Posted on 08/12/2008 11:36:18 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
TV commercials touting a new clean energy strategy and an environmental ballot measure in California both have one thing in common: if they succeed, they'll make investors – from "big oil" to the U.S. Capitol – a lot of money.
The ads champion Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens' "Pickens Plan" to move our nation from foreign oil dependence to domestically produced wind power and natural gas fuel for automobiles. The plan is touted as a cleaner, more eco-friendly alternative to our current reliance on coal power and gasoline.
The ballot initiative is California's Proposition 10, known as the California Renewable Energy and Clean Alternative Fuel Act, which would spend $5 billion in California bond money ($10 billion by the time the interest is paid, according to the L.A. Times) to promote natural gas as an cleaner alternative for automobile and truck fuel.
Not surprisingly, the nation's largest provider of natural gas for transportation, Clean Energy Fuels Corporation (alternatively known as CLNE) has a great deal to gain from the adoption of Pickens' fuel strategy and the passage of Proposition 10. In fact, according to the California Secretary of State website, CLNE has contributed $3,247,250 to supporting Proposition 10's passage.
CLNE, however, was formerly known as Pickens Fuel after its primary investor, T. Boone Pickens.
(Excerpt) Read more at wnd.com ...
Where’s the ad with formerly conservative Newt making googly eyes at Plastic Nancy as she talsk about global warming??
LOL. We have known for years they have been stealing from us.
“The ads champion Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens’ “Pickens Plan” to move our nation from foreign oil dependence to domestically produced wind power and natural gas fuel for automobiles.”
A MAJOR hot button of mine - I’m so sick of the Left, especially Pelosi, quoting TBP out of context - I watched his speech to the legislature - he’s for ALL alternatives, and he specifically said that first, we MUST drill for oil here in the U.S. (also oil shale, coal, nuclear), while pursuing all the rest over time.
I respect Pickens, he is a smart guy.
But that said, I knew from the beginning that his wallet and portfolio is his primary concern, and that this wasn’t something he was pushing primarily for the good of the nation.
He is quite an expert at manipulating the public for his own profit. (I know that from experience, having made a bunch of money in 1979-80 by riding on his coat tails on one of his schemes.)
Not that there is anything wrong with him making another couple of billion bucks....
And it doesn’t mean that his basic ideas are incorrect, either.
I just resent it being sold as something he is doing out of the goodness of his heart.
And anything that profits pelosi one red cent, I’m against.
Ah-ha is right! Ping for saving later.
why can’t TBP be doing it out of the goodness of his heart and the same time entrepenuership? People do that all the time, it’s called most small business people...providing goods and services for the good of customers and for their own profit too.
Don’t you find it a little bit odd that every single piece of garbage report from WND is some kind of conspiracy to kill, destroy, or, rob the “ordinary working Joe.” Always the class-warfare folks, they are. I don’t, as well as Lars Larson, does not trust anything WND with their egos puts out. Who says populism is Capitalism? People who say that are full of it and support Barack Obama or should just pull the lever for the Sen. Obama in Nov. 2008.
God bless,
Don’t these folks realize that all those windmills will slow the rotation of the earth? If you think Global Warming is a disaster just imagine what will happen when the earth’s rotation ceases!
It is obvious that Natural Gas for cars would make Natural gas
for house heating a lot more expensive.
Pickens is getting a bum rap from those on the left and some, I will not say who on the right, have bought into the lefts’ horse manure hook, line and stinker.
I want to scream when I hear some idiot state we're "addicted to oil". It's like complaining that we require blood to carry oxygen to our brains. Obviously they're using an alternative for that as well...it ain't working...
There’s always a rub. That’s why we need to produce electricity on a massive scale and the most efficient way to do that is with nuclear reactors. We need to over produce and knock the cost down to a reasonable level. Get it down low enough and there’s not a reason in the world for a home to be running on natural gas. CNG is a great source of energy for vehicles. It’s clean and has a higher octane rating, making it more efficient. The biggest problem with CNG is the tanks required to store it in, while in use. But with some of the new stainless steel carbon fiber tanks, they’ve got the weight way down.
I’m not voting for Pelosi,,I’ve got save the planet, and taxpayer,, and women,, and the chillins,,,ain’t I sumpthin??
You can bet that ol’ T.Boone ain’t gonna tout something of this magnitude if he doesn’t have a horse in the race; a dog in the hunt, so to speak.
His financial interests in this proposal should be broadly advertised so people understand that his altruism is contrived and his message is, ultimately, self-serving.
And, the fact that SanFranNan is onboard only makes it more odiferous...
While I support the development of alternative energy sources, I would much prefer that such work be done without hoodwinking the public...
Rubenstein wrote, “But a closer read finds a laundry list of cash grabs. … Much of the measure’s billions could benefit Pickens’ company to the exclusion of almost all other clean-vehicle fuels and technology...”
...wrote Collier, “especially in light of ads by Pickens and growing consensus that the Pickens plan will gain support, especially if Pelosi is firmly behind it.”
Isn’t there something illegal about this? Is this not a form of kleptocracy? Kleptocracy in the sense she is attempting to steer funds into her own private investments?
She shutdown all debate regarding the American Energy Plan, which has the funding mechanism for alternatives. She has subordinated the economy for her own personal benefit.
Pickens' plan is an excellent one; Pelosi can eat my shorts. Also, I would vote no on letting the California Government gettting involved in any more energy initiatives.
Pickens' plan is all private enterprise and I for one don't care if he gets more wealthy. Somebody will. And it's a good plan which throws bones to the left and substitutes natural gas for refined oil, which has ALWAYS been a good idea. BTW, he addresses the issue about his personal wealth saying that he's too old to care if he becomes more wealthy. I agree with him. Wind energy is by definition decentralized so he can't dominate the market. We can't be resentful of him. If a free market is to work with a good idea somebody will make a lot of money.
We have to compromise. Extremes on both end of the spectrum will not work.
The left's extreme is wind and solar, energy conservation, no nukes and no oil drilling, higher energy taxes, radical fuel efficiency standards, maximum government involvement, forcing us into tiny cars, mopeds, and public transportation, and "doing with less." This is unworkable and would impact our economy and lifestyle.
The right's extreme is oil drilling offshore and in Alaska, lots more nuclear, ignore wind and solar, lower energy taxes, let the market work.
Pickens' plan is a middle ground which really favors us, because it lets free market forces take hold with a little bit of help from Government. It doesn't force us out of our lifestyle or raise taxes. Give it a look on his website, and check out the Youtube.com videos.
I agree...natural gas doesn’t need all of the refining that oil does and it burns alot cleaner and is alot cheaper. Makes perfect sense. I hope the car makers start marketing the their natural gas cars alot more to the average driver asap.
So the issue is a total loss for the state, with the tax payers picking up the issue. But to cap it off, they do not invest what they have, but borrow to invest at 100% interest so they can loose double on a zero return project.
Of course like all government largesse, when you dig deeper, you find their personal investments and kickback involved. It seems they do not mine flushing billions of other people dollars down the toilet if they can make a few bucks on the side. The big problem is they have become so addicted to OPiuM (Other Peoples Money) that they not only steal what we have, but by putting us in massive debt they are stealing our children's futures too.
Natural gas for cars is stupid. Gasoline works just fine. It is far more energy per pound, and much easier to handle and store. But for Pelosi to make a buck at her scheme, she not only has to steal money from the public coiffures to boost it, but she must destroy the oil industry by blocking drilling for decades to make a need to use this most unlikely fuel source.
The levels of the criminal complicity that borders on being a traitor is incredible.
God must be real pissed at these folks.
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