GOP Abandons ANWR Oil Exploration

[python416]

Perhaps you misunderstand what I said. It IS real, and we have proof that it has happened in the past, without the influence of man. So whether or not man is a major contributor to the issue, we WILL get cycles of warming, and cooling. The thing to do is prepare for it, adapt to it, because it is bigger than us, and adapting is about all we will be able to do. Man's influence may, or may not, hasten the onset of warming, or the next ice age, but we will have to deal with it when it comes, either way it comes.
There are other reasons for using less of our oil, coal, gas, etc. But so far, nearly all I see and read about indicates that our leaders are only looking to produce more, instead of finding ways to use less.

Yes that is the problem.

As for the cycles of warming and cooling, I think that since the infrared reflective properties of greenhouse gases (which is why they were named as such) is well known, it is a direct logical conclusion that large amounts (tons of it) floating up into the atmosphere will cause the earth to trap more energy. We don't need a time machine to verify that logic; we just need to accept it. This science is pretty sound.

 

[Navy Pride]

As Yogi Berra says "Its not over until its over." The bill is still alive in the Senate and I believe they will work out a compromise.........

The sad part is the left whines about gas prices and are dependence on oil but far be it to bother the caribou in ANWAR who love the pipe line already there and stan along side it to keep warm.........

 

[ALiberalModerate]

And this is why the Dems and even modern Reps have their heads up there asses . . . ever hear of a little thing called states rights? The federal government should not trump what's best for the individual states.

Alaska gets more pork per capita than any other state in the nation. If it were not for the federal taxpayer, Alaska would be worse off than a third world nation. All this would be is more taxpayer funded pork and would do nothing for the price at the pump or to reduce our dependence on foreign oil as it would take nearly 20 years to hit full production and even then daily production would not even add up to 1% of the world's daily consumption.

Look, I am not totally against it. I am just saying that that all of us taxpayers who actually own the land would not get much out of this at all and sometimes undisturbed pristine wilderness, the very rare commodity that it is, is worth more than lining the pockets of oil companies and an Alaska job program.

 

[Kandahar]

Alaska gets more pork per capita than any other state in the nation. If it were not for the federal taxpayer, Alaska would be worse off than a third world nation.

Pork rarely helps anyone, including the "beneficiaries" of it. Just because Alaska elects idiots who know how to bring home the bacon, doesn't mean they'd be a third-world country without it.

All this would be is more taxpayer funded pork and would do nothing for the price at the pump or to reduce our dependence on foreign oil as it would take nearly 20 years to hit full production and even then daily production would not even add up to 1% of the world's daily consumption.

I agree that there's not a lot of oil there. But if the market conditions are such that oil companies are willing to pay big bucks to drill there, they obviously feel that there is a profit to be made. There's nothing unethical or evil about that; if it would bring jobs to Alaska, and the Alaskans don't have a problem with drilling, I'm all for it.

Look, I am not totally against it. I am just saying that that all of us taxpayers who actually own the land would not get much out of this at all and sometimes undisturbed pristine wilderness, the very rare commodity that it is, is worth more than lining the pockets of oil companies and an Alaska job program.

If I may borrow a line from Alan Alda, ANWR is not the Grand Canyon. This "undisturbed pristine wilderness" goes almost completely unused by the American people (fewer than ten thousand visitors per year). Even if you were taking a trip to Alaska, ANWR would most likely not be very high on your list of sites to see.

Frame the argument in terms of environmentalism if you will (although the Alaskans seem willing to make that trade), but let's not pretend that this land is worth more as a barren tundra than it would be as an oil field (which would cover only a very small percentage of ANWR anyway).

 

[Navy Pride]

Alaska gets more pork per capita than any other state in the nation. If it were not for the federal taxpayer, Alaska would be worse off than a third world nation. All this would be is more taxpayer funded pork and would do nothing for the price at the pump or to reduce our dependence on foreign oil as it would take nearly 20 years to hit full production and even then daily production would not even add up to 1% of the world's daily consumption.

Look, I am not totally against it. I am just saying that that all of us taxpayers who actually own the land would not get much out of this at all and sometimes undisturbed pristine wilderness, the very rare commodity that it is, is worth more than lining the pockets of oil companies and an Alaska job program.

You know they said the first pipeline from Alaska only had a small supply of oil and its been over 20 years and they are still pumping oil from there.......

What if ANWAR is another source just like that? Wouldn't it be nice to be paying $1.50 for a gallon of gas again and be off of dependency from the Arabs?

Think about it........

 

[danarhea]

Seems to me that after all the hurricanes in the gulf area lately, there should be some incentive to look elsewhere for oil, and for refinery capacity.

Exactly, and that is why the east and west coasts need to be opened up. There are plenty of platforms in the gulf, but the beaches at Corpus Christi, Padre Island, Freeport are some of the nicest you will ever see in this country.

Another note: With all the platforms in the gulf that were damaged, you would think there would be a lot of oil washing up on third coast beaches, but that is not the case. If a well gets disconnected from its platform, it automatically shuts off the flow of oil. Result? No oil spills at all. Also, the tarballs washing up on the beaches of California were never the result of drilling offshore there. They used to drill there, but it got shut down because of the tarballs. Those tarballs came from a geological subduction zone, not from the oil rigs.

The problem is with environmentalists. While they are doing good work in some areas, oil exploration is not one of them. Fact is, oil exploration and drilling have made huge technological strides in the last 30 years, and are pretty clean operations nowadays, compared to what they used to be.

Bottom line - The oil is there. Lets get it. That will tide us over so that we can develop the technology to move to a hydrogen economy in the next 20 years. With the additional sources, along with the tar sands in Alberta, we will be doing OK, which is a lot more than you can say for the rest of the world. People talk about all the oil in the Middle East, but when that runs out, we will still have plenty over here.

 

[Trajan Octavian Titus]

I say oil is as primitive as wale oil, we should find alternative energy sources ie hydrogen and nuclear energy, do you know that France has more nuclear power facilities than the entire U.S. combined? WTF is the deal with that?

 

[Kandahar]

I say oil is as primitive as wale oil, we should find alternative energy sources ie hydrogen and nuclear energy, do you know that France has more nuclear power facilities than the entire U.S. combined? WTF is the deal with that?

France has probably been the strongest proponent of nuclear power in the world for the last 25+ years. It's a very pro-technology, pro-science country, whereas the United States has large numbers of anti-science nuts on both the right (Christians) and the left (environmentalists).

I agree with you about needing to find alternative energy sources, for the simple reason that it has become a matter of national security.

 

[Trajan Octavian Titus]

France has probably been the strongest proponent of nuclear power in the world for the last 25+ years. It's a very pro-technology, pro-science country, whereas the United States has large numbers of anti-science nuts on both the right (Christians) and the left (environmentalists).

I agree with you about needing to find alternative energy sources, for the simple reason that it has become a matter of national security.

plenty of room here in the middle (just some warning my middle welcomes right wing nuts who need a refresher in the constitution more than we do left wing anarchists who try to elimante the constitution).:mrgreen:

bye the bye welcome to the libertarians that post sealed the deal (a little more warning; :shoot, you know this is a reactionary movement right?) umm best explanation as possible to the lay man not intrenched in the ins and outs of poli sci jargin: we're conservative in views yet radical in expression.

 

[UtahBill]

Bottom line - The oil is there. Lets get it. That will tide us over so that we can develop the technology to move to a hydrogen economy in the next 20 years. With the additional sources, along with the tar sands in Alberta, we will be doing OK, which is a lot more than you can say for the rest of the world. People talk about all the oil in the Middle East, but when that runs out, we will still have plenty over here.

Nuclear is viable now, Hydrogen will take longer than 20 years to switch to.
I think diesel cars, and hybrid cars are the short term answer. Diesel fuel gets far more mileage and is easier to refine from crude.
But the ONE THING that we have to do in conjuntion with obtaining more from our existing reserves is to USE LESS of it, not just substitute it with something else. Too much is wasted, and that is something we can work on now, with little or no expense to do so.
Consider this, buildings account for two-fifths of America's energy consumption and generate a third of its carbon dioxide emissions.
It isn't just cars that we need to make more efficient.:shock:

 

[Navy Pride]

I say oil is as primitive as wale oil, we should find alternative energy sources ie hydrogen and nuclear energy, do you know that France has more nuclear power facilities than the entire U.S. combined? WTF is the deal with that?

It is very hard to build nuclear facilities when the democratic party in the congress is in the back pocket of the environmentalists left wing whackos.......

 

[UtahBill]

It is very hard to build nuclear facilities when the democratic party in the congress is in the back pocket of the environmentalists left wing whackos.......

Actually, some of the environmental groups are beginning to support nuclear. They finally recognize that it is the most viable source of clean power available to us.