Is Kevin Costner Making Himself Useful?

Ken AshfordDisasters, Energy and Conservation, Environment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

The spill in the Gulf rages on.  Animals are washing ashore dead.  Efforts to stop the thing are proving unproductive.  It is the worst environmental disaster the world has ever seen. And one man may have a solution: Kevin Costner.  Yes, that Kevin Costner. Mr. Costner appeared in New Orleans last week to demonstrate a $24 million oil extraction device … Read More

Rand Paul Doubling Down By Showing Support For BP

Ken AshfordDisasters, Election 2010, Energy and Conservation, Environment & Global Warming & Energy, Obama Opposition, Tea Party2 Comments

Bruce Bartlett may have said it best when he wrote that Paul suffers from foolish consistency syndrome: I don't believe Rand is a racist; I think he is a fool who is suffering from the foolish consistency syndrome that affects all libertarians. They believe that freedom consists of one thing and one thing only–freedom from governmental constraint. Therefore, it is … Read More

Big Hollywood Whine Of The Day

Ken AshfordDisasters, Right Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

Jeffrey Jena at the conservative entertainment site, Big Hollywood: A few years ago one of the most culturally significant cities in the United States ended up under water and millions of Americans rushed to her aid. A lot of conservatives and liberals joined church and civic groups and headed to The Big Easy to help rebuild the city. The Hollywood … Read More

Dig A Little Deeper, NYT

Ken AshfordCorporate Greed, Disasters, Energy and ConservationLeave a Comment

An article on the front page of today's New York Times contains quotes from various conservation groups indicating that perhaps the oil spill isn't as bad as people think it is.  Example: Other experts said that while the potential for catastrophe remained, there were reasons to remain guardedly optimistic. “The sky is not falling,” said Quenton R. Dokken, a marine … Read More

Question Of The Day

Ken AshfordDisasters, Environment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

So…. why are small-government conservatives — you know, the ones who are always complaining that the federal government is inherently inept — so quick to complain that federal government didn't move, and isn't moving, fast enough on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? You can't please these people: They didn't want the kind of government regulation that would have prevented such a … Read More

Quote Of The Day

Ken AshfordDisasters, Environment & Global Warming & Energy, Obama OppositionLeave a Comment

Former Bush White House Press Secretary Dana Perino on the oil rigger explosion that led to the massive Gulf oil spill: “I'm not trying to introduce a conspiracy theory, but was this deliberate?  You have to wonder if there was sabotage involved” Actually, Dana, it's pretty clear you are trying to introduce a conspiracy theory, one right up there with "Obama was … Read More

The Oil Rig Explosion That Started It All

Ken AshfordDisasters, Energy and Conservation, Environment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

Look for stairs to get a sense of scale: The latest — President Obama visited Louisiana yesterday afternoon to observe the response effort to the BP oil spill, which he called a “potentially unprecedented environmental disaster.” “Your government will do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to stop this crisis,” he pledged. But Obama said taxpayers would … Read More

Fun Facts About The Oil Spill Off The Louisiana Gulf Coast

Ken AshfordDisasters, Environment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

The sea of oil spewing from the mangled pipeline is already larger than 31 nations. This initial oil well explosion, which killed 11 men, occured when a contractor was cementing the well.  Who was the contractor?  Our old friend, Halliburton. As of now, the oil spilled equals about half of the Exxon Valdez.  In another ten days, at the current rate of … Read More