McCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’
McCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’
Last week, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) reversed his longstanding opposition to offshore drilling, just before cozying up to energy industry leaders in Houston. McCain claimed his flip-flop would “address the concerns of Americans, who are struggling right now to pay for gasoline.” At a townhall event in Fresno, CA, yesterday, McCain admitted that it wouldn’t provide any “immediate relief” but said there would be “psychological” benefits:
I don’t see an immediate relief, but I do see that exploitation of existing reserves that may exist — and in view of many experts that do exist off our coasts — is also a way that we need to provide relief. Even though it may take some years, the fact that we are exploiting those reserves would have a psychological impact that I think is beneficial.
Watch it:
In April, McCain told Neil Cavuto that his gas tax “holiday” would give people “a little psychological boost.” Go to the Wonk Room for more.
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McCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’
– - I no longer need my Civic Hybrid. I’m gonna go buy me one of them Existential Civics.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:24 pmWhen will McDepends STFU and provide us all with some ‘beneficial psychological impact’?
Even the 23%ers are going to start questioning his senility soon.
What? They aren’t?
Never mind!
June 24th, 2008 at 6:27 pmSo the sight of ugly oil rigs would help me feel better about $5.00 a gallon gas? When I am thinking about the fouling of our beaches and waterways, I will feel better about paying the oil speculators inflated gas prices? As our seagulls, otters, and seal lions die from oil slicks and the putrid chemicals the rigs throw off, I am going to feel better that my once great country cannot think of an alternative to the very limited and finite oil resources?
Did McSame say this or was it the good fairy?
June 24th, 2008 at 6:27 pmIsn’t that sorta like the warm, fuzzy feelings that caribou get from snuggling up to the pipelines during their coffee klatches?
June 24th, 2008 at 6:29 pmUH OH: McCain has really lost it. Now I’m worried that the GOP will find a competent replacement for the Nov race.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:33 pmWhat fun! The fishies can have kaffe klatchshes!!
Jebus. STFU, McStupid.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:37 pmSure let’s advocate this as a “feel good” measure so they don’t notice that we’re giving away even more to the oil companies.
This is what we do with resistant children isn’t it — bribe them, or make them feel good about something, distract them, etc. whatever it takes to get them to cooperate.
Duplicitous McClone makes me sick.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:38 pmMcCain believes that all the “regular people” need are some comforting lies and b.s. while he and his buddies figure out how to make money off a crisis.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:39 pm#5, cc,
June 24th, 2008 at 6:39 pmVery good.
That made me laugh out loud!
Leftside Annie Says:
What fun! The fishies can have kaffe klatchshes!!
But not kaffiyehs!
June 24th, 2008 at 6:40 pmYeah, that’s what we need, more delusional thinking, not that we haven’t had enough of that for almost 8 years.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:40 pmMcCain is not qualified to discuss “mental health” issues.
Hey, McCain, you know what else would have a psychological impact that I think is beneficial? Getting our troops out of Iraq! And guess what? We could accomplish that faster than we could get oil from these new offshore rigs (that haven’t even been built yet).
June 24th, 2008 at 6:42 pmI think we’ve had enough “psycho impact” over the last 7 years.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:42 pmHow Senator John McCain brought the horse-and-buggy back, renounced militarism and became President: a fanciful tale:
A few days after Senator John McCain’s proposal for a three-hundred million dollar prize or bounty for a super auto battery was generally derided in the media and on the internet, he made a new proposal. He offered a three hundred dollar cash prize to anyone who could produce a low-cost and environmentally-green form of personal transportation.
Several hours after he made this offer public, he claimed his prize himself. He decided that a hay-fed and oats-fed horse pulling a light-weight buggy would fill the bill perfectly. He called it the McCain Horse-and-buggy transportation system. At first, folks were skeptical, but after being hammered with gas costing upwards of four dollars a gallon, they were ready for some real change. Change they could believe in. Horse-and-buggies they could believe in. Back to the good old horse-and-buggy days? No, forward to the new improved groovy environmentally-green horse-and-buggy days.
Folks across this great land decided that it was finally time to give up on their SUVs, and other vehicles powered by gasoline, diesel fuel or other oil derivatives. They began to lay out horse pastures, build barns, and storage areas for horses, buggies, sleighs, winter hay and other related things used back in the mid-19th century for ground transportation. Hay lofts came into vogue again. Farmers in the Midwest gave up growing corn for ethanol production and switched to growing oats for horses. People would say, “And that ain’t hay” and “Get a horse” in their conversations with their neighbors.
Senator John McCain was riding high on his new found popularity. He realized that if America returned to the ground transportation used in the mid-19th century, that there would be little need for a large imperial U. S. army and navy to steal and secure oil resources abroad. So he renounced militarism, turned his back on his family’s three generations of service in the navy and looked to his 19th century farmer-ancestors for inspiration. McCain became vastly more popular with his renunciation of militarism.
Kids were demanding cooked rolled oats as their breakfast cereal to be solidarity with horses. America started a long transformation from a car and truck-based economy to a traditional 19th economy based on horse-drawn vehicles and the reliable iron horse (trains). Our dependence on foreign oil and even domestic oil rapidly declined. As we withdrew our overseas military forces from around the world, terrorist attacks rapidly declined. Senator McCain surpassed the charismatic Barack Obama in popularity and became President. Then Barack knew exactly how Hillary felt when she was passed by him back in the Democratic primary elections in early 2008.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:43 pmStratrat,
June 24th, 2008 at 6:49 pmunless you boat out 45 miles or so , you’d never actually see the oil rigs. The furthest you can see from the shore is roughly 5 miles. Just so you know..
How does McCain propose to clean up the psychological oil spills?
June 24th, 2008 at 6:53 pmPsycho and Logical.
How did they ever come to be connected?
June 24th, 2008 at 6:53 pmhmm kinda like the psych impact of obama’s windfall taxes with some liberals. What’s the difference? More energy combined with conservation simply makes sense. Americans want more driling, they should have it. We obviously need more energy.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:54 pmPeople need to think crazy logic, its beneficial for them.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:54 pmMore energy combined with conservation simply makes sense. -Gumbumper
Conservation means to use less, not more.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:56 pmgunclinger Says:
hmm kinda like the psych impact of obama’s windfall taxes with some liberals. What’s the difference? More energy combined with conservation simply makes sense. Americans want more driling, they should have it. We obviously need more energy.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Which oil and gas company do you work for again? I assume that you must be getting paid by them, because only an idiot would see “more drilling” as the solution.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:57 pmgunclinger Says:
Stratrat,
unless you boat out 45 miles or so , you’d never actually see the oil rigs. The furthest you can see from the shore is roughly 5 miles. Just so you know..
You must be talking about on the Gulf of Mexico, cause in CA, you can see them just off Long Beach, dressed up like some sick looking offshore apartment houses and off Santa Barbara from the beach. And you can see the tar balls on the sand all along there.
But the majority of the people don’t live near those areas, so they say: SO!
June 24th, 2008 at 6:58 pm15: You should add: “And the public blamed Senator McCain, when they couldn’t get fresh milk, eggs, bread, fruit, vegetables, meat and other food, since the food spoiled by the time the horses got it to market (except the refrigerated horses)”.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:58 pmNice try, thanks for playing.
The problem is not supply GumClinger
http://www.counterpunch.org/whitney06242008.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:59 pm“NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Speculators now account for about 70 per cent of all benchmark crude-oil trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up from 37 per cent in 2000, according to congressional findings cited in a Wall Street Journal report Monday.
This is yet another similarity between McCain and Pres Bush: It’s all about <controlling people’s perception of reality, and never about doing anything meaningful to change the way things are -at least not a change for the better.
Look at the disaster that Iraq has become (or the economy, or Katrina, or anything else he has undertaken). When was the last time Pres Bush actually did something to improve the current situation there?
On the other hand, he has the Department of Defence working overtime to “catapult the propaganda” and make us believe Iraqis are happy to be occupied.
Think that some voted for this proto-primate -twice- and will vote for John “more of the same” McCain.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:00 pm25: Eureka, just like Bunkie Hunt and the silver run up in the 80s. New players, same marks.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:01 pmYeah — that “psychological” benefit ought to provide great comfort when John & Mary Average-American are sitting at the dining room table calculating how much less food and clothing to buy their kids so they have enough money for gas to get them back and forth to those minimum wage service industry jobs that the Republicans think they ought be grateful to have.
Just saying . . .
June 24th, 2008 at 7:02 pmright now on cnn.com the front page story is: Evangelist accuses Obama of ‘distorting’ Bible with Dobson’s face taking up 1/4 of the page.
Why is this even making news? Holy crap.
Could/would they do a story on
June 24th, 2008 at 7:04 pmMcCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’»
gunclinger Says
June 24th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
unless you boat out 45 miles or so , you’d never actually see the oil rigs. The furthest you can see from the shore is roughly 5 miles. Just so you know.
_____________________________________________
Perhaps McCain meant the psychological impact of all those little tar balls on the beach, like they have in Galveston. This way, people can feel good about the drilling without having to actually see the rigs — they can still feel the environmental impact. And who knows? Maybe the extra “decorator touch” of a black edge on the shoreline might alleviate the boredom of a pristine beach.
Seriously — why does McCain think we need to start drilling offshore (even for psychological reasons) when there are millions of acres of leases the oil companies currently hold that they aren’t exploiting right now?
June 24th, 2008 at 7:06 pmDobson is a psychologist not an ordained minister. Besides that the bible is one of the most misinterpreted books of all time due to its allegorical writing.
Its why we have hundreds of denominations [interpretations].
June 24th, 2008 at 7:08 pmgunclinger Says:
Stratrat,
unless you boat out 45 miles or so , you’d never actually see the oil rigs. The furthest you can see from the shore is roughly 5 miles. Just so you know..
Yeah, and we both know the oil slick will stop at 5 miles too, right? Geez, what a putz. I see them off San Pedro. I see them off northern Santa Barbra, I see them off other areas, too. They are in my backyard. If I was like you, and I lived in some backwater place, I probably wouldn’t care what pollution fell onto my neighbors property. Thankfully, I am not like you.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:12 pm“only an idiot would think drilling is the answer” LOL yes creating more energy is nuts, we need to make do with what’s available. LOL I guess the majority of Americans are idiots eh? Good God.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:21 pmA really big “psychological impact” for most Americans would be the POLITCAL DEATH of the Fascist Corporate Scum like McLame and all of the RePugniScums!!!
June 24th, 2008 at 7:21 pmNO!!! We don’t “need more energy”. We need to waste less energy combined with innovative new sources of same.
BTW. I do not reject increased drilling out of hand. It’s going to happen some day. Hopefully we will have more effective regulation before they can actually free up drilling ships/rigs in a few years and alternative sources will be more available so we can use the petroleum for plastics and other products. As I understand it, the oil industry could be required, under pain of death, to immediately begin drilling everywhere they can and nothing would happen for several years because the drilling resources are tied up.
I suppose that Exxon Mobile could purchase additional drilling equipment, but, that cuts profit so it ain’t likely.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:23 pmIsn’t “Psycho” an old Hitchcock movie? Couldn’t John have used “The Birds” instead? I have more of them hitting my glass door than Psychos.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:24 pmI’m shocked that the $18 Billion worth of tax breaks currently enjoyed by the Oil industry-at a time of record profits-hasn’t reduced prices at the pump for consumers.
Be even more shocked if McCain isn’t completely crushed on Election Day.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:27 pmWe could also cut waste (by as much as 30% according to some experts) if the oil companies would build state of the art refineries. But, that cut’s into the almighty short-term profits too. Not gonna happen any time soon.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:29 pmgunclinger Says:
“only an idiot would think drilling is the answer” LOL yes creating more energy is nuts, we need to make do with what’s available. LOL I guess the majority of Americans are idiots eh? Good God.
Since we know the oil is finite and limited. Since we know the rest of the world will be going to war to secure those oils supplies. Since we know that it will take 10-13 years before any gas gets into our gas tanks. Since we know the peak oil concerns are real. Since we know that we cannot sustain the global warming we are causing. Since we know all those things – WE KNOW ALL THOSE THINGS – doesn’t it make sense to find an alternative now, rather than later? We put a man on the moon in less than ten years – why can’t we focus the same energy on this acute problem?
June 24th, 2008 at 7:30 pmoil companies are clearly motivated by the measly 12 cent a gallon profit they get. So they likely dont drill in the undrilled leases because it won’t produce enough ROI. Let’s allow them to drill in the deep sea places where the ROI is attractive. Honestly, we need more oil and unless you dont mind sucking down Saudi crude, you should be behind efforts to extract more domestic and offshore extraction. For sure profit taxes can’t help us at the pump. Carter did that and I waited in long, long lines. No sense to repeat that nonsense.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:30 pmstratrat ,
June 24th, 2008 at 7:33 pm10 to 13 years to extract oilfrom new sources?! You are so funny today. Try 3/4. Easy on the koolaid pal
gunclinger Says:
oil companies are clearly motivated by the measly 12 cent a gallon profit they get. So they likely dont drill in the undrilled leases because it won’t produce enough ROI. Let’s allow them to drill in the deep sea places where the ROI is attractive. Honestly, we need more oil and unless you dont mind sucking down Saudi crude, you should be behind efforts to extract more domestic and offshore extraction. For sure profit taxes can’t help us at the pump. Carter did that and I waited in long, long lines. No sense to repeat that nonsense.
But again, we are merely kicking the can down the road; putting off the inevitable crisis to come. That doesn’t sound like the best way to create a solution. And please stop using carter in your posts. Back then, India and China had not yet moved their demand to today’s levels, so that comparison is moot.
It seems you make your living in the oil business. That is the only reason that you would not acknowledge our need for an alternative NOW. It seems you have a career in the oil business and you are too scared of the shakeup affecting your livelyhood. You are being individually selfish, but that is also a GOP trait. Try to be brave and polish up your resume. maybe you could join the army, I hear they need the help.
If we listen to you, the planet and the humans living on the planet will all die. Maybe you are waiting for the Rapture?
June 24th, 2008 at 7:38 pmgunguy says,
oil companies are clearly motivated by the measly 12 cent a gallon profit they get.
GunGuy,
you don’t make the profits that Exxon does just off refined product. They also participate in the crude mark-up, in fact, they are buying their crude at long term prices much lower than the spot prices, they get refining mark-up and in many cases, the transportation and marketing mark-up.
This ‘only 12c/gallon’ fallacy won’t fly anymore for the fully integrated multi-nationals. They have put almost nothing back into refining capacity (1 in over 20 years), have invested slowly in current refining upgrades, both from a performance and from an environmental position.
No violins for you, and your ‘awl’ companies, sorry!
June 24th, 2008 at 7:39 pmgunclinger Says:
stratrat ,
10 to 13 years to extract oilfrom new sources?! You are so funny today. Try 3/4. Easy on the koolaid pal
Nope. From building the schematics of the oil derricks to gas in your tank will be at least 10 years, notwithstanding issues with the environment and such.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:40 pmHmmmm. Let’s see now. We have existing oil wells that are capped and not producing on Gull Island, Alaska, sitting on top of a 200-billion barrel proven reserve. We have 68 million acres of land in the United States on which oil rights have been purchased but there is no currently active exploration.
Yup, McNumbNuts. We really do need the “psychological impact” of issuing even more E & D rights, don’t we?
What a stupid twit with nothing but political gimmicks up his sleeve.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:41 pmOk folks…Its been fun. I’m onstage in 2 hours, so I gotta go. Cheers…
June 24th, 2008 at 7:41 pmStratrat is a musician!!?!? Why am I not surprised. LOL kidding.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:45 pmOy, where to begin. Let’s start with this word: exploitation. Perhaps he meant, exploration? Seriously, because who wants to go bragging about “exploiting” anything? But then he says it again: “exploiting.”
And wait, there’s more: “psychological impact.” In other words, McCain thinks Americans are so stupid that they’ll stop worrying about gas prices and food prices and recession, if they have that piece of mind that we’re allowing th oil companies to once again “exploit” our tax dollars and our wilderness.
If I were McCain, I’d be looking for a better speechwriter. Soon.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:47 pmIt’s not just Gull Island tom. So long as they can make an extra .0000001 cents per gallon by importing crude? All those capped wells will sit.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:48 pmSo when obama cones out string for nuke energy, what will be your excuse then? I’m all for developing Alt fuels while simultaneously creating more oil btw. This is America after all, we can do both. Let’s compromise here. Alt energies and oil exploration/extraction are not mutually exclusive.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:50 pmSorry, meant to say when obama comes out strong for nuke energy .. Stupid iphone autocomplete feature…
June 24th, 2008 at 7:53 pmgunclinger Says:
I’m all for developing Alt fuels while simultaneously creating more oil btw. This is America after all, we can do both.
As long as the oil companies are raping the public for their profits, there will be no real effort to develop alternatives. The major oil companies claim to be developing alternatives, but for all their expertise and genius, we’ve got bupkis. Gee, wonder why.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:57 pmgunclinger Says:
“only an idiot would think drilling is the answer” LOL yes creating more energy is nuts, we need to make do with what’s available. LOL I guess the majority of Americans are idiots eh? Good God.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Let’s not engage in the old straw man tactic of changing what I said and then trying to make me look ridiculous for it. You specifically mentioned “drilling”, not “more energy”. Don’t put words in my mouth.
Yes, we need more alternative energy sources, preferably the renewable kind, like solar and wind. But we do not “need” more drilling, especially off our coasts. That would just be downright nutty.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:58 pmI have to agree with you, to an extent, gunclinger. Personally, I don’t share the seemingly irrational fear of nuclear energy. I reserve my fear for the people who will be building, maintaining and regulating nuke plants.
The only way I can support a resumption of the nuclear energy program is if there’s no possible way a lawyer, MBA, or politician can make an operational decision. And, anyone caught trying to shave costs? Banishment to Monster Island!
Seriously though. There is zero room for greed when dealing with such a potentially devastating technology. If we can find a way to ensure that qualified people are making the decisions? I’m all for it.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:59 pmPsych impact for whom ? Halliburton ? Cheney ?……
Could someone with a bigger vocabulary help me here: A politician sells the resources of a country for an action which doesn’t make anything better, but it makes the people feel better.
?Pandering ? Misleading ?…..What is the word I’m looking for here ?
You know, this new kind of politician
June 24th, 2008 at 8:04 pmMapleStreet Says:
?Pandering ? Misleading ?…..What is the word I’m looking for here ?
You know, this new kind of politician
June 24th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
I’m leaning towards “insane” or “evil”.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:07 pm#36 WaltTheMan,
You can put a silloutte(sp?) of a diving hawk on your windows to stop the birds from crashing into your windows.
I have an image from Audubon(sp?) if you’re interested.
I wish it could only be so easy to keep the RePugniScums away!
June 24th, 2008 at 8:14 pmGeez…
Next thing you know, McCain will be claiming our nation is suffering from some kind of “malaise”…
June 24th, 2008 at 8:18 pmdixie blood Says:
I wish it could only be so easy to keep the RePugniScums away!
June 24th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
Put a picture of two guys kissing in your car windows. That will keep them away. :)
June 24th, 2008 at 8:19 pmLOL Wayne! Hey! Here’s a million dollar idea.
“Lawn Fairies”. Ceramic gnomes in a passionate embrace. Guaranteed to scare Psychochristians(TM) from your neighborhood.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:29 pmHere’s one for out here in the West…
A pair of heads, shoulders and cowboy hats in the rear window of a pickup truck. One driving, one in the middle…
June 24th, 2008 at 8:39 pm“Period.”
Does this mean we can leave the Middle East now?
June 24th, 2008 at 8:51 pmgunclinger seems to only show up when drilling for oil is the subject at hand. Drilling and oil appear to be his two favorite subjects and he’s a bonafide expert on the magic properties of drilling, oil, and drilling for oil.
One might actually assume he’s in the oil industry, but he isn’t; he’s an amateur “drilling for oil” enthusiast.
This has been a Public Service Announcement
June 24th, 2008 at 8:52 pmThere aren’t any available drilling resources. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:53 pmWesleyJI Says:
Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.
You really think the oil companies want to reduce revenues? What kind of tripped-out altered universe do you live in?
June 24th, 2008 at 8:55 pmNice one, Nevar. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:55 pm:D
I’m guessing Wesley JI does not not live on the coast.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:56 pmBut. ANWR can supply up to 4% of our demand with production reaching the gas stations beginning in 2018 if the oil companies invest in the drilling. That would solve everything.
sarc/off
BTW. ANWR could well be the most expensive crude on the planet.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:57 pmWesley JI works. In the ad department. At Wal-Mart. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:58 pmThe latest from Exxon Mobile claims that they are booked up for more than five years. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:59 pmThe latest form BP claims that they don’t have any excess drilling capacity either. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:01 pmTry going straight to the oil companies if you wish to research their immediate capabilities. They have no immediate ability to increase drilling. Period.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:02 pmAlright, where can I fuel on psychology? University sell them psychology cars? Yes, I would like to fuel up on Freud Unleaded please.
More BULLCRAP from the party for the wealthy elite.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:06 pmYes. I have visited many oil company, and industry, sites. I always include their own stated goals when deciding whether “bold new plans” have merit.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:09 pmWesleyJI Says:
——————————————————————————–
Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.
Period.
– Excellent longterm plan. You are a true visionary…
June 24th, 2008 at 9:17 pmWow…Leave it to a bunch of oil soaked guys to “drill” and we all get raped and screwed!!!
June 24th, 2008 at 9:19 pmNevar:
June 24th, 2008 at 9:19 pmHow are you. I had to put off the kites till tomorrow due to foul weather.
I know this is childish of me, but Wesley II started it at #70. so… Wesley II, how are things in Alpha Quadrant because you HAVE to be that far out from Planet Earth. Check your subspace frequncies ( and stop ogling Deanna Troi–it ain’t gonna happen).
Seriously, if yo rerally want to me taken seriously here,act like it–try using reason backe-up by some substantiation. Otherwise, continue whatever ill-defined mission you are on in some other space.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:20 pmWill you think McCain has the best plan when he makes another 180 degree turn tomorrow or the next day?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:20 pmWesleyJI Says:
——————————————————————————–
The bottom line is, McCain’s plan is our best option, and Obama’s isn’t. Its that simple.
—People who speak with such confidence rarely are correct
June 24th, 2008 at 9:20 pmWesleyJI McCain’s Policies Are Simple!
June 24th, 2008 at 9:22 pmwow, shambolic typing by me at #88. Apologies.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:23 pmWell you would be betting poorly but your bravado suggests that is not uncommon
June 24th, 2008 at 9:24 pmHahahahahaha! The only long term plan McPander Bear has is to whore himself to anyone who can deliver a block of GOP votes. His lust for the Presidency has destroyed his soul and/or intellect. I wouldn’t trust him to preside over a kids birthday party.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:27 pmWesleyJI Says:
none of you have anything to back up your opposition. Once again, is there anyone here with fact? Or are these are just theories? I have facts, where are yours?
It’s just a scam. There are plenty of already drilled wells, that were capped by the oil companies in the late seventies. They contain plenty of oil, but with a high sulfur content, so it make refining more expensive. But there’s plenty of oil here in the US, if they’d just bring it up.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:30 pmFact: McCain is lying when he implies that new drilling will make a significant impact on energy policy, supply or costs. Even the oil industry’s own numbers say the same thing.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:30 pm“Sorry, but you are indeed incorrect again. Period.”
Wesley JI
Yes indeedy. Wrong again. Accepted.
Thanks to my potshots, I now have an address for delivery of some substance.
How are you going to enjoy the oil derricks dotting your horizon when you go to the beach? Are you willing to give up that wonderment of gaze pondering what lies beyond the rim of the earth? Perhaps you need the reminder of what it takes for you to get to the coast in the first place. When you get there, you’ll have an immediate reminder at your very feet with the first oil slick that squishes between your toes. Don’t mind the rotting dolphin carcasses…
June 24th, 2008 at 9:31 pmHow many of the wealthy elite on the beach will want the waft of petrochemicals filling their nostrils during the Golden Hour? They’ll have to mix their drinks a little stronger, and start a little earlier, and pretend that the derricks dotting the horizon are really palm trees on the mystical archipelago of Petrol…. ahhh, California dreaming…..
WesleyJI Says:
——————————————————————————–
none of you have anything to back up your opposition. Once again, is there anyone here with fact? Or are these are just theories? I have facts, where are yours?
–
June 24th, 2008 at 9:31 pmSomeone seems to be confusing the definition of opinion with that of facts. Maybe I missed where you posted said “facts”.
Fact: The only conceivable “psychological” benefit from new drilling is… um… What?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:32 pmFact: The oil industry has no incentive to increase domestic production.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:34 pmsee everybody, take barfly’s example. he knows how to make a true comment, void of immature insults and hypotheticals.
I see you’ve conveniently ducked confronting the “fact” I just presented.
Care to comment?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:36 pmIn other words, the sheeple will feel better if we just pretend we’re doing something helpful.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:36 pmFact: Exxon Mobile, BP and others have approved permits to build state of the art refineries. They have not chosen to build said refineries.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:36 pmdoing well, dbadass, thanks, 12 to 16 hour days, haven’t had a day off in two weeks, don’t know when the next day off will be… global warming, you see, lots of fires… California is erupting…
Oh, by the way, speaking of California, anything ablaze in your neighborhood, Wesley?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:37 pmpete Says:
Fact: Exxon Mobile, BP and others have approved permits to build state of the art refineries. They have not chosen to build said refineries.
That’s what it would take to refine the high-sulphur oil. But there’s no profit in that.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:38 pmFact: Oil companies are not making long term investments while enjoying record profits.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:38 pmLooks like when faced with “facts” the victim card is played
June 24th, 2008 at 9:38 pmWesley says : Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less.
Subtext Wesley says:
Forget the Iraqi oil fields, it turns out we don’t need them! We have tons of oil!. Let’s get out of Iraq now! Mission acomplished! The US is the new goddamn Saudi Arabia! That whole Iraq thing was a cunning ploy to drive up the rpice of oil so that the richest nation in the world coyld afford to drill it’s own massive oil reserves! Stupid Arabs, stupid rest of the world. we fooled you all! BWHAHAHAHAAA! Suck on it, librulz!
Next week on the Political-Science-Fiction Channel, Wesley gets sucked into a tachyon void!
June 24th, 2008 at 9:38 pmWesleyJI Says:
Did you know about those capped wells before spouting off?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:39 pmFact: Neocons, GOOPERS and trols ALWAYS characterize honest appraisal of the flaws in their logic as “attacks” or “insults”.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:40 pmFact: Venezuela would gladly provide all the oil we can use, at a fair price, if we stopped telling them how to run their country.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:44 pmI do believe it was democrats more than republicans who supported the capping of those wells also. It was a very liberal move on behalf of the oil companies.
Baloney. they were capped because the oil companies couldn’t make a profit on the oil, back then. But now, with
$4.00 a gallon gas, it wouldn’t be so expensive – if they were to upgrade refineries to handle it. So, you didn’t know about those wells, as I suspected.
Kind of shoots holes in your “drill at all cost” assertion, eh?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:45 pmFact: The oil companies capped those wells, on their own, to protect short-term profits.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:45 pmFact: Neocons, GOOPERS, and trolls wouldn’t recognize a fact if it raped their rump with a red-hot poker.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:47 pmbarfly, my comment is this; Obama has lied to you. There is soooooooo much oil offshores in sooooo many different locations.
In already drilled wells, just waiting to be refined.
You’re the one who was lied to, but you’re too proud to admit it.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:47 pmAlright boys, that belly isn’t gonna get any redder. Of to class with you now WesleyJI
June 24th, 2008 at 9:49 pmLook, Wesley, I was living in Oklahoma back then and remember well the reasons given for capping those wells, and it had nothing to do with liberalism.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:50 pmhey barfly, don’t just answer part of my question, answer the whole thing……….if you can. And if you can’t, then i understand. You are wrong, afterall.
If there’s a question in there, I missed it.
What question?
June 24th, 2008 at 9:51 pmThe Right is feverishly trying to reposition the gas crisis as an energy crisis. We need more energy! That’s why gas is so expensive!
That is NOT why gas is so expensive. WE do NOT have gas shortages. We have plenty–at $4.50 a gallon. What the Republicans are proposing is not that ‘we’ drill for more oil, but that we let the OIL Companies drill for oil–you know, the same folks that are making record profits selling us $4.50 a gallon gas. There is absolutely no reason that if the oil companies had moe resources, that the gas would cost a penny less than it does now. Why should it? As gunclinger points out, the oil companies make so little off a barrel of oil, they can do precious little!
The only solution is to move away from oil. That isn’t a short term solution–nothing except tax holidays or plain ol’ refunds is going to ease the pain in the next four months–but it’s what we have to do.
The two disastrous properties of oil are
1) It contributes greenhouse gases to global warming
and
2) It’s only available from certain places.
That second part is something we’ve known forever. It was part of Winston Churchill’s concerns when, as First Lord of the Admiralty, he made the decision to shift the British Navy from coal to oil. Dependency on oil nearly always forces nations to become imperialist–or to stay that way. A lot of the reason Japan went to war in WWII is because they needed Indonesian oil and its supply was threatened.
Liberals and conservatives have agreed for generations that dependence on foreign oil is a bad thing. Would we have been embroiled in the Middle East if we weren’t dependent on oil? If oil were as important as, say, tin (that is to say, for certain products and processes only), we would be as interested in Iraq as we are in the Congo or in Burma. And the World Trade Center would be standing.
But in typical fashion, we farted around on being rid of our oil monkey until 1) it’s punishingly expensive, 2) the Northern Ice Cap is vanishing and 3) we’re bogged down in an imperialist war over it. And the Right is even now screaming in denial about 2) and 3).
There’s plenty of energy, most of it in forms available everywhere. The problem is that any of those forms hurts the oil companies. Even with all Ethanol’s problems, if your car could run on it, you could fill up at any farmhouse in the midwest. You could grow your own automobile fuel. Electricity is even better” that same farmhouse with a brace of windmills could sell you a recharge even while you’re buying sweet corn and fresh eggs.
Because we waited so long, it’s going to take feverish investing and development, and there’s be a lot of hardship and dislocation. The one thing that switching over to clean and location independent energy will do is eliminate the advantage of the big energy companies. They’re scared of the world success will bring.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:52 pmWesleyJI Says:
McCain is the best choice for president, no doubt.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:49 pm
______
That’s where you’re wrong. There’s quite a lot of doubt about that assertion.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:52 pmWesley JI: “The caps that were put in place in the 70’s need to be removed, but rather that will happen or not is up to speculation.”
Interesting choice of a word: speculation…
June 24th, 2008 at 9:53 pmIt now appears that the current high cost of oil is precisely because of futures speculation…
The energy market is being propelled into the future by the present greed of a few people who have little regard for the human race as a whole.
WTF? Our worthy troll asked no questions and offered no facts. Just whined because the adults won’t accept it’s fantasies. What an utter waste of protoplasm.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:54 pmFunny that speculation was brought up. Our worthy troll must not think that what happened to mortgage speculators can also happen to oil, or any other commodity, speculators.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:56 pmpbg Says:
There’s plenty of energy, most of it in forms available everywhere. The problem is that any of those forms hurts the oil companies. Even with all Ethanol’s problems, if your car could run on it, you could fill up at any farmhouse in the midwest. You could grow your own automobile fuel. Electricity is even better” that same farmhouse with a brace of windmills could sell you a recharge even while you’re buying sweet corn and fresh eggs.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
_____
I was with you up until this point – corn IS oil. From the fossil fuels that make the fertilizers to the diesel that runs the tractors to the oil that powers the electricity to refine the ethanol. Making ethanol out of a food source is asinine.
Wind power, on the other hand, is one of the keys to kicking our oil addiction.
And really, we have no business whining about $4.00 gas. That’s half what people pay in most other industrialized countries.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:56 pmI came in with sort of high hopes but was quickly disappointed. Nevar, Man you must be exhausted. What you do is very interesting to me. Get some sleep and stay safe
June 24th, 2008 at 9:57 pmWesleyJI Says:
“Well everybody, i have to be up by 4:30am, and it’s almost 8pm where i’m at, so it’s time for me to go.”
I was right about you not living on the coast. Asshat!
June 24th, 2008 at 9:57 pmGreat post pbg. There was an intersting discussio about solar energy on a local radio show. The guest had a quote that will stick with me.
“Every roof without a solar panel is a waste of energy”.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:59 pmYou’re right toasterhead. Corn ethanol, or any biomass which requires intensive farming, is stupid. Especially when things like grass, hemp, or garbage can be turned into fuel.
That being said. Ethanol will be part of the solution once we stop making it out of food.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:03 pmIf every roof had a solar panel, and were all connected in the exact same way we are presently connected to “the grid”, there would be plenty enough power for everyone. Everywhere.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:03 pmWhat is the freaking problem with hemp. Ever year this old school farmer codger in my statehouse introduces it and ever year the Reefer-Maniacs go nuts and vte it down as more and more family farms are lost to way too large house lots
June 24th, 2008 at 10:05 pmSo, lets see for some psychological relief we will ruin Florida’s tourist trade, with tarred beaches and toxics in the water oh and don’t forget the crap from the rigs washing up on the shore. We won’t even get into the ocean life ruined. But oh boy that psychological relief ! What a moron.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:06 pmWell db. One school of thought is that hemp has been outlawed by the oil and paper industry. They use the “reefer madness” angle on the ignorant. And the most distressing thing is that hemp grown for fiber, seeds and biomass, contains virtually no psychoactive ingredients. Some kid could smoke the whole field and not “freak out” in any way.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:12 pmNevar Says:
If every roof had a solar panel, and were all connected in the exact same way we are presently connected to “the grid”, there would be plenty enough power for everyone. Everywhere.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
I saw a story about a proposal, in California, to subsidize solar panels and “two way meters”. You guessed it. I don’t think it even made it to a vote.
Then there’s the company here in Minnesota which would like some government cooperation in the building of wind/solar “charging stations” for plug-in electrics. No luck there either.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:17 pmpete:
June 24th, 2008 at 10:19 pmAs if the kids of today wish to bother with field grown…
pete Says: “Some kid could smoke the whole field and not “freak out” in any way.”
Absolutely true. Different varieties of hemp have totally different properties. During WWII hemp was grown for rope fiber in Indiana, where it still grows wild along the drainage ditches. It makes a wonderful rope, and is not psychoactive in any way.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:26 pmI know.
We called it ditch weed.
pete,
June 24th, 2008 at 10:32 pmI agree. ANWR doesn’t deserver magical environmental protection or anything, however I do know a bit about oil extraction and there is nothing in the world like saudi arabian oil. It essentially lubes the pipes as it is extracted, minimal refinement. Alaska oil is hard and thick and needs a ton of refinement. Not the best situation. We should invest in tax credits for alternative energy and also allow drilling in the deep sea. It just makes sense.
Mr. NiceGuy:
June 24th, 2008 at 10:50 pmWhere are you at on simple conservation?
We should invest in tax credits for alternative energy and also allow drilling in the deep sea. It just makes sense.
Didn’t you see my posts? Drilling in sensitive areas isn’t necessary.
June 24th, 2008 at 10:57 pmDeep water drilling isn’t a lot more attractive than ANWR. I would be more positive if one additional regulation were put in place. That would be to require a floating containment system (basically a giant inflatable raft carried on a big spool) for every rig, ship and container. It would not eliminate the environmental risks but, with cheap existing technology, the risks can be greatly diminished.
And, of course, our aging refinery system needs an overhaul to see any great benefit anyway.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:08 pmShorter McIIIrd. Empty your wallet into this oil company coffer. Now, didn’t you just get a psychological lift from that wallet not weighing you down!
June 24th, 2008 at 11:27 pmMcCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’
The Dr Phil of the political world really needs to shut the hell up ………….
June 24th, 2008 at 11:43 pmMcCain: Offshore drilling provides beneficial ‘psychological impact.’
Just ask Rush. His offshore drilling of underage boys always puts him in a good mood.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:47 pmWesleyJI ignores an inconvenient truth. The Pentagon study says the biggest problem we face in the future will be from wars over food, water, and land caused by global warming.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:53 pma psychological impact that I think is beneficial
Thanks for the ‘reach-around’ Mr. McInsane.
June 25th, 2008 at 12:40 am“We’re toast if we don’t get on a very different path. This is the last chance.”
June 25th, 2008 at 2:06 amJames Hansen, NASA Climate Scientist
Placebo Johnhas spoken.
June 25th, 2008 at 2:18 pm