ENVIRONMENT:
Drill now, ignore
Obama/Rockefeller elitism
Monday, July 21, 2008
By Wes Vernon
Renew America.us
Let's not kid ourselves. We need to drill for more oil.
That is the crux of the message in the $4-plus per gallon at the pump. But the six-figure salaried "save the earth now" lobbyists here in Washington don't want us to drill off either the east or west coast, don't want drilling in ANWR in Alaska, don't want any more oil refineries, don't want any nuclear power.
The holier-than-thou "environmentalist" lobby is laughing up its sleeve at the great unwashed's suffering the equivalent of a pay cut at the gas pump these past few months.
Item 1: Obama — sneak up on them
Senator Barack Obama, when asked on CNBC whether high gasoline prices were a benefit, let the cat out of the bag when he answered, "I think I would have preferred a gradual adjustment."
Not a word — notice — about high gasoline prices, per se. The rookie Illinois senator wishes the sky-high sock-it-to-them damages had sneaked up to Americans little by little — like the frog in the gradually heating water. Translation: Wait until after the election, and then hit them over the head. If that cynicism strikes you as odd coming from a candidate for president, recall this is the same man who said that the rubes in the sticks tend to "cling" to their guns and religion.
And why should this surprise? Ever since the first energy crisis in the seventies, when long lines at the pump were commonplace, crypto-socialists have wailed that we are being punished because we have sinned against the planet and that we should have to pay more so we will use less.
Never mind that nearly everyone has to drive. You can complain about the fact that our ground transportation infrastructure post World War II has been built around the automobile, and this column itself has expressed qualms about that. Hopefully we can rebuild and expand our rail infrastructure.
But like it or not — in the here and now — most Americans need their automobiles. You can pound your fist on the table and demand otherwise, if you wish. You can also shake your fist at the moon, if that's your pleasure. But as Human Events Editor Jed Babbin has observed, even if we focused all our time and effort to will it otherwise, we would still need to use fossil fuels for at least another half century — probably more.
People don't necessarily drive because they want to. They drive because they have to.
Item 2: The Rockefeller clan
The heirs of the Rockefeller oil fortune recently sashayed into the annual shareholders meeting of Exxon and berated the oil and gas conglomerate management for not doing more to bring about a "green" earth.
Today's Rockefellers — unburdened by the inconvenience of having to earn their money the hard way, unlike their legendary ancestor John D. Rockefeller — can rest assured that no matter what happens to Exxon, no member of the Rockefeller clan needs to worry about his/her future need for the street corner tin cup. As for the millions of pensioners invested in Exxon and other energy stocks? As William H. Vanderbilt put it in 1882, "The public be damned."
Not for the first time
At least one family member has tried to silence those who have the temerity to disagree with him. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) has demanded that Exxon stop funding "global warming" skeptics — implying dire consequences from the Senate speech politburo if his wishes are defied.
Back to the Exxon shareholders
The specific complaint of the Rockefellers is that the company is not investing in "alternative" sources of energy. This begs the metaphoric question as to whether a good brain surgeon is necessarily a skilled building architect. Exxon managers are in — well — the oil business. That is what they know. And as long as there is a demand and need for oil, the company deems it wise to focus on what it knows best and for which the market remains robust.
The woods are filled with alternative energy ventures, many of them in Chapter 11 — having failed despite government grants, coupled with an inability — as yet — to overcome cost and viability factors. Plug-in electric cars are OK if you're running a few down-the-street errands. But for inter-city travel? Well, there are problems. Duel-energy cars are on the market, but fossil fuels are here to stay in the lifetimes of all but possibly the very young. The Rockefellers, of course, are free to sink their cash into these efforts. There is a lot of research going on. Meanwhile, normal people for the foreseeable future still need fossil fuels.
So in the real world....
Politically, the Republicans should have a field day with this issue. Democrat leaders on Capitol Hill — as always in hock to their fringe and the political pull of the "environmentalist" lobby — are up against a wall.
Every year since 1982, Congress has attached to its appropriations bill restrictions against drilling in the Outer Continental shelf. President George H.W. Bush issued an executive order against such drilling in 1990. Last week, the current president, George W. Bush lifted that executive ban, and left the Democrat Congress as the only barrier to drilling now for oil on American property.
In order to head off G0P efforts to meet the challenge, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wisc.) suspended work on appropriations bills for the Fiscal Year beginning October 1. Mustn't give Democrats in conservative districts the chance to vote for more drilling — No. no, no. Might cut off the money trail from the extremist socialist fringe.
Similarly, Speaker Nancy Pelosi will not allow any pro-drilling legislation to reach the floor of the House. On the Senate side, Majority Leader Harry Reid is playing similar games. As Americans empty their wallets and purses at the gas pumps, Reid complains that oil and coal make us "sick."
Senator McConnell makes the case
Speaking out on the Senate floor last week, Republican Leader Mitch McConnell chided the Democrats for presenting an alternative "plan" (plot might be a better word) that goes all around Robin Hood's barn to avoid dealing forthrightly with the problem at hand.
First, the Kentuckian said, the Democrats propose curbing speculation. This, despite the fact that "no reputable economist thinks speculators alone are the reason for the spike in gas prices."
Second, they want the president to release 10% of the oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserves — a three-day solution — barely a ripple.
Third, the Dems call for drilling on 68 million acres already leased to oil companies. One little factoid here: Many of those leases have been found to be unproductive. By contrast, we know there's oil and gas on the outer shelf and ANWR.
Also unmentioned is that 100% of oil shale in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming is "off-limits," though those deposits are "floating on a sea of oil roughly three times the size of Saudi Arabian oil reserves," to quote Senator McConnell.
Fourth, the Democrats say we should stop exporting oil that's produced domestically — "a half day solution to a yearlong problem," in other words "a joke."
Legislation
Senator McConnell's legislation (co-sponsored by several colleagues) — the Gas Price Reduction Act — calls for deep sea production more than 50 miles off the shores of states that want it; lifting the ban on oil shale exploration; increased incentives for development of plug-in cars that would be practical; and strengthening the U.S. futures markets so as to guard against excessive speculation.
On the House side, Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) has his No Excuses Energy Act. But Speaker Pelosi is sitting on it, won't let it come to the floor. So he is circulating a discharge petition to get it up for a House vote.
This measure permits drilling in ANWR in Alaska, the Outer Continental Shelf, and the Gulf of Mexico; building new oil refineries and nuclear power plants; and developing alternative energy sources.
Drill here, drill now, pay less
In just a little over a month, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has garnered well over one million signatures to his petition calling on Congress to "Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay less."
"You don't have to be a Republican to be struggling to put gas in your car," Gingrich recently told a crowd. He cited the following figures: 81 percent of Americans support developing more American energy, including oil and coal — 85% of Republicans, 83% of independents, and 76% of Democrats. (No wonder Democrats in Congress are squirming).
As the former GOP speaker puts it: "An America that's independent of other countries for its energy needs is an America that holds a safer and more secure future for our children and grandchildren."
Which reminds me: In this week's column, we haven't even discussed the vital security aspects of drilling for oil right here at home where a president of the United States doesn't have to go hat in hand to some royalty in an anti-American part of the world and beg for more oil. Isn't it about time we told OPEC to take a hike? Sign the Gingrich petition.
Wes Vernon is a Washington-based writer and veteran broadcast journalist.
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