Picken's $700 Billion Plan

[recallsomeday]

Actually, wind (with a production tax credit) is competitive with coal.



Bottom line is that without subsidies (production tax credit) this would not be competetive and self sustaining, and would eventually go away.

Example.... new ethanol plant built in SE North Dakota, scheduled to open 2 weeks ago. Closed indefinitely because the price of corn is too HIGH, not cost effective anymore.

DOH !!

 

[Poahi]

Anybody know how to convert your car to natural gas? I've heard it's currently possible and that the mileage isn't quite as good, but natural gas is cheaper.

Are there limits on what kind of car or engine that it will work with?

 

[Kugelblitz]

Well, if it's any consolation, he can't seem to spell solar. (see video - it may be a Texas thing)

Trust me, its' a Texas thing.

 

[deadstick]

Just a few thoughts…

1) He’s putting his money where his mouth is.

2) This is a private party pushing innovation/new technology…isn’t that how our system works (in theory)?

3) The energy storage should not be an issue because, the way I understand this, the power supply will run like a hybrid. When the solar and wind generated energy is not available, the other sources will pick up the load.

4) Nobody is discussing the reduction of demand. For years we have fought a “war on drugs.” All the experts believe that education is just as important as, if not more important than, interdiction. It’s a reduction of demand. The parallel to this crisis is the need improved infrastructure (as opposed to increasing supply) in the form of mass transit, rebuilding the rail network, etc. The car manufacturers cannot just release a bunch of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles unless there is an easily accessible supply of hydrogen gas. How many gas stations are going to invest a ton of money to install a hydrogen system with no hydrogen cars on the road? It’s a chicken/egg problem.

 

[Smarta$$]

The Congressional Republicans passed bills in the House and the Senate 5 times in the 90's to open our country to drilling in the ANWR and the OCS. Bill Clinton vetoed all 5 bills.

In the 2000's the Republican controlled House passed the very same bill, but when it made it to the Republican controlled Senate it failed by 1 vote (John McCain). Thanks John, you knucklehead! Fortunately he now sees the error of his way and is FOR drilling.

Now, with the country in dire financial straights, President Bush has lifted the Presidential moratorium on drilling in the OCS, however there is still a congressional moratorium in place and the Democrats aren't budging.

If you like $4-5 gas you can thank the Democrats, they have publicly stated that the US needs to pay more for oil and gasoline. They have made it all but impossible for the US to drill for oil in our largest reserves, build nuclear power plants, build new refineries, or use clean burning coal technology. The party of "NO". We are going to reduce our way to the solution?!?!? I've seen a lot of airlines try that, it doesn't work.

I don't want to tell you who to vote for, but to say no one has a plan to reduce our foreign oil consumption problem is just outright wrong.

"Hope and Change". If you don't change, all you'll have is hope. "Hope" ain't gonna get those gas prices down.

A few things that you niglect to mention. Oil drilled out of ANWR and the OCS is not guaranteed to be sold here in the US. We send allot of oil out of alaska to Japan already.

Also, the estimates I have seen for the OCS are for about 1 million barrels per day. That is only 5% of US daily consumption. Or about .20 cents a gallon. But wait, oil is a world commodity. 1 million barrels per day is alittle bit more than 1% of daily consumption, or about a .05 cent per gallon reduction in prices. But I guess it will kill the speculators, so we should triple the affect, well say it will lower prices .15 cents per gallon!

No thanks. Republicans like say drill, drill, drill, but they aren't putting any realistic numbers with the retoric. All they say is pay less, but they won't even make a stated GUESS as to how much less. That is because they know it is almost meaningless.

I heard W make speach a few months back. He said that drilling in ANWR would "likely" bring down the cost of oil. He couldn't even say that it would. Only that it "likely" would.

It is all political. Even pickens, a life long republican and oil man says "this is one problem we can't drill our way out of". Sure he has money on the line, but that does not make him wrong.

Our policies have sent trillions of dollars over to China and India. We have almost single handedly created the growth beast that is those two countries. There is no putting that cat back in the bag. They will continue to grow as we transfer our wealth to China and India. We have created this incredible demand for oil over there. It is our fault.

Drill, drill, drill just keeps us captive's of big oil for longer. But the problem will not go away. 1-2 million barrels a day won't even make a dent.

Think about it this way, we are the only country that is not exploring its oil resorces. So if we do, and we add our little 1-2 million barrels to the GROWING world demand, the whole wopping 1-2% of supply increase is very close to meanless.

More crack doesn't cure someones addiction to crack.

And about our oil shale in the rockies, what are we going to do, strip mine the rocky mountians? That is rediculous. I don't want to visit the rockies or fly over head and see it turned into a bunch of mines.

 

[Smarta$$]

This is a great plan too for America:

www.Americansolutions.com

I disagree. It will make little difference. A drop in a very big bucket. I don't know why you guys won't put any numbers with this ********************tt.

 

[Smarta$$]

The republicans had control of the house, senate, and white house for 6 straight years, and you mention ONE vote in 2000? What were they doing about it for the next 60 MONTHS?

Money is pouring into oil futures to for various reasons i.e. hedge against inflation, money coming out of the free-falling mortgage market (both results of poor government oversight over the past 7 years). The falling dollar (thank you Iraq war!) is only exacerbating things.

The incompetence of the Bush administration is nothing short of staggering. They put us in this situation. Blaming a congress who has been in control (with the opposition party in the white house)for 18 months is pathetic.

Exactly.

 

[SWA GUY]

Hey SWA guy you seem to want to make this a political party thing. Quesiton how much oil would have anwar produced for a private oil company. Would that have been sold on the world market or just in the U.S.? How much money would have that saved the average household in America? Few pennies maybe?

The US Geological Survey says the ANWR holds about 30 Billion barrels. Thats ALOT of oil. Not to mention the oil reserves we have off the coast of Cali, WA, and in the Gulf. The ANWR oil would not go to a private oil company, but leased to the major oil companies to drill and produce for sale on the NYMEX. Pennies? Hardly.

 

[SWA GUY]

A few things that you niglect(Neglect) to mention. Oil drilled out of ANWR and the OCS is not guaranteed to be sold here in the US. It doesn't matter, it will drive crude oil prices on the NYMEX to reasonable levels. We send allot of oil out of alaska to Japan already.

Also, the estimates I have seen for the OCS are for about 1 million barrels per day. Really? Are these the same people that estimate it'll take 17 years to get oil from the ANWR. It only took 3 years to build the entire Alaska pipline. No, No, No is the attitude that got us in this mess. That is only 5% of US daily consumption. Or about .20 cents a gallon. But wait, oil is a world commodity. 1 million barrels per day is alittle bit more than 1% of daily consumption, or about a .05 cent per gallon reduction in prices. But I guess it will kill the speculators, so we should triple the affect, well say it will lower prices .15 cents per gallon!

No thanks. Republicans like say drill, drill, drill, but they aren't putting any realistic numbers with the retoric. Yes they are, you're not listening. All they say is pay less, but they won't even make a stated GUESS as to how much less. That is because they know it is almost meaningless. Right.

I heard W make speach a few months back. He said that drilling in ANWR would "likely" bring down the cost of oil. He couldn't even say that it would. Only that it "likely" would.

It is all political. Even pickens, a life long republican and oil man says "this is one problem we can't drill our way out of". Sure he has money on the line, but that does not make him wrong.

Our policies have sent trillions of dollars over to China and India. We have almost single handedly created the growth beast that is those two countries. There is no putting that cat back in the bag. They will continue to grow as we transfer our wealth to China and India. We have created this incredible demand for oil over there. It is our fault.

Drill, drill, drill just keeps us captive's of big oil for longer. But the problem will not go away. 1-2 million barrels a day won't even make a dent.

Think about it this way, we are the only country that is not exploring its oil resorces. So if we do, and we add our little 1-2 million barrels to the GROWING world demand, the whole wopping 1-2% of supply increase is very close to meanless.

More crack doesn't cure someones addiction to crack.

And about our oil shale in the rockies, what are we going to do, strip mine the rocky mountians? That is rediculous. I don't want to visit the rockies or fly over head and see it turned into a bunch of mines. quote]

Have you seen where the ANWR is? It's already a wasteland. Not that drilling in 2000 of the 19,000,000 acres makes much of an impact. You are playing into the hand of the people that are against energy independence at all costs. It's obvious that you've taken on a defeatist attitude as the Democrats have. This country can do anything it wants, but only if people have the will.[/

 

[SWA GUY]

The republicans had control of the house, senate, and white house for 6 straight years, and you mention ONE vote in 2000? Ya gotta have 60 votes in the Senate pass anything. Civics 101 my dear. What were they doing about it for the next 60 MONTHS? How about the entire time the Dems controlled Congress, zero.

Money is pouring into oil futures to for various reasons i.e. hedge against inflation, money coming out of the free-falling mortgage market (both results of poor government oversight over the past 7 years). The falling dollar (thank you Iraq war!) is only exacerbating things.

The incompetence of the Bush administration is nothing short of staggering. They put us in this situation. Blaming a congress who has been in control (with the opposition party in the white house)for 18 months is pathetic.

That dastardly GW Bush, he's a bad King! Whaa! First it was the hurricanes, now it's oil and the war! I seem to remember many, many Dems voted for the way, then politicized it. Disgusting group!