Rape the Environment "Energy Bill"

[UncleVinny]

Of all the obscene provisions of Bush's so-called Energy Bill, oddly enough, what I find most annoying is the extension of Daylight Savings!

Am I the only crochety old fogey complaining about this? Why do we need to monkey with the clock? Wouldn't it be easier to just ask businesses to start at 7:00 AM instead of 8:00 AM to save that hour? Next they will be messing up the calender too!

Meanwhile: other examples of environmental rape in the Bush Energy bill

- Oil drilling in Alaska
- Big tax breaks for the oil, gas, coal industries.
- Legal protection for MTBE polluters

These crimes hot on the heals of Bush dumping the Kyoto treaty, and adding to global warming.

Sometimes I'm ashamed to be an American - this is one of those times.

[UncleVinny]

Looks like oil companies made records profits last year - $205 Billion! With 100 million households in the US, that's about $2,000 from the pockets of every American family.

Thanks to George and his oil buddies, you just got screwed again! Ha ha! Well, bend over!

Some day (soon) the more intelligent Americans will wake up to the massive deception perpetrated by this trigger-happy Texan.

[TNRighty]

Vinny, Where do I start.

Daylight Savings time. I work in the energy business and I can tell you you're dead wrong about the daylight savings time extension being a bad thing. Extending DST into late Novermber and March is a good thing, and it will decrease energy consumption. The earlier the sun sets, the sooner people turn on the lights and fire up the heaters. If you extend DST into November, people will come home from work an hour earlier relative to the sunset and thus use less electricity.

During the winter our load demand spikes at about 5 O'clock when people come home from work in the dark and the cold. The first thing they do is turn on the lights and the heat, and our generation plants kick into overdrive. I can show you a winter month graph of time vs. load if you want. If you can utilize the sunlight and push that peak back an hour it saves a lot of energy and money. The whole plan is based in the theory of utilizing the sun during the most active parts of our day. It makes perfect sense. Its solar energy without the plates on your roof.

During the summer the peak daily load occurs around 3pm when the temperatures are at their highest. We can't make the sun set at 3pm, its impossible. But if we can buy ourselves some time during the colder months at the beginning and end of the day when people spend the most time in their homes, we can save a lot of energy.

Environmentalists should be first in line to support this plan...unless their hatred of Bush is more important than their environmental cause. This plan will save energy, and this is coming from someone who's paycheck comes from the profit of electricity sales.

ANWR. When ANWR was created in 1980 a section was set aside for oil exploration. It is that area in which the Senate has approved oil exploration. Imagine that. Exploring for oil in a section of ANWR that was set aside for exploring for oil. Who would have thunk it?

There are two methods the mainstream media uses to deceive television viewers when reporting on this issue. First, if they do happen to show the area where the actual exploration will take place, they will only show it in the Summer when there will be no oil exploration activity. The movement of machinery and equipment will only be permitted during the winter when the area is covered with ice, long after the migratory animals have left for greener pastures.

Second, they will show you areas of Alaska and of ANWR where there will be absolutely NO exploration or drilling. It's as if the media -- especially CNN -- is telling you "look at these wonderful mountains, pristine streams and meadows of wildflowers. How do you think oil rigs will look here? The fact is that there will be no oil exploration in the areas depicted. It's a con, a fraud ... and it is intentional.

Make no mistake, there is a huge, almost insurmountable level of ignorance about ANWR. You'll hear people talk of gently rolling grasslands, pristine rushing streams and waterfalls, snow-capped mountains. True, some parts of ANWR fit this description, but not section 1002...THE SECTION ORIGIANLLY SET ASIDE FOR OIL EXPLORATION!!!. In the winter, the only time that vehicular traffic will be permitted across the precious frozen tundra, section 1002 looks like an iced-over dirt field.

Take the highest estimate of oil reserves from ANWR, then take the lowest. Use those numbers to come up with a mean estimate of ANWR oil potential. That figure is 10.4 billion barrels of oil. That much oil could meet the total petroleum consumption needs of the state of New York for 34 years; Georgia for 54 years, Maine for 259 years, Pennsylvania for 39 years. That is not an insignificant amount of oil.

I don't want to hear anyone who opposes oil exploration in ANWR say one thing about how high gas prices are.

[Patriot]

Uncle Vinny:

How gracious of you to make your presence felt after repeatedly promising to vacate the premises. Welcome back to the Congregation. Remember: you only get 70 times 7 chances to plague the Lord's people. And by now, we're all counting down to the last few digits!

Might I offer a word of godly Republican caution on your slandering of Texas. Cease the blasphemy, please. The Alamo and the Oil rigs near it, were ordained by none other than the Almighty. Otherwise they wouldn't be there. And yes, there are a few chosen White Collars in this righteous land which have been appointed (as teacheth scripture) to wield the wand of profits. And thus I say to you, Uncle Vinny, verily verily you must take on a new perspective of these things, if you want to stay on our good side. He who knows not oil, knows not God.

He who has the oil has both the profits and the prophets.

Was it coca-cola that the prophets poured on the head of David? Was it pancake syrup? Was it lemon-iced tea? Was it pink lemonade? Was it hot coffee? No, it was oil. Where do you think they got that oil, Vinny you white-washed tomb? Know you not that Elijah presided over Enron in Engeddi? And David himself set up the first Shell Well outside the Tents of Kedar? These are righteous traditions you brood of liberal vipers. Righteous traditions.

[UncleVinny]

I agree in principle, Righty, but wouldn't it be much easier just to tell companies, you start work/school at 8:00 AM during those months, instead of changing the clock. Changing the clock monkeys with things that don't need monkeying.
Like TV programs and bus schedules. It's like the tail wagging the dog.