingness to use the petroleum reserve as a more effective tool in that marketplace - and the courage to demand responsibility and accountability from corporate America.
By BILL RICHARDSON
August 15, 2006
Oil prices skyrocketed recently after British Petroleum announced it was shutting down a major Alaskan oil pipeline. It was feared the loss could be as much as 400,000 barrels of oil a day, or 8 percent of domestic production.
Now it appears that the pipeline failure will cut Prudhoe Bay production by only half, taking 200,000 barrels a day off the market. That good news and the Middle East cease-fire have allowed oil prices to settle somewhat.
However, action still needs to be taken now to help ease this oil price jolt and relieve consumers' pain at the pump.
First, the United States should tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Bush administration has indicated its willingness to do this, but compare its reaction to this relatively small loss of oil to the administration response in 2002 when labor instability in Venezuela shorted world oil markets by almost 2.5 million barrels of oil a day. At that time, the White House had to be pressured to stop pulling oil off the market, let alone consider releasing Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil into the market. In fact, Vice President Dick Cheney in the past has stated that he does not think tapping the reserve is necessary except in a "dire emergency," such as the loss of "5 to 6 million barrels a day."
Why this abrupt, 180-degree policy shift? Could the administration, threatened with the loss of Republican control of Congress, be motivated by more than a new-found appreciation for the value of stable oil markets?
The BP pipeline failure drove oil prices to more than $76 a barrel, only a nickel off the all-time high, while Iowa consumers are struggling with gas prices at nearly $3 a gallon.
Second, I would tap the reserve with a significant twist. The federal government should negotiate an oil exchange with BP to repay the reserve with interest for every barrel of oil withdrawn during the pipeline shutdown.
This oil "loan" would keep the marketplace whole for now, with repayment plus interest from BP in the form of a significantly greater quantity of oil back into the reserve at a later date. This would calm markets, stabilize prices and have minimal impact on overall levels of oil in the reserve. Also, in accepting the government's terms of such a loan, BP would be demonstrating that it is trying to be a good corporate citizen.
The reserve should be viewed as a vital tool to increase energy security and protect energy consumers. This was the policy posture that I as energy secretary took in 2000 when our exchange of reserve oil lowered prices from $37 to $31 a barrel in the course of a week. This translated into savings at the pump and adequate heating oil supplies for the Northeast that winter. In addition, this "loan" of reserve oil to the markets was paid back with interest, in the form of a more oil into the reserve, at no cost to the taxpayer.
Short- and long-term solutions exist to our current energy crisis. However, both will take leadership and the ability to lead tough negotiations with "big oil," two things that seem to be lacking in Washington.
In the longer term, our policies and technology investments should acknowledge that we depend on oil at our peril. Breaking our oil addiction will require a major, "man-on-the-moon" type of effort focused on new technologies and renewable energy, including Iowa-grown corn-based ethanol. Long-term energy security will be won only when we diversify our portfolio and keep our petro dollars at home.
In the short term, our obligation is to working families who struggle to make ends meet. This obligation should be met through leadership, recognition of the new realities of the global oil marketplace, a willingness to use the petroleum reserve as a more effective tool in that marketplace - and the courage to demand responsibility and accountability from corporate America.
Investigative Journalist Beaten/Detained
Investigative Journalist Christopher Bollyn details his August 14 encounter with undercover police at his Illinois home HERE.......
If this doesn't make you angry, I suspect nothing will.
If this doesn't make you angry, I suspect nothing will.
The Birthday Calendar
Today I am 14,000 days old!!!!!
This is a really cool little website, plug in the day you were born and you get the exact amount of time you have been alive, down to the second. It also tells you astrological information, and has a great view of the moon the night you were born. Have fun!
I think I will bake a cake for myself tonight!
This is a really cool little website, plug in the day you were born and you get the exact amount of time you have been alive, down to the second. It also tells you astrological information, and has a great view of the moon the night you were born. Have fun!
I think I will bake a cake for myself tonight!
The Bane of My Existence
Yes, that's right, it's the school bus. Today was supposed to be the second day of school for my two eldest girls. Grades 1-6 started yesterday with a half day, Maddie starts kindergarten next week on her fifth birthday. I was looking forward to this. I was so excited! Yesterday we took the kids in, but today was the big "get on the bus adventure."It was scheduled to arrive at 7:20 this morning so I got the kids out there by 7:15. I figured I could run out in my shorts and shirt and sandals and be ok, even though it was a little chilly and damp this morning. We hit the end of our driveway and were assaulted by MOSQUITOS! Now they are pretty uncommon up here, at 7200 feet elevation in the desert southwest, but this year with all this crazy rain they are EVERYWHERE! I am covered in bites.
We battled them for 20 minutes, and the bus never showed up. I finally relented, told the girls I would drive them in, but first had to call the school and the bus company and let them have it. Well the school was great, gave me the number to the bus company, and I called them. IDIOTS. These people are total idiots. I told them the bus never showed up, and the stop address, and they asked for my kids' names. Gave them that information too. The lady says, "Ok hang on, I am going to radio that bus and see what happened." She is gone for a few minutes and then comes back and says, "Oh the driver said she just passed your place and is getting ready to turn off your street onto A-99." I figured we could catch her if we ran out, but the idiot on the phone wouldn't tell her to even wait a minute, she was long gone when we got there. The idiot, when pressed for a time to expect the bus to arrive from now on, told me to expect it between 7:25 and 7:35 (even though today it was 7:40.)
Now, normally at this time of year that is not a big deal, but those mosquitos were insane today. However, usually by early October and through April it is very cold up here in the mornings, and there could be snow. It looks like it may be a very wet winter here. We may be out there in some pretty severe weather for long stretches of time. I won't let my kids go out alone, because the driveway curves and I cannot see them standing out there.
Oh and my Plan B for Peace fell through, when my husband called to tell me he had inadvertently taken the keys to the van with him to work. The kids are presently raiding their lunch boxes for the snacks.
Plus I probably have West Nile now.
Idiots.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Stunned, Scared and Silent by Molly Ivins
Molly Ivins is always a GREAT read...
Excerpt:
Of the hundreds of prisoners, alleged terrorists all, who have been held at Guantanamo on the grounds that they were the worst of the worst, only 10 have ever been charged with anything. In the latest episode, shortly after announcement of a British-based plot to blow up airliners, Britain and the United States were already airing their differences over when the perpetrators should have been arrested. The administration has put itself in the position of the Boy Who Cried Wolf. If, God forbid, a serious terrorist conspiracy is uncovered, there will be a tendency to dismiss it as a backlash to these over-hyped "plots."
Excerpt:
Of the hundreds of prisoners, alleged terrorists all, who have been held at Guantanamo on the grounds that they were the worst of the worst, only 10 have ever been charged with anything. In the latest episode, shortly after announcement of a British-based plot to blow up airliners, Britain and the United States were already airing their differences over when the perpetrators should have been arrested. The administration has put itself in the position of the Boy Who Cried Wolf. If, God forbid, a serious terrorist conspiracy is uncovered, there will be a tendency to dismiss it as a backlash to these over-hyped "plots."
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Monday, August 14, 2006
Two Faux News Journalists Seized in Gaza
Two Fox News employees were taken against their will Monday in Gaza, according to Fox News' Jerusalem bureau. Negotiations are ongoing to secure their release, a Fox News reporter stated on air.
LTS has a special message for their captors...
Hey! You! YEAH YOU! Memorize this photo....
NOW GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LTS has a special message for their captors...
Hey! You! YEAH YOU! Memorize this photo....
NOW GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
My Trip to the Daily Kos
I don't know how successful it was, but I put up a posting last night on my support for Bill Richardson and was astonished at the commentary. Not the content as much as the quantity of responses. Interesting place, I think I will be back often.
HERE
HERE
Wisdom From My Dear Friend Scott
On Republicans...
But the real irony of their comments is that the best way to support the terrorists is to vote Republican!
Republicans will not secure our ports from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure air cargo from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure our boarders from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure our chemical and nuclear facilities from terrorists.
Republicans will not investigate Saudis.
Republicans will not investigate 9/11.
Republicans will not unite or respect our allies.
Republicans will not listen to terror or intel experts that don't espouse their ideology. Republicans have sabotaged US intelligence agents.
Republicans have united and inflamed our enemies as never before.
Republicans have blatantly exploited terror for political gain.
Republicans have blatantly exploited terror for profit.
Republicans have made us far more dependent on oil from terror-supporting regimes. Republicans have diverted our military away from real terror targets.
Republicans have discarded valuable anti-terror assets for pure ideological reasons.
Republicans have failed to get universal radios for first responders.
Republicans have cut anti-terror funding to NY and DC.
Republicans have cut funding to police departments and firefighters.
Republicans tried to sell control of our ports to a regime that aided 9/11.
Republicans monitor Americans who oppose their ideology as terrorist threats.
Republicans use anti-terror tactics on American citizens instead of on terrorists.
Republicans have divulged classified information for political gain that prevented British authorities from stopping massive terror attacks on their trains.
Republicans have turned contained non-terrorist threats into dangerously unleashed terrorist threats.
Republicans LET BIN LADEN GET AWAY!!!
I mean, the list just is endless.
Of course, my friend Scott has always been one of the three or four smartest men on the planet. Today he filled my inbox with really good stuff. About half of my postings come from leads he throws my way. Thank you, sweetie. I couldn't do it without you!
But the real irony of their comments is that the best way to support the terrorists is to vote Republican!
Republicans will not secure our ports from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure air cargo from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure our boarders from terrorists.
Republicans will not secure our chemical and nuclear facilities from terrorists.
Republicans will not investigate Saudis.
Republicans will not investigate 9/11.
Republicans will not unite or respect our allies.
Republicans will not listen to terror or intel experts that don't espouse their ideology. Republicans have sabotaged US intelligence agents.
Republicans have united and inflamed our enemies as never before.
Republicans have blatantly exploited terror for political gain.
Republicans have blatantly exploited terror for profit.
Republicans have made us far more dependent on oil from terror-supporting regimes. Republicans have diverted our military away from real terror targets.
Republicans have discarded valuable anti-terror assets for pure ideological reasons.
Republicans have failed to get universal radios for first responders.
Republicans have cut anti-terror funding to NY and DC.
Republicans have cut funding to police departments and firefighters.
Republicans tried to sell control of our ports to a regime that aided 9/11.
Republicans monitor Americans who oppose their ideology as terrorist threats.
Republicans use anti-terror tactics on American citizens instead of on terrorists.
Republicans have divulged classified information for political gain that prevented British authorities from stopping massive terror attacks on their trains.
Republicans have turned contained non-terrorist threats into dangerously unleashed terrorist threats.
Republicans LET BIN LADEN GET AWAY!!!
I mean, the list just is endless.
Of course, my friend Scott has always been one of the three or four smartest men on the planet. Today he filled my inbox with really good stuff. About half of my postings come from leads he throws my way. Thank you, sweetie. I couldn't do it without you!
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