Obviously, I hope to get a better perspective on oil drilling, the petroleum industry, and energy policy as a result.

Its cute when they try to play grownup.

The petroleum industry is packed to the rafters with “good people”, of course.

I lived on the fringe of the oil patch in TX for a couple of years way back when. Oil folk who work the fields are no different than coal miners, lumberjacks, folks who pave roads, work in the sewers or jump out of helicopters to rescue people. It can be dangerous, dirty, hard, thankless work. Folks like Emile Beaudreaux work hard to get the platform producing because that’s how they get in line for bonuses. And at $100/bbl, the oil patch is making money again, albeit on a dwindling resource.

API, on the other hand, is evil incarnate. Worse than a rightwing think tank, and better funded, anything that even remotely questions The Good, Great Wonderfulness of Oil is a sworn enemy to the API. It’s a wolf to the core: travels in numbers, devours its prey, fights relentlessly for its territory. It is entities like the API that put two Texas oilmen in the White House – it should surprise no one that oil is more expensive than ever, the US is more dependent on it than ever, and that entities like the API will shanghai all comers to its causes.

Until US consumers escape from the shackles of SUVs, suburban sprawl and unsustainable lifestyles, creatures like the API will remain a force to be reckoned with. Such creatures will fight tooth and nail to the death to hang on to what they’ve got.

One would think you could use a more normal word, like “decoy,” that people could actually understand, rather than using an archaic word or phrase in an archaic way. Why send everybody to a dictionary trying to figure out why you are calling right-wing bloggers stoolies?

Heinz Baked Beans!!!

…the musical fruit!

newtonusr @ 129

Yes, you are batshit crazy, as are we all.

I truly don’t know who to vote for (in the Democratic Party), and this REALLY bothers me.

You can experience buyer’s remorse with any candidate if you expect something and don’t get it.

In that vein you could vote for Hillary and never expect anything in particular and never be disappointed.

Pretty much the same goes for Obama since all he’s promising is ‘change you can believe in’, not necessarily any actual change, just the kind you can believe in.

Edwards, on the other hand, promises a lot and if he doesn’t deliver you would be very pissed. But, at least he says what he’s promising.

Other candidates are hardly noticed and covered, so it’s hard to say what they offer or actually do. But, that’s less important than knowing the media won’t let any of them be elected.

newtonusr @ 129

Yes, you are batshit crazy, as are we all.

heh heh..

Evening, npb! As you arrive, I’m fading out…

Loo Hoo. @ 126

Something tonight seems weird. Like we all know something wrong is happening in America. Not that we haven’t known this for a while, but it seems ampt up. Am I batshit crazy?

Yes, you are batshit crazy, as are we all.

heh heh..

tw3k, I believe Gravel is still in — although I don’t think he was at the last debate

Apparently too low in the polls, so they forced him to set up a card-table out on the street and walk about in a sandwich board while dressed in sackcloth to decry the Iraq War.

BTW I found a link to Statements All the Major Presidential Candidates Made to the Israel Project regarding their policies in respect to Iran. It includes statements from Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Biden and Dodd as well as Giuliani, McCain, and Romney and others.

Sadly I can’t access the statements because the files are not compatible with my outdated software. So I’m offering this “blind”. I actually have no idea what he, or the other candidates say to the Israel Project. I’d appreciate excerpts or summaries of whether the candidates a) consider that Iraq is working toward a nuclear weapon, b) have the right to nuclear power, c) require preconditions (like recognizing Israel) for negotiations with Iran, d) consider Iran, or a sector of the Iranian regime (i.e. the Revolutionary Gaurds) a supporter of terrorism. It would also be interesting to see if they make particular comments about the Palestinians, Lebanon, Israel, Syria or other regional issues in these Speeches. I suppose that they might, given that these statements are being proferred to the Israel Project….a pro-Israel lobbying group that gives free helicopter flights to US politicians over the Israel-Lebanese-Syrian border areas.

After my presenting the link to Edwards Herzliya statements and being accused of being a propagandist for an “undeclared candidate” because Edwards has “changed his rhetoric” from January 200, I thought that I should check his more recent remarks.

But others are welcome to compare and contrast them. They seem to date from late July of this year.

I thinks it interesting to see (although I can’t because of the

*Livejournal*? Goddammit. Do you have a linky for that press release? Because I’m going to burn LJ over this one too.

BAH.

Yeah, SixApart have been sneaky, i see. I sincerely doubt Brad would have bought into this crap. I’m just glad i joined when i did, when Brad was still in charge in 2003. I’m pretty sure they don’t have a buncha personal info on me from that time period.

Fern @ 264

This is the press release from the fb:

*Livejournal*? Goddammit. Do you have a linky for that press release? Because I’m going to burn LJ over this one too.

BAH.

Why yes, my dear, I do:

http://www.facebook.com/press/releases.php?p=9166