The Violence Worker!

Turning Out The Lights

The Obama Administration is hell bent on running the coal powered power plants out of business.  He told us he would bankrupt the coal industry back when he was running for president, but people were either unwilling or too stupid to believe he would do such a thing.  SURPRISE!!! He is poised to do just that.

From FOX NEWS:

Power plant operators are nervously awaiting a new Environmental Protection Agency regulation, finalized last week, which requires more than 1,000 facilities, including more than 500 coal-fired plants, to meet stricter emissions standards so as not to pollute neighboring states.

The regulation, called the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, calls for plants to install scrubbers to lower particulate emissions in states that are downwind.

Except that it might cause a few problems.

Industry studies suggest that the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, when coupled with other EPA regulations, could force the closure of scores of coal-fired power plants, raise the price of electricity by as much as 23 percent in some areas, and cause 1.4 million job losses by 2020.

Environmentalists insist that sure, it might cost a little more, but it will not be the downer they say.

Environmentalists dispute those findings, suggesting that retrofitting scrubbers in hundreds of power plants nationwide will produce thousands of short-term jobs. John Walke of the Natural Resources Defense Council says the costs borne by utilities and electricity consumers will be made up by the recouping of lost productivity, illness and death caused by pollution.

The EPA says the new rule will ultimately protect 240 million Americans in 27 states from smog and soot pollution and  prevent up to 34,000 premature deaths, 15,000 nonfatal heart attacks and 1.8 million sick days.

"The happy news about EPA's clean air protections will be to reduce premature deaths from heart attacks, and asthma attacks in states that are home to 240 million American, enabling people to go to work and school when they would normally have to stay home sick," Walke said.

He adds that the cost to power plant operators of installing scrubbers, which can run into the millions of dollars, is not as burdensome as the industry contends.

So who is correct and who isn't?  Hard question. Probably both are skewed.  I haven't seen the studies from either group, but just like the fictional Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, I depend upon my gut.  My gut tells me that the industry might be high-balling the stats and feeding us worst case scenarios, but the EPA and the Environmentalists are out there in left field. 

First there is the short term job thing - THOUSANDS OF THEM!  Really?  And that helps how?  I've worked a short term job or two.  They are usually low paying, offer few, if any, benefits and contribute little to the economy.  Try getting a home loan and telling the bank that your job will only last a few months.  That is NOT a plus.

Next is the statistics of tens of thousands of premature deaths prevented and that almost 2 million sick days will not be used.  I'm calling Bull Twinkies here, folks.  I'm willing to bet those numbers aren't just best case scenario, I'm willing to bet they are made up out of whole cloth.  I can see some benefits, obviously, but in the name all that is sacred and profane, don't treat me as if I'm a complete idiot!  I don't think those numbers and reality are even close enough to be in the same galaxy!

No one wants to breathe dirty air.  I get it.  But common sense tells you that people will lose jobs and our electricity rates will most likely skyrocket.  It also tells you that they will probably have to close some plants down and brownouts will be a way of life. 

And then there's the loss of industry.

"Over the last 20 years we've seen manufacturing move to parts of the country where energy is affordable, so you don’t see a lot of manufacturing in California or in the old industrial areas of New York," Holmstead said. "It's mostly in the Midwest and Southeast. And the problem is all of the industries compete in the global market. As the EPA continues to regulate the cost of energy higher, they can't compete in the global market place."

They can't continue to eat the costs of higher and higher energy costs.

Welcome to the third world.

VW

Controlling The Individual

There is nothing liberal about liberalism except control.  Liberalism seeks to expand the power of government and that necessarily includes control over individuals. Liberalism demands that the freedom of individual be surrendered for the "greater good" of society.  The greater good usually involves limiting the freedom of an individual if (in the liberal view) it somehow results in furthering societal goals.  One of my favorite quotes states:

Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.  (Alexis de Tocqueville)

Liberty means you can make decisions for your life.  Liberty means that you are responsible for you and your actions.  Socialism seeks to take away individual freedom and replace it with a societal nanny state that controls almost every aspect of your life.  Correct me if I'm wrong here, but it is the left that seeks to control every aspect of your life from where you  live, what you drive, what you eat and what you buy. 

In England, Lord Smith of Finsbury wants to control the environment by controlling you.  

Lord Smith of Finsbury believes that implementing individual carbon allowances for every person will be the most effective way of meeting the targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

It would involve people being issued with a unique number which they would hand over when purchasing products that contribute to their carbon footprint, such as fuel, airline tickets and electricity.

Like with a bank account, a statement would be sent out each month to help people keep track of what they are using.

In order to properly calculate your usage, they would have to know every aspect of your life.  Proponents contend it would only effect those who were extravagant, but rarely is that the case.  You can see where this is going.

Some are starting to get it.

Ruth Lea, an economist from Arbuthnot Banking Group, told the Daily Mail: "This is all about control of the individual and you begin to wonder whether this is what the green agenda has always been about. It's Orwellian. This will be an enormous tax on business."

Ya think?

VW

The Great Palouse Earthworm Caper

The Palouse is a region south of Spokane that covers about 18,000 square miles of eastern Washington, northeastern Oregon, and northwestern Idaho.  This area produces about double the national average of wheat per bushel per acre.  In other words, it's probably no stretch to say that the Palouse feeds a good share of the world.  But if some eco-tyrants have their way, it might all come to a crashing halt.  The Palouse is allegedly the habitat of the mythical Great Palouse Earthworm and they want this worm to be declared an endangered species.

From KOMO-TV NEWS:

The worm is said to secrete a lily-like smell when handled, spit at predators, and live in burrows 15 feet deep. There have only been four sightings.

But scientists hope to change that this summer with researchers scouring the Palouse regoin in hopes of finally finding the giant earthworm. Conservationists also want the Obama administration to protect it as an endangered species, even though there is scant scientific information about its existence.

"It absolutely exists," insisted Jodi Johnson-Maynard, a University of Idaho professor who is leading the search for the worm.

To prove it, she pulled out a glass tube containing the preserved remains of a fat, milky-white worm. One of Johnson-Maynard's graduate students found this specimen in 2005, and it is the only confirmed example of the species.

I'm no expert wormologist (or whatever they are called), but usually, if something is without color, it's either an albino, or it spends its time completely out of the sun.  The color of this worm is, to me, indicative that it just might stay 15 feet below the surface.  What if the reason no one hardly ever sees it is because it stays deep down in the ground?

All that side, if they can convince the Obama administration to declare it an endangered species, it could be a problem.

Farmers are keeping a wary eye on the process.

"The concern is whether a listing is going to end up curtailing farming activities," said Dan Wood of the Washington State Farm Bureau. "I dont know if people plan to stop all farming for the possibility of a worm being somewhere."

They should be worried and those of us who must eat to live should be a little worried as well.

In the San Joaquin Valley, irrigation water is being denied many farmers because of the Delta Smelt.  No water, no crops.

I understand the need to preserve nature, but we need to make decisions based upon common sense and priorities.  If they are successful in getting this worm declared an endangered species, bread might just become a little harder to come by and a lot more expensive.

VW.