OT: What happened to the automatic-post-combining feature? I guess I'll have to do it the old fashioned way ...
I'm thinking that waiting for suits to decide is a good idea. Limits Fed liability.
What suits?
I hate to burst the Faux News alternative reality universe bubble my dear Derec,
Why is the Left so obsessed with Fox News? Every time anyone expresses an opinion contrary to a left wing dogma (e.g. pipelines are bad, mkey) the name Fox News get dropped. I linked to a USA Today article, not Fox News. But if you want Fox News, I can give you Fox News:
‘Ridiculous’: Administration punts on Keystone, Obama faces Dem revolt
The "ridiculous" is not Fox editorializing but a statement by Sen Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, incidentally a Democrat.
The bigger question is, do you have any plans to burst out of the MSNBC "alternative reality universe bubble"?
but the XL pipeline will serve no benefit to the American people.
Except give us a secure oil supply. Except provide revenues. Except provide construction jobs during this slow recovery.
Cornell and Rutgers did two extensive surveys and studies which concluded two facts. The construction of the pipeline will generate some immediate jobs in the 1-2 year construction. This is good in the short term, hence the union support. Yet 8 to 10 K jobs for two years is a drop in the bucket for a positive incentive per employment.
It's a construction project so of course most jobs are created during construction. And thousands of jobs is nothing to scoff at. The reason there are few jobs during operation is actually because pipelines are so efficient and cheaper per bbl-mile than the alternatives.
The other point is that the "permanent" jobs that the pipeline will generate will actually be in the range of 80 to 100! The various studies show that the maintenance of the pipeline will be mostly automatic and digital as with all state of the art energy technology.
The horrors! A largely automated, efficient operation! It must be killed forthwith! And electric street lighting must be replaced by gas lights because the latter required a man to out and light them each evening whereas electric is automated.
Please notice that I am not even going to bring up the environmental aspects of the pipeline because it pretty much speaks for itself.
No it doesn't. You must compare it with the alternatives (rail or ship from Venezuela) rather than nothing at all.
This is why there are quite a few conservative farmers and ranchers in its path that oppose it.
NIMBY effect and result of sustained, well-funded (Steyer et al) disinformation campaign. But the
majority of the US and even a slight majority of Democrats supports the pipeline.
And as an extra added bonus the energy interest have constructed these huge $$ expensive refineries that are specifically design to handle the dirty tar sand oil.
That happened long before to deal with Venezuela oil. The fact is that the world doesn't have enough light sweet crude to cover global demand.
And all this investment windfall is to be shipped out of the Gulf and to world markets.
No it is not. First and foremost it will be used to cover domestic demand. If there is a surplus it can be shipped out resulting in additional revenues and jobs, so it's not a bad thing, especially since it won't be crude but the value added finished product to be exported. It's amazing how much the propaganda took hold when exporting stuff is seen as a bad thing. Especially given our trade deficit we need to export more, not less.
Hence the last point and the most important, IMO, the XL pipeline does nothing to lower the cost of gas at the pump for domestic relief!
Why should it not? We would not be dependent on imports from Venezuela to supply the SE domestic market but rather from the much more reliable Canadians. Furthermore, an increase in accessible global supply reduces prices compared to what they would have been without the additional supply.
Even if we pump and refine all the crude out of the ground domestically, not from Canada or Mexico, we would be lucky if the price of gas at the pump lowered a few cents on the gallon.
Which is still better than it increasing by it increasing by quite a bit more than a few cents on the gallon if ecomenatlists are successful in their ultimate goal of shutting Canadian oil sands altogether.
So basically the XL Pipeline is an " energy $$$ investment" directed from the oil interest.
It's a private industry project, yes. It's also paid from with private investments.
And the oil/energy interest are based solely on the world markets and corporate profits. The Canadian people seen this and voted the western outlet on the Pacific of this monster out and this is why we have seen the investment in the Gulf region vs v the XL pipeline domestically.
The two are hardly mutually exclusive. I.e. Keystone XL would still be needed even if (and hopefully when) Enbridge Northern Gateway is built.
The only reason why the neo-liberal puppet Obama is "dragging his feet" is that he is trying not to piss off his base. We have seen this over and over again. Both Republican and Democrats have their constituents $$$ interest in mind for the eventual finishing of this monster running through the heartland of America! Translation Derec we have no say. It's a done deal.
It is my fervent hope that you are right on this one. Alas, I fear the opposite - that he is dragging his feet because he doesn't want to harm embattled red state Democrats even more but that he will cave to the radical ecomentalists and Steyer's billions come November.
But it sounds real good as a partisan faux issue!
You mean MSNBC issue?
Peace and please do not pay attention to the black stuff coming out of your sidewalk. It is OK, just move along people.
Because oil train derailments are so much better, yes?
Derec: Why don't they just upgrade an existing pipeline and ship it out via Superior, WI?Funny how the alternatives aren't discussed.
That's hardly an alternative to get the oil to the Gulf Coast refineries.
