MSNBC is reporting that gas prises are dropping below two dollars a barrel. They quote a woman saying that she couldn't have continued to drive around in her old gas guzzler if prices didn't come down.
I personally believe that the fall in gas prices is more of a burden than the american people think. For once in our lives we saw auto companies yielding to the need to make green cars, consumers cutting back on SUV splurges, and a movement away from foreign oil dependence. I fear that with a decline in prices, the nation will try to head back to a "business as usual" attitude towards energy consumption. In the long term, for my kids, we need to hand off an energy sector not bloated with light sweet crude and coal. I think the squeeze exposed the need for more innovation by energy companies and public transportation, two things that nobody, I believe, could argue are bad things.
Just my two cents.
Friday, November 21, 2008
One barrel, Two barrels, Three barrels, more. 9:55 PM
MSNBC is reporting that gas prises are dropping below two dollars a barrel. They quote a woman saying that she couldn't have continued to drive around in her old gas guzzler if prices didn't come down.
I personally believe that the fall in gas prices is more of a burden than the american people think. For once in our lives we saw auto companies yielding to the need to make green cars, consumers cutting back on SUV splurges, and a movement away from foreign oil dependence. I fear that with a decline in prices, the nation will try to head back to a "business as usual" attitude towards energy consumption. In the long term, for my kids, we need to hand off an energy sector not bloated with light sweet crude and coal. I think the squeeze exposed the need for more innovation by energy companies and public transportation, two things that nobody, I believe, could argue are a bad thing.
Just my two cents.
I personally believe that the fall in gas prices is more of a burden than the american people think. For once in our lives we saw auto companies yielding to the need to make green cars, consumers cutting back on SUV splurges, and a movement away from foreign oil dependence. I fear that with a decline in prices, the nation will try to head back to a "business as usual" attitude towards energy consumption. In the long term, for my kids, we need to hand off an energy sector not bloated with light sweet crude and coal. I think the squeeze exposed the need for more innovation by energy companies and public transportation, two things that nobody, I believe, could argue are a bad thing.
Just my two cents.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Perhaps a little more of the invisible hand over the helping hand 3:43 PM
Romney, M. (2008, Nov 18). Let Detroit Go Bankrupt. The New York Times
Link here
I'm not going to lie, I completely agree with Mitt Romney on what to do about the auto industry. Moreover, I think that this strategy should be applied to the majority of companies with their hands out. This washington bailout should ensure that once companies are bought out or go bankrupt that their workers aren't kicked to the curb without some financial security. I mean, the whole purpose of a free market revolves around the wasteful failing while the innovative and efficient succeed. Giving more money to companies that crammed one to many hemis onto a light truck frame need a lesson in humility.
And by the way, auto execs, flying to DC for a bailout in your private jet may not be the best course of action. It makes you look, how do I put this, like an asshole.
Link here
I'm not going to lie, I completely agree with Mitt Romney on what to do about the auto industry. Moreover, I think that this strategy should be applied to the majority of companies with their hands out. This washington bailout should ensure that once companies are bought out or go bankrupt that their workers aren't kicked to the curb without some financial security. I mean, the whole purpose of a free market revolves around the wasteful failing while the innovative and efficient succeed. Giving more money to companies that crammed one to many hemis onto a light truck frame need a lesson in humility.
And by the way, auto execs, flying to DC for a bailout in your private jet may not be the best course of action. It makes you look, how do I put this, like an asshole.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
This is the song that never ends..... 7:57 PM
Perhaps it's not the most becoming thing to do, but I can't hold back regarding the recent media blitz swirling around former VP pick Gov. Sarah Palin. Might I note that there should be emphasis on "former" as the election is over and now her duties should once again only fall within the realm of passing legislation regarding the hunting of wildlife from helicopters.
I understand that some who get their fifteen minutes of fame have trouble letting go (isn't this why we have reality television and vh1?), but Palin is now a couple hundred hours past hers. We have seen more Palin in the news in the past week than during the entire election, but I guess that's because she's not being asked substantive questions anymore. As long as she can stick to political gossip, her wardrobe, and 2012 she'll do just fine on TV.
I think what strikes me the most is how brazen she is about running for the highest office in the land in four years. She talks about it like it will just come to her. I get the feeling that she has a sense of entitlement; this is in stark contrast to most politicians who try to downplay the fact, at least until the new guy has been in office for a few weeks. Hell, the ticker tape and balloons haven't all been cleaned up from last Tuesday and she's already gunning for another crack at it. She's like the kid that loses a spelling bee but refuses to be led off stage by the judges, like a crying starlet who won't end her Oscar speech.
What I didn't like about Sarah Palin from the beginning has only been highlighted in the past week: she has no idea what it means to be in the White House but that doesn't seem to bug her one bit. She has no idea how to solve America's problems (or even what those problems are) but she's biting at the chomp. I'm pretty sure psychiatrists have labels for people that unwittingly throw themselves into a hurricane without thinking about the consequences of her actions. In neurology they would just assume she has frontal lobe damage.
It's my belief that Sarah Palin doesn't give a damn about this country. She's concerned about herself and no one else and as of right now her sights are set on the White House. She wants in not because she feels she will be the best leader but because she just wants; the same way a five year old wants a candy bar. Even when talking with the fake president of France, she ruminated about a Palin White House in '12. What would have happened if she won this election? Would she have run against John McCain in '12? (You Betcha').
I think my feelings are best summed up in Palin's actions during the closing night of the campaign. She wanted to make a speech before McCain but was barred from doing so by advisers. This week during interviews she has expressed confusion over why it was such a big deal to make a speech. Let me tell you why Gov. Palin. Because Tuesday night had nothing to do with you. You were not chosen by the members of your party to run for President. You are not a senior member of congress who is heading into his twilight years after two presidential bids. You were nothing more than a side show brought in by the GOP to win some votes from the Hillary Clinton constituency and rally the Republican base. This could have been accomplished by a monkey in a pant suit but unfortunately bananas are out of season.
I would like to think that, as a country, we are better than tabloid journalism but I know this isn't true. But for pete's sake, let Gov. Palin fade into history as a footnote, as a single line in the book reports of so many fifth graders that will report on the the first African American President. This country doesn't need any more distractions, we have enough work on our hands.
I understand that some who get their fifteen minutes of fame have trouble letting go (isn't this why we have reality television and vh1?), but Palin is now a couple hundred hours past hers. We have seen more Palin in the news in the past week than during the entire election, but I guess that's because she's not being asked substantive questions anymore. As long as she can stick to political gossip, her wardrobe, and 2012 she'll do just fine on TV.
I think what strikes me the most is how brazen she is about running for the highest office in the land in four years. She talks about it like it will just come to her. I get the feeling that she has a sense of entitlement; this is in stark contrast to most politicians who try to downplay the fact, at least until the new guy has been in office for a few weeks. Hell, the ticker tape and balloons haven't all been cleaned up from last Tuesday and she's already gunning for another crack at it. She's like the kid that loses a spelling bee but refuses to be led off stage by the judges, like a crying starlet who won't end her Oscar speech.
What I didn't like about Sarah Palin from the beginning has only been highlighted in the past week: she has no idea what it means to be in the White House but that doesn't seem to bug her one bit. She has no idea how to solve America's problems (or even what those problems are) but she's biting at the chomp. I'm pretty sure psychiatrists have labels for people that unwittingly throw themselves into a hurricane without thinking about the consequences of her actions. In neurology they would just assume she has frontal lobe damage.
It's my belief that Sarah Palin doesn't give a damn about this country. She's concerned about herself and no one else and as of right now her sights are set on the White House. She wants in not because she feels she will be the best leader but because she just wants; the same way a five year old wants a candy bar. Even when talking with the fake president of France, she ruminated about a Palin White House in '12. What would have happened if she won this election? Would she have run against John McCain in '12? (You Betcha').
I think my feelings are best summed up in Palin's actions during the closing night of the campaign. She wanted to make a speech before McCain but was barred from doing so by advisers. This week during interviews she has expressed confusion over why it was such a big deal to make a speech. Let me tell you why Gov. Palin. Because Tuesday night had nothing to do with you. You were not chosen by the members of your party to run for President. You are not a senior member of congress who is heading into his twilight years after two presidential bids. You were nothing more than a side show brought in by the GOP to win some votes from the Hillary Clinton constituency and rally the Republican base. This could have been accomplished by a monkey in a pant suit but unfortunately bananas are out of season.
I would like to think that, as a country, we are better than tabloid journalism but I know this isn't true. But for pete's sake, let Gov. Palin fade into history as a footnote, as a single line in the book reports of so many fifth graders that will report on the the first African American President. This country doesn't need any more distractions, we have enough work on our hands.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Less Constitutional, Strictly Awesome 5:16 PM
It's good to know that I'm not so old that profanity isn't funny anymore.
The final curtain on the general election 3:22 PM
Three days ago a two-year-long campaign finally came to a close, and for the first time in a decade the guy I voted for actually won. And now, for the first time in two years I've become unfixed from the cable media outlets and find myself with a lot of time on my hands.
It's quite amazing how enthralled I became in the political drama considering I've never been much of a "fan" before. My friends and family can attest, I'd rather watch an episode of House MD than see game seven of a world series, or pretty much do anything else than sit through nine innings of a baseball game. I think what separated this event for me was not only the overwhelmingly historic nature but just the fact that it went on for so damn long. It's like the party that doesn't end, a book with new chapters added every week, or those first few episodes of the show "24" that didn't stink. But now I'm going through some serious withdrawal, and am beginning to realize why I was never one for high tension, it's just too stressful. I can only imagine that if I took up a healthy interest in sports I would surely parish of a heart attack.
So now I can take a break for four years from the extreme highs and lows of a presidential campaign. Goodnight Keith Olbermann, Bill O'Reilly, and Anderson Cooper. I will miss the flamboyant coverage, the not so hard hitting news announcements, and the partisan taunting. Goodnight John McCain, Sarah Palin, Bill Ayers, Rev. Wright, and Joe the Plumber, for no one will care who you are or what you once did in a matter of weeks.
Ain't politics grand?