The American Spectator

Reader Mail

Not Quite Wright

5.19.08 @ 12:01AM

(Page 3 of 4)

Conclusion -- There is no scientific evidence that CO2 causes the earth to warm.

In his support for Cap and Trade, which is a scam advocated by Enron (before its demise) and other energy trading companies and those who support stifling the American economy, the Senator is pandering to the Al Gore Global warming groupies and is giving energy traders, who already set the prices for crude oil and petroleum products and a bureaucratic international group almost total control of the economy of the United states. This is economic insanity.
-- E.Patrick Mosman

BOONE TO PICK
Re: Philip Klein's Energy's Prevailing Winds:

As for wind energy, I live in windmill country near Palm Springs, CA and can see when they work and mostly don't. I obtained 15 years of their production records which show that the 4,000+ windmills here and about 565 MW of "installed capacity" only generate 100+/- MW PER YEAR. Only 6% [6 MW] is generated at peak need time, 33% [33MW] mid peak and 61% [61 MW] at night, intermittently. Because of it's intermittent nature, the utilities have to have the same amount available, ready to go on line in a moments notice [otherwise there would be blackouts], that means they have to the spinning reserve going -- a duplication of power.

It's not about the energy, as you can see, exactly what will 100 MW do? Edison uses 13,000 MW per year. It's all about the subsidies and other goodies.
-- Alexandra Weit

I've researched the availability of oil in the U.S. and came up with some surprising facts. Two of the most depressed areas in the country right now are Western New York and the State of Michigan. Under Lake Erie, (Western New York) and under Lake Michigan are huge reserves of oil. I know it will take time for those reserves to be processed and refined (another problem) but if we don't start now, when should we start? We have oil off both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts but prefer to listen to those who hug trees rather than those who know how to get this country back to energy self sufficiency. Why are politicians so willing to believe environmentalists operating on self serving and fallacious philosophies?
-- Judith Bron

T. Boone is "Picken" on the little guy. I know Mr. Pickens is a great philanthropist and I admire him for taking on the French Senator from Massachusetts.

I am taking exception to his power and water project. You didn't know there was a water project with this? Yes, he is planning on building a pipeline along the right of way he is proposing for the power lines from his wind farm. He wants to pump 200,000 acre feet (65,170,664,138 gallons) of water from an aquifer that is already being depleted to areas outside the region.

I don't necessarily have a problem with the wind farm project, if he can find a right of way that does not violate private property rights of land owners. I do have a major issue with him wanting to take over 65 billion gallons of water from a semi arid area that produces a large portion of the food we as a nation eat. The Ogallala Aquifer stretches from south of Lubbock, TX to South Dakota and the water should be left there for uses by the people in the region.

The area he is planning on marketing this water to is the metroplex (Dallas/Fort Worth). They have their own sources of water and don't need the water from the panhandle. I also have an issue with the seemingly underhanded way he went about creating the water district from which he will pump all this water from. I know he did it legally, but I question the ethics of the deal.

Also, wind energy is not reliable. A good percentage of the "green" energy that is used in the Austin area comes from the wind farms around Sweetwater. Something caused those turbines to go offline causing a stage two power alert here. They were prepared to start shutting off power to large industrial consumers. Wind is a decent supplemental energy source, but it cannot be relied on for electricity full time. The wind does quit blowing in West Texas occasionally.

I am a fourth generation West Texan. I currently live in Central Texas but my heart and roots are in West Texas and I am very concerned about what this water project will do to the people, community and economies of that region.
-- Jeff Stenberg
Round Rock, Texas

PORK IS TASTY
Re: Andrew Cline's Pigs Take Wing:

Does Andrew Cline really expect the Republicans in Congress to commit political suicide?

Like most, if not all, Democrats, the first priority of most, if not all, Republican members of Congress is to get re-elected until they are ready to retire from Congress and become a lobbyist or whatever. So, how does one get re-elected? Simple: bring home the bacon while simultaneously promising to lower taxes. As I've said countless times to anyone who will listen, the problem is not the members of Congress.
The problem is the constituents of the members of Congress who really want that bacon. Folks, the people in Alaska wanted the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" as much as the farmers in Iowa want the farm
subsidies and the people at Boeing want the tanker deal. And none want to pay taxes. No matter how much smoke they blow by way of justification, its all about getting pork. For all of the grandstanding
about pork, I'm willing to bet few, if any, salons go home and campaign on how they stoutly resisted bringing their constituents any pork. How many politicians have the courage to ask voters what they are willing to give up in order to have lower taxes without burdening our children and grandchildren with debt? As the famous Walt Kelly character Pogo said, "We have met the enemy, and he is us."
-- Mike Roush
North Carolina

Letter to the Editor

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