Thursday, October 21, 2010

Keep Texas Oil Money Out of California Politics

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NO on Proposition 23: Proposition 23 is the Dirty Energy Proposition sponsored by Big Oil that would halt implementation of AB 32. Because California establishes economic and social trends for the nation, this election will tell the world whether the US is ready to lead the clean global economy of the 21st Century.
NO on Proposition 26: Proposition 26 is a dangerous initiative that eliminates the ability of state agencies and the legislature to hold polluters accountable for harm caused by their activities. Prop 26 would redefine environmental and health fees as "taxes" and requiring them to pass by a two-thirds supermajority.
YES on Proposition 21: When it comes to state park protection, NRDC Action Fund supports Proposition 21, a measure that will help keep our state parks open and accessible to all.
YES on Proposition 25: We support Proposition 25, which would help end budget gridlock by removing the two-third vote requirement to pass the state budget, making it a simple majority vote.
NRDC Action Fund Recommends: NO on Props 23 & 26; YES on 21 & 25
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51 comments:

  1. Enron's gone now. What is the point of this? Talk about appeal to emotion.

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  2. Convince us that Texan-based corporate gouging of Californian citizens went extinct with Enron-style market manipulation, & we'll concede to your appeal to emotion.

    Otherwise, expect to see a pushback of Golden State proportions.

    “We write to urge you to divest these substantial public resources from these companies who profit off of Californians’ financial pain. CalPERS and CalSTRS should not be investing in Texas oil companies that hurt the California economy, no more than they should invest in companies that spend millions of shareholder dollars to undermine California’s environmental laws and the state’s green energy industries and green tech jobs.”

    “[Valero and Tesoro] don’t care about California or what’s right. They care about one thing: protecting the rich profits they rake in from California drivers who pay the highest gasoline prices in the country…The people of California will not stand for it. CalPERS and CalSTRs should not stand for it either.”

    Tesoro Banks On High Gas Prices In California, Touts “West Coast Premium”

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  3. I didn't say that "Texan-based corporate gouging of Californian citizens went extinct with Enron-style market manipulation". The video you posted is a shameless appeal to emotion. I find it insulting that campaigns resort to using fallacious drivel to sway votes.

    Additionally, I find it interesting that you chose the Enron video to lead instead of the other one. If I remember correctly the other video at least references the players in the current game. Instead, you chose to stir it up. Alternatively, you could have used the link you just provided in your response above. It is much more thoughtful and reasoned than that hooey you originally posted. But no, you went with the Enron video, knowing full well how people feel about it here in Houston.

    So, to make a long story short, I object to the manner in which you presented this issue, not to the issue itself. You are deliberately trying to provoke and incite. I suppose you succeeded, but it's just me, and I don't think I really count.

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  4. Green witches in league with devil's advocates? Who would've guessed it?

    All emotional appeals aside, allow us a cerebral response to your allegations.

    First, this ad is designed to run in the Golden State, not the Enron state. While The Devil's Chaplain is hardly a Houston-based blog.

    Secondly, the science & issue have already been so politicized by Texas Big Oil Money that even a red witch would be naive to say otherwise. So, the modus operandi of Tesoro & Valero (whose stock we dumped awhile back) are indeed reminiscent of the Enron capers & most certainly relevant to California voters.

    Thirdly, the typical voter ofttimes needs help framing complex issues, never mind the particulars. Unfortunate, perhaps, but a fact of life, even in progressive California.

    Fourth, we thought we already cleared that up. We virtually never provoke or incite; we spark discussion.

    And last but not least, every twick or tweet counts. Why else would we retrieve your comments from spam?

    Would you prefer we retrieve some of Gov. Rick Perry's appeals to base emotions instead?

    Or Congressman Joe Barton's.

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  5. My turn:


    Regarding your first point - are you telling me it's pure coincidence that you just happened to post a link to your blog right after you posted that Enron video?

    Second and third points - okay, I'll give those to you. It's dirty, but it's all dirty, as you point out, and not everyone is a political genius. (And because I can admit if I'm not exactly right, unlike someone we both know...)

    Sparking discussion: I don't think we'll ever agree on that point. Your "sparking" seems awfully close to provocation to me.

    What do you mean, retrieving my comments from spam?

    Please don't even bother bringing up those yahoos - Perry and especially Barton. How embarrassing.

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  6. Besides, we don't want no driveling Texas oilmen out here trying to gum up our clean energy future, now do we?

    Solar Energy Can Generate 4.2% of U.S. Power Supplies by 2020

    "Investments in solar energy reaching $100 billion during the next decade would boost capacity to 44,000 megawatts, up from 1,400 megawatts today, the London-based research and analysis company said today in a statement."

    Can you imagine what 44 GW of nuke plants would cost us today? 5 to 10 times as much, easy. And there'd still be the hot waste to contend with.

    "Commercial solar systems will make up about half of total installations, with the remainder split evenly between residential rooftops and large utility-scale plants. About 2.4 percent of households will have a solar system by 2020, the group said."

    And a panel on every bus, as Warren Buffett would have it.

    "BYD recently launched an all-electric bus that uses a large solar energy system on top of the bus that works in conjunction with battery storage to give the bus a range of about 190 miles on a single charge. Undoubtedly some of LDK’s wafers will be used to make solar panels for these buses as well."

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  7. You're off your bearings again. A true provocateur would've posted the Enron link at SciGuy in Houston, not at The Devil's Chaplain in SoCal.

    So, you concede on #2 & #3, good. We can work you over on the rest later.

    Yes, this & the last one, direct to spam. Make sure you're not broadcasting to the entire world.

    We are wrong more often than we like to admit, so let it be.

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  8. I have no earthly idea why that would happen. I am really puzzled.

    Well, dammit, I guess you got #1 as well. I will take your word for it and chalk it up to coincidence.

    You should try admitting to being wrong every once in a while - it's quite refreshing and takes the pressure off. ;-)

    Hmm... I wonder if Buffet is learning Mandarin? (That's a joke.) Speaking of energy, hopefully next Monday I will be learning a bit more about our energy policy - if I registered in time. I am not sure if I did or not - sometimes my anti-ad blinders work a bit too well.

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  9. And it's 1,2,3, what are we fightin' four?

    Since 4 & 5 are gimmees, guess we'll just have to declare Mission Accomplished.

    Wrong? Us? Where?

    Even if Ken Lay & Jeff Skilling were keynote speakers, you couldn't stack that oil panel any more:

    - ConocoPhillips
    - Newfield Exploration
    - Devon Energy

    Don't mess with California!

    Word is Warren's fallin' in love with China.

    Even Buffett says China is the place to be


    “Almost anyone, a third-grade child from America, can see that this economy is booming,” Mr. Buffett said at a briefing today in the southern Chinese city of Changsha. China’s transformation is “unlike anything that’s ever taken place in history.”

    And his likely successor is a Chinese hedge fund manager.

    Li Lu, the hedge fund manager who helped arrange Berkshire’s BYD investment, may push Mr. Buffett’s company to make more deals outside the U.S.... Berkshire’s Munger expects Mr. Li, former president of the Student Congress on Tiananmen Square, to become a top investment official at Berkshire, the Wall Street Journal reported in July.

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  10. Wow, old video. I am amazed they had moving color pictures way back then.

    Y'all are delusional. Mission Accomplished indeed. I will never agree to point 4. Point 5 depends upon which twick.

    Buffet clearly knows what he is talking about. He has definitely put his 10,000 hours in, and then some.

    I have more to say regarding oil companies, but it will have to wait until later.

    And FYI, old dude, it's Don't Mess with Texas.

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  11. Had to extricate you from the spam filter again, thank you. Next time, try cleaning the road-tar off your broomstick first. Posted a trouble call to Blogger management.

    Ah, the 60's, those were the days, my friend.

    We'll leave the delusional to Glenn Beck.

    Li Lu is the real brains behind conservative Berkshire Hathaway's aggressive move into China. Warren's ready to turn over the keys of the kingdom.

    Good heavens, child, not anymore.

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  12. re: And his likely successor is a Chinese hedge fund manager.

    However, we stand corrected...

    "Lou Li, a Chinese-American hedge fund manager, who was a candidate in the running but decided to bow out, said he is comfortable in his current life and not interested in assuming the role Mr. Combs assumes. But imagine if Mr. Li was designated a senior confidant for emerging market investments."

    Maybe.

    "While Berkshire is a broadly diversified company with investments in many sectors of the economy, the financial sector continues to be a significant part of the overall investment portfolio. General Re, Geico, and Berkshire Hatahway Assurance spin off huge cash flow that provides for opportunities for other investment ideas. XTRA Lease and investments in Goldman Sachs again underscore the focus on financial services. Enter Todd Combs."

    Maybe not.

    "Imagine a Berkshire Hathaway with a core investment leader who understands the overall assets in the company's portfolio and utilizes other parties around the world to integrate new companies into the investment portfolio. It is a strategy focused on building a team."

    Todd Combs: Buffetts Next Strategic Investment

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  13. Love it! Road-tar! Let me know how that works out - I am curious as to what the issue is.

    Beautiful girl and beautiful voice. Don't think I ever heard the original version - thanks for sharing that.

    OMG. Glenn Beck is my hero - what are you talking about? I mean, he's a conservative Mormon (is there any other kind?) - it doesn't get any better than that! He's anti-communist and he cries on TV - what's not to like?

    Buffet is brilliant - he knows how to choose, whether it's the right investment or the right team. He has done his homework. I really respect his work ethic.

    Regarding Big Bad Oil:

    "Nevertheless, a villain must be found and I nominate us. Toss a rock in the air, it’ll hit someone guilty. There’s no pleading innocent when the evidence is as high as the nearest landfill. Every car, every building, every piece of plastic is manifestation of our collective culpability."

    I don't necessarily agree with everything David Pierotti says but he's got this one right. And he says it so beautifully I might be persuaded to change my mind on the rest. Thanks for sharing that website with me.

    Holy smokes, old dude, I think you must spend a lot of time surfing. I thought I did, but you eclipse me.

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  14. Whatever you did, you weren't shipped off to the spam dungeon that time.

    So where'd you ditch that natural aversion to deliberate provokers and inciters, sister? Anyone with half a brain knows Glenn Beck is a dangerous hate & fear mongering megalomaniac who practices what he preaches by foaming at the mouth on hate right radio & FEAR FAUX NEWS. A Jack Benny he's not.

    And when you toss a rock in the air, & it hits you smack on the forehead, guilty is probably the least of your problems.

    However, redemption is on its way. And if you wanna sneak-peak at the embarrassing potential of Texas renewable energy, mount that big bad broomstick & hightail it over to San Antone on the 7th for a wake up call, Hilda.

    San Antonio Business Leaders Find Worldwide Solar Industry Awakening To Texas Potential

    Now, those are the kinds of deliberating Texans you can count on to make it all happen sooner than later:

    • Keynote Luncheon speaker PUC Chairman Barry Smitherman
    • Brian Lloyd, deputy director, budget, planning & policy, Office of the Governor, the State of Texas
    • Dan Woodfin, director of system planning, ERCOT
    • Dub Taylor, director, SECO
    • Jess Totten, director of policy, PUC
    • Doug Ridge, manager, Texas Industry Cluster Initiative, Office of the Governor, the State of Texas
    • Dwain Rogers, deputy commissioner renewable energy, Texas General Land Office

    And FYI, we don't surf; we cruise. Smokin'!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Okay, well, I really cannot tell you what the deal is. I will say that I have followed the exact same procedure each time I reply: Open email, click on "post a comment". Write a response. Edit two million times. Click "Publish..." ?????

    Do you know that for the last couple of responses from you I have received two emails? The second one is slightly edited - an additional comment or whatever. I hope you aren't getting two million responses from me???

    Of course the Beck thing was just a joke. I hope I don't have to point them all out? You should know by now how I feel about religion and politics.

    San Antone, eh? That's where I was born and raised. My parents are still there. My dad might be interested, but they are rabid Republicans, so I am not so sure. I would love to attend - it sounds very very interesting.

    I learned to read using the Sunday comics, including Broom Hilda - thanks for the nice memories!

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  16. Forgot to say that I thoroughly enjoyed that David Arquette ad - cleverly done, even if it's ripped off of Texas and has no real substance. But that's Hollywood for you: tons of style, zero substance.

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  17. Eyeball those couple pair of responses a tad closer & find they both exhibit eensy weensy edits second time around.

    We caught the sarcasm, but you can never be too sure about the legions of lurkers around here.

    So, you're Sunday schooled in witchcraft but not in advertising. The most effective ads hit your hot button[s], often subliminally. Behold!

    Now, what did you see? How did you feel? What message did you get?

    Now what did the target audience see? How did they feel? What message did they get?

    Remember, this was run during the 1984 Super Bowl XVIII.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Re: "Eyeball those couple pair of responses a tad closer" - Right, that would be the "whatever" I referenced in my response. Guess I should have been more specific.

    Re: "sarcasm" - Hmm... I have a bad habit of doing that. No worries - I can always count on you to put it all into context. If not, people I don't know and will never meet will just have the wrong impression. Just in case there are some lurkers out there, let me just add that I have two sisters who live in the Pacific Northwest. Politically, they are polar opposites to my parents. Sadly, my sisters are perfect specimens of ultra-lib Dems. Poor me, I am stuck right smack dab in the middle. We truly have the most awesome holidays!

    Re: The 1984 Apple Macintosh Super Bowl Ad. Ah, I really don't know what I am "supposed" to feel, to be honest. Looking at it now, out of context, is obviously not the same. I can only guess what people at the time thought.

    I don't remember the ad, although it is apparently quite famous. It's very clever - not surprising for Apple. They played on the whole Cold War hysteria, as did lot of the pop culture at the time (some of which I do remember.) Apple was introducing a real revolution in personal computing - a push back against the rows and rows of gray IBM pc mind-controlled clones. I imagine the ad was designed to make people feel uncomfortable and uneasy. No doubt there is much more to it. I am sure the impact, at the time, was enormous.

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  19. Ask a guy how he feels when watching that super Apple ad, but don't expect a totally honest answer.

    And, should you make it over to San Antone on the 7th, be sure to ask your state energy planners how Texas can corral their share of the solar stampede.

    Sunny Countries May Add 1,100 Gigawatts in Solar Panels by 2030

    "Countries in the world’s sunniest regions led by China, India and Mexico may buy as much as 1,100 gigawatts in solar panels over the next 20 years, 50 times the world’s current capacity."

    That's 1.1 Terawatts, or, to give it some perspective, 11 times the capacity of the entire U.S. commercial nuclear fleet of .1 terawatts (100 GW).

    "The price of such systems will fall by about 50 percent over the next 10 years as improving technology expands the conditions in which they can compete with conventional power."

    While the cost of new nukes stampedes in the other direction.

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  20. Clearly then, I am not a guy. Just out of curiosity, how many people write as IANVS? At least two by my count, if not more.

    I want to go to San Antonio on the 7th, but I already have to be there the weekend after. That's a lot of driving in a week's time. I am strongly considering it anyway.

    I am happy I finally got my confirmation regarding the Energy Policy panel discussion. I hope I will get some good info out of it. I am thinking it will be useful - it's only an hour and half, so it will be short and sweet, which typically means cutting to the chase.

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  21. Probably no more than "gabriellyn". Didn't know you were Malaysian Chinese, though.

    You may be pleasantly surprised to find that San Antonio is very serious about renewable energy. Don't tell the folks.

    We wholly [holy?] expect Texas to be a big player as soon as all the bad actors are outed & held under the microscope.

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  22. Hahahaha. She's cute though. But she is she, and I am me.

    Money is a powerful motivator. And Texas is a GREAT state, so I am not surprised nor am I worried. Houston is the Energy Capital of the World. San Antonio is a great convention/tourist city.

    And I just found out I have been missing some fun between friends. I guess a vacation from blogging isn't the same as a vacation from comment approval.

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  23. One more thing - I love how you rarely give me any straight answers. Just because I don't press doesn't mean I am completely oblivious to your evasions.

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  24. Whatever. Your energy capital of the world link cites a Jan 2008 article, & we shouldn't have to remind you that the world & the White House may see things a bit different these days.

    Just don't let any of those old friends (or adversaries) try & tell you that you & Texas are too old & set in your ways to be runnin' against the wind.

    Wind Power Could Provide a Fifth of World's Electricity by 2030

    "A new study by the Global Wind Energy Council and Greenpeace International reports that wind could meet 12% of global power demand by 2020, and up to 22% by 2030. ... The 1,000 gigawatts (GW) of wind power capacity projected to be installed by 2020 would preclude the emission of as much as 1.5 billion tons of CO2 every year. By 2030, the world would be spared a total of 34 billion tons of CO2 by 2,300 GW of wind power capacity."

    2,300 Gigawatts. 2.3 Terawatts. In only 20 years. Let that sink in for a minute.

    "According to GWEO 2010, wind energy is also becoming a substantial factor in economic development, now providing more than 600,000 "green collar" jobs both in direct and indirect employment. By 2030, the number of jobs is projected to increase to over 3 million. ... Wind energy is already a mainstream power generation source in many countries, and it is now deployed in more than 75 countries around the world."

    The Santa Anas are up. Time to flex those leg muscles, girl.

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  25. And you have us all wrong. We are as straight as they come.

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  26. Whatever??????? Did I just read that right? I think I may fall over and die from laughter! I have never seen you use that word! How bourgeois of you.

    On a more serious note - you are right, though - certain powerful people seem to definitely have it in for Texas these days.

    Re: Wind Power article. "600,000 green collar jobs" - cute! I'm with you on this, okay? You don't have to cite link after link - I got it the first 200 times. I swear, I have read so much on it lately it's practically oozing out of my pores.

    Re: straight, eh? I am so not going anywhere near that one.

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  27. Oh, forgot to mention I remember listening to that song on my little AM radio, back in the day. Fantabulous song!

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  28. I guess this is what I get for complaining, huh?

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  29. Gators are a'chompin' at the ankles, so we'll be busy draining the swamp for a few days. Later.

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  30. There's a lot more where that came from, girl.

    By our count, you've caught less than 2% of our droppings.

    Man up, as witless witches are fond of saying.

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  31. Seriously? Only 2%? Guess I better quit skimming and buckle down. Oh wait, that would require time. Apparently you have oodles of it - simply not fair. Maybe when I am old and gray like you... Wonder how long it takes for green to turn gray?

    re: Man up
    You know you're wrong about that - why perpetuate it? Why can't you just admit when you goof up?

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  32. Many Californians prefer a more progressive attitude about that & other social mores.

    Busy tending a work crew on the property today.

    Why don't you go console Paul K & his dilemna.

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  33. re: Many Californians prefer a more progressive attitude about that & other social mores.

    Maybe not so much. For the record, I absolutely support legalization. I know, shocking. I actually stated my position unequivocally.

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  34. re: "For the record"

    [Had to retrieve that one from spam.]

    As did we but equivocally.

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  35. I'll have to think of a clever response in the morning. Forgot my Super B this morning so I am fading fast...

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  36. re: You've got a lot to learn, baby.

    I'm sorry, is that a problem? I thought you were in favor of continuing education.

    I think I may have discovered why some comments sneak into spam. Maybe. Could be that when I publish from the preview pane it somehow causes it to go to spam?

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  37. As long as you put the lame where it belongs, no hay problema.

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  38. Argh! Lame indeed. I had to read that four times to catch it. My brain has amazing auto-correct powers.

    Hablas Espanol?

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  39. Wow. I already know you are old. You don't have to compose an entire YouTube essay to prove it.

    Very nice ancient naval videos though. I thoroughly enjoyed those. Thank you very much for sharing.

    Kinda personal though - aren't you revealing too much information?

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  40. re: "Of, if you really wanna trim..."

    Really? Why do you keep doing that?????? You must know that it is driving me batty.

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