EPA 'Mistakenly' Gives Names of Farmers to Radical Groups

According to the report, the information on livestock and produce farmers was sought through a Freedom of Information Act request by the groups Earth Justice, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Pew Charitable Trust. They were given information on roughly 80,000 farmers and ranchers, though the EPA later said it made a mistake by releasing the information.

So the EPA sent them the names, addresses, phone numbers and other private personal information so that they could be harassed more effectively.

Heck of a Job Barry

Drivers Waiting 6 Hours For Gas in NYC...
Tempers Rise in Wake of Storm...
'Finding bodies left and right'...
Restaurant, hotel prices skyrocket...
CHUCK SCHUMER CONFRONTED: 'We Are Gonna Die!'
CRAIGSLIST: $15 a gallon...
Utility workers pelted with eggs...
Misery...
'We have nothing'...
Residents Furious RED CROSS Offering Cookies & Hot Chocolate, Not Blankets Or Clothes...
Jet Fuel Supply Fast Becoming Concern At Airports...
Staten Islanders Plead for Help: 'We Need Food'...
'Please don't leave us'...
VIDEO: Stranded New Yorkers Defecating in Apartment Buildings...
DIRE...
NJ counties enact 70s style gas rationing... Developing...

Barack Obama and Other Has-Beens

Would it surprise you to learn that the net worth of the 70 richest delegates in China's National People's Congress averages out to more than $1 billion per delegate?  We're talking about a government that say's it's Communist, you know, everybody's equal?

Certain members of the press - like the NY Times columnist Thomas Friedman - love the Chinese Communist system.  You know, the leadership says "jump" and the people ask "how high?"  Well, those in control apparently have been saving their pennies and - who knew - in the land of equality some appear to be much, much more equal than others.  Please note that in the US, while a lot of people in government are rich, they are not rich by People's Republic standards.

But we're getting there. From the Wall Street Journal

Earlier this month the Washington Post's Carol Leonnig reported that the former vice president's wealth is today estimated at $100 million, up from less than $2 million when he left government service on a salary of $181,400. How did he make this kind of money? It wasn't his share of the Nobel Peace Prize. Nor was it the book and movie proceeds from "An Inconvenient Truth."

Instead, as Ms. Leonnig reports, "Fourteen green-tech firms in which Gore invested received or directly benefited from more than $2.5 billion in loans, grants and tax breaks, part of President Obama's historic push to seed a U.S. renewable-energy industry with public money."

It helps to have friends in high places.  And the workers? Not so much.

The Post story mentions one of the beneficiaries of Mr. Gore's investment acumen, Milwaukee-based Johnson Controls, which won a $299 million award from the federal government in 2009 to make electric-car batteries. Here's how that worked out:

"The company has dramatically scaled back, after executives concluded demand for electric cars was far lower than the administration forecast. The factory outfitted with stimulus funds is nearly idle, and plans to build a second plant have been postponed."

And the Big "O" himself?

When the history of this administration is written, maybe someone will note the dissonance between the president's hip persona and his retro ideology. Here was a man who promised a "transformative" presidency. Yet when transformation came, it amounted to a two-pronged attempt to impose, from one side, a version of European social democracy by way of ObamaCare, and from the other side a version of Chinese state-directed "capitalism" by way of the stimulus.

As a political matter it may have been Mr. Obama's good luck that the bankruptcy of both models became obvious only after he had gotten his way legislatively on both. Yet the president's sagging fortunes have everything to do with his buying into an ideological enthusiasm too late. In a different age, Mr. Obama would have been the guy who went out and bought an Edsel. In this age, Mr. Obama is the guy demanding that you buy an Edsel, too. That car is today called the Volt.

Many years ago when I was a kid, I had a friend whose parents knew people in Mexico. When Kennedy was elected the Mexicans commented that we were lucky that Kennedy was already rich. In Mexico the road to "real" wealth was to win the Presidency which meant that you controlled the graft and were assured of becoming a billionaire. It appears that Mexico was simply a generation ahead of us.

The Virginian Pilot’s Energy Policy Just Got a Test, and People are Dying.

The Virginian Pilot, my local paper has receives national attention recently.  Its editor decided that a black mob attacking a pair of his reporters was not news.  When the story finally surfaced, the Pilot’s editorial judgment was … questioned … exposed … revealed for the sorry mix of bad judgment mixed with political correctness for which the paper is notorious. 

As you may have heard, the Mid-Atlantic area has been hit by some pretty strong wind and thunderstorms recently which left millions without power and dozens dead.  Meanwhile summer temperatures between 90 and 100 degrees are forcing people from their homes and are leading to more  death among the old and infirm.   

This did not have to happen.  Oh, the storm and storms like it can’t be helped.  But what this storm proves is that modern life is totally dependent of our technological infrastructure, and infrastructure that the opinion shapers at the Virginian Pilot has been working tirelessly to degrade.   

Power companies have been working for years to upgrade the power grid, increase power production and develop low cost reliable new power plants.  And each one has been met by fierce resistance from the Virginian Pilot.  A new coal fired plant has been met with gleeful predictions of environmental doom from the Pilot.  When a proposal to mine uranium for nuclear power plants was proposed, the Pilot quoted an opponent as saying that

“… no amount of oversight and regulation could ensure that uranium would not foul water supplies and farm fields.”

  The Virginian Pilot is also vehemently opposed to oil exploration in Virginia.  Reacting to a proposal to drill off the coast, the editors opined:

“Rather than drilling, it's far wiser to redirect our nation's long-term energy plan to scenarios that don't involve massive loss of marine life, seafood industry jobs and tourism dollars”

...  always predicting environmental devastation as the inevitable result of offshore oil exploration.  

So when the Virginian Pilot is not opposing building new power plant using proven technology, what is it proposing?  Wind farms and solar power, with not a whisper about the spectacular failures of Solyndra and the “green energy” experiment in Spain that helped bankrupt that country. 

When the Pilot reports on “alternative” energy sources, such as the Navy’s move to “green fuel” there is never, ever, a cost analysis.  You have to go to other sources, like FOX News, to find out that

“…the fuel -- which does not require engine modifications -- costs $26 a gallon compared to $3.60 a gallon for conventional fuel.” 

You will find cheerleading for all kinds of exotic replacements for coal, oil and nuclear energy.  But there is rarely a hint that the alternatives will not only be less reliable, impractical or be as realistic as powering our economy with unicorn farts.  The issue of cost, if it’s mentioned at all, is dismissed as “slightly higher” but always, always more than offset by thousands - if not millions - of people not dying due to the elimination of those awful, really bad, seriously dirty fossil fuels… (unless they are killed off by excessive heat because they could not afford to run their air conditioners). 
In the Pilot’s world, windmills never kill birds by the score, never shut down because winds are either too weak or too strong, cost nothing to build or maintain.  In the Pilot’s world sunlight is free so solar power never ends when the sun goes down, doesn’t cost anything to build, doesn’t cost anything to maintain, and is instantly responsive to increased or decreased demand.  In the Pilot’s world, Navy ships are trying to cut fuel costs in 2008 by allowing ships to drift, and plan to use $26 a gallon fuel in 2012 because the Obama administration has decreed it; and it all makes sense … in their minds.

So today people are sweltering in hundred degree heat and old people and infants are dying thanks to the efforts of the Luddites at the Virginian Pilot and their amen corner in the rest of the media.  But don't worry about them, the air conditioning at the Virginian Pilot offices is working just fine and the editorial board is preparing stories even now blaming the power companies. 

Who’s ready for a march to the Virginian Pilot offices with shouts of “The Pilot Lied, People Died!”

How Cuba Became a 'Happy' Country

Via the Wall Street Journal:

In what league does Iraq beat Britain, Haiti beat the United States, and Afghanistan beat Denmark? Political corruption? Violent crime? Temperature? No, welcome to the weird and wonderful world of the Happy Planet Index. It is a little window into the way many environmentalists think.

As they say, read the whole thing.

Here is a link to the latest "Happy Planet" report. According to the Happy Planet Index, the best of all possible countries would have the well-being of the people of Denmark, the life expectancy of the Japanese and the ecological footprint of Afghanistan. Putting all these factors together, the ideal places to live are Costa Rica and Viet Nam with Colombia, Belize and El Salvador close behind. 

If you want a "Happy Planet" you definitely don’t want to live in the United States.

Let it be noted that the Happy Planet people are British, living in England rather than the countries, like Afghanistan, that they are happy to promote. A comment from one of the readers of the Wall Street Journal article summarizes these people perfectly.

Not long ago, I lived for a year with a family of subsistence farmers in southern Africa. I learned first-hand, every day, how arduous and circumscribed their lives are. But we sure were ecologically sensitive -- you can't use much water when you have to walk half a mile to get it.

Soon after I returned, I was hired by the WSJ to interview, among others, one of America's most prominent environmentalist/businessmen. He talked at length about his excitement over Cuba. With no money coming from the former Soviet Union, there was no gas or oil. So farmers were forced to plow with oxen. Wasn't that a wonderful, sustainable way of life? I thought of my African family and thought, "Not so much."

In fact, he went on, he was so interested in the lessons we could learn, he was going to visit Cuba soon to see the wonderfulness for himself. But first, he was flying first class to Italy to go fishing in the mountains with some friends for a week.

All I could think was that sometimes, irony is too cheap to even comment upon.

Vehicle automation as a way to save gas.

Cars that drive themselves would not only save gas, but save lives and make people happier. Imagine telling your car where you want to go and it navigates itself. That’s not an impossible dream because the technology is near at hand. This, not cockamamie plans for windmills or super-expensive solar cells that only provide power when the sun shines, could have been a worthwhile way for the government to bring America closer to energy independence.

But no, the environmental movement is caught in a time warp, embedded like an insect in amber, in concepts that were developed decades ago and have never been updated or re-examined. If today an endless pool of pure oil were found in the middle of the Mojave Desert that burned with zero emissions, the Greens would still demand the that we proceed to power civilization with wind and sunlight. They will cling to that like Linus clings to his security blanket. There is nothing intellectual about it, it’s a psychological bond, and like substance abusers, most find it impossible to break.

H/T: Instapundit

Jobless claims jump, wholesale food costs surge

Thanks, Glenn.

For the first time in my memory a story about the economy mired in despond does not begin with the word: UNEXPECTEDLY!  For some reason, the MSM never sees this coming.  After all, when the Lightworker's in charge, this can't be happening.

(Reuters) - U.S. jobless claims jumped to their highest level since October last week while food and energy costs lifted producer prices in December, pointing to headwinds for an economy that has shown fresh vigor.

Can you say "stagflation?" 

Where is this "fresh vigor" that's Reuters is referring to? Let’s face facts, why should companies hire more people when they are making very good money with the people they have? So why should anyone be surprised that massive hiring is NOT going on? Despite liberal desires, companies do not have as their primary objective the creation of jobs; that is a byproduct of being successful.  With current levels of unemployment, people are getting their finances in order by paying off debt instead of incurring new debt; with houses continuing to lose value, making it difficult to move to a new location for a new job, what sane executive is going to go on a hiring spree absent a jump in demand for his product?

We are in for a long period of high unemployment while the President and the Democrats in congress attempt to bring about change through a command and control approach to economic growth. The same people who have managed to turn the postal monopoly into a gigantic money loser can’t be expected to determine which industry or technology will be the next big thing.

And need we be reminded that Obama has told us that the future of the job market is the "green energy" industry?

Evergreen Solar is laying off 800 people in Devens, MA after receiving $60 million in government aid. This is an example of how the great green job machine works in reality.  800 people are now out on the street because of the unrealistic promises of politicians who are totally ignorant of both technology and business.  How anyone could believe that Massachusetts could produce solar cells competitively with China, when even the iPad is being assembled offshore is a testament to either ignorance or wishful thinking.  It is also a testament to the cavalier attitude of politicians to the money they take from taxpayers.

Finally, does anyone who writes about the cost of living ever go to the grocery store and shop for food? I wondered about this when the media made fun of Sarah Palin for saying that food prices are rising. Palin was right about food prices and the shootings in Arizona, yet not enough people inside the Beltway take her seriously.  Of course no one took Reagan seriously either.

Here's an article from Reuters: 

Wheat prices rose 47 percent last year, corn more than 50 percent and U.S. soybeans by 34 percent. The U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) said in its report key grains prices could rise further, a view underlined by a U.S. report published on Wednesday....

For China, corn prices are just too high, so it has canned a proposal to import millions of tonnes of the grain in 2011, two industry sources with knowledge of the plan said on Thursday.

The initial Chinese proposal had been drawn up as a way to combat food inflation, a worry for Beijing because China's food inflation is running in double digits....

Data earlier showed that India's food inflation pulled back slightly from a year high of more than 18 percent to just below 17 percent.

In case you have not noticed, the US is part of a global economy, not insulated from the effects of commodity prices throughout the world, as you have noticed every time you fill your tank. And yet, the American government is continuing to mandate that millions of tons of corn should be converted into an inefficient gas additive to "solve" an non-existing crisis while fostering the real possibility of global starvation.

What do Liberals think of the South?

Liberal academics want to remake "The South." What do they think is the trouble with this region of the country?

[Connie Fowler and Diane Roberts, two academics]... expounded on the troubles and “isms” that the South faces, all of which were blamed on the conservative population, its guns and its religion

“We’ve been using this word all day long – sustainable,” said Fowler. “What is sustainable in the South. Hateness is not sustainable. Raping the earth is not sustainable. Classism is not sustainable. Stupidity is not sustainable."

So there you have it, you people (and you know who you are) clinging bitterly to your guns and religion. You are haters, rapists, class conscious destroyers of the earth ... and stupid.

But don't worry, the people who know better are going to change all that:

This new South will be a place where the diversity is as diverse as the food and culture are good. A place where “tricky” religion is in its place, “nutty right-wing talk radio” is replaced by Keb’Mo’s greatest hits, and the only “ism” one will find is “eco-tourism.”

For those who don't agree, well, perhaps they can be strangled by Joe Biden or dealt with in other ways: No Pressure.

 

Eco-fascism jumps the shark: massive, epic fail!

Drive by commentary

Remember the old saying “the pen is mightier than the sword?” It's true and for that reason the pen is much more dangerous than the sword. Marx and Engels never killed anyone, but their readers killed literally hundreds of millions.

In view of this truth, does it strike anyone as strange that those who propose the regulation and removal of relatively innocuous weapons – like guns – should be so adamant that a far more dangerous weapon, the written word should be left unregulated?

What brought this to mind was Thomas Freedman. Freedman is a pompous buffoon who waxes eloquent in columns distributed by the NY Times and in books. He married an heiress whose father subsequently lost a multi billion dollar fortune. But we know that billions never go away completely; they leave traces during their existence, including a home reported to occupy over 11,400 square feet of space in a Washington suburb, Bethesda, MD. The address: 7117 Bradley Blvd, Bethesda, MD (Other views at the link.)



Per Wikipedia, Friedman has a bachelor of arts degree in Mediterranean studies and an Master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies. So this scion of wealth and privilege, living in luxury that would make Croesus green with envy, and with access to the printing press he pontificates on subjects of his choosing, most of which have precious little to do with the Mediterranean or the Middle East. And no one calls him on it.

The problem with Friedman, as is the problem with Marx and Engels, is that people pay attention to him because he has the ability to sound sane while despoiling the public intelligence.

Friedman's wealth and his NY Times column gives him access to movers and shakers worldwide, which gives credence to his opinions - at least to the credulous. "Reporting" from Davos and other places where the glitterati gather gives a sheen to his writing that the same thoughts expressed from a basement apartment in the Bronx lacks. In reality, Friedman is a poorly educated ass who is a reliable opinion weather vane pointing in the direction of the prevailing wind, justifying the current Liberal zeitgeist. When the war in Iraq was popular he was for it. When it lost popularity he was against it. When free enterprise is ascendant he’s a proponent. When Green is ascendant, he’s a cheerleader. He sells the intellectual fashion du jour for $75,000 per speech. And he does it all without knowing a blessed thing about the subject.

His latest essay in support of the “cap and trade” fiasco that escaped from the House tell us will we need to know about what Friedman – BA Mediterranean Studies and MA Middle Eastern Studies – knows about the economy, science or energy:

More important, my gut tells me that if the U.S. government puts a price on carbon, even a weak one, it will usher in a new mind-set among consumers, investors, farmers, innovators and entrepreneurs that in time will make a big difference

That says it all. Pass a bill, any bill that makes the use of energy more expensive, and people will change their minds … for the better.

This kind of thinking … and writing … is much more dangerous and destructive than random violence in Watts or drive-by shootings in Chicago. None of that can bring down a whole society. Ideas like Friedman have.

Guns by themselves cannot destroy a culture; men with pens can. Someone needs to demand that Friedman have his license to publish revoked.

Of course, the suggestion is an argument against interest. I am glad to live in a country that allows me to write and publish my opinions, even if I don’t get the readership of Friedman. But I can readily understand that when a dictator (usually referred to as the “voice of the people”) takes over, the first thing he does, even before he confiscates the guns. is to take over the radio and TV stations and close the newspapers.

It works everywhere it’s tried.

On The Dependability Of Wind Energy During Peak Demand

Those wind farms that are supposed to provide us with all that "renewable" energy? In the Midwest their output can be anywhere from 2% to 65% of what is referred to as "nameplate capacity."