Another Obama surprise - Offshore drilling

[Sstashmoo]

Surprise X 3, looks like Gomer changed his mind again. This guy is such a Patsy for special interests, it's disgusting. Let's see, he wants to dump[[waste) billions on solar and battery technology, then jumps in bed with the oil industry? In business, they call these guys "hookers".

Recharging debate, Obama expands offshore drilling



WASHINGTON — Shaking up years of energy policy and his own environmental backers, President Barack Obama threw open a huge swath of East Coast waters and other protected areas in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska to drilling Wednesday, widening the politically explosive hunt for more homegrown oil and gas.
Obama's move allows drilling from Delaware to central Florida, plus the northern waters of Alaska, and exploration could begin 50 miles off the coast of Virginia by 2012. He also wants Congress to lift a drilling ban in the oil-rich eastern Gulf of Mexico, 125 miles from Florida beaches.""


http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...l/6938395.html

[ejames01]

I guess he isnt a commie.

[Papasito]

more tax money from oil = more government power
its all about power and money.

The impact of more offshore drilling

It could take years for oil to flow, affect prices at the pump

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36121239...oil_and_energy

It could take years for oil to flow from offshore sites proposed by the president and affect pump prices

See? if we'd have started this 4 years ago, we'd be getting the payoffs now.

[Detroitej72]

See? if we'd have started this 4 years ago, we'd be getting the payoffs now.

No, any oil drilled would go on the free market and China could buy it.[[see treaties the U.S. has signed)

This is one more lie bought and paid for by the right wing, of whom have sold out America's best interests, and obviously you have bought into it!!!

[Stosh]

This all goes to show that you cant make everyone happy. A few months ago, it was drill babay drill, now complaining. And it wasn't 4 years ago. It was just before the election.

[gibran]

bigger picture in mind...but during his campaign he didn't say he wasn't going to drill...at least it is not in the arctic circle...the way it was explained on NPR is that he is going for a multiple approach to resource management...but we will see ..wish he wasn't drilling ...but time will tell

[Papasito]

This is one more lie bought and paid for by the right wing

wow, how delusional. Barack Obama happens to be a Democrat. Wake up.
Obama is the one who is opening up all this oil exploration/drilling, unless the
evil George Bush put on an Obama suit and did a pretty good impersonation job with his voice...

Furthermore, why is it wrong for the US to use its' resources?
If we don't drill for oil in international waters, another country will do it.

I saw a show recently about Grouper fishing in Florida and other Southeastern states. US Fisherman have to adhere to strict size requirements in order to keep thier catch.
Fishing boats from other countries go to the very same international waters [[International waters being only several miles away from our coasts by the way), and haul in whatever thier nets happen to catch. Then they sell the undersized fish right back to us. Go to your local grocer and look at the grouper - it's undersized grouper, much of it caught not far offshore from the US.

Nations like China and others pride themselves off of prosperity, harnessing and developing natural resources, and expanding thier economy, while nations in decline like the US and Europe treat those very values like they are the black plague. We have more coal in the US than any nation on earth, we have massive amounts of natural gas and oil, and yet, our leaders choose to purchase our energy from nations who fund terrorism and war, and from third world countries that have horrible environmental standards.

The proof is in the pudding - our economy is in the toilet,
and without changing the way we do things, we are all going to be latching onto mother Government because we won't be able to take care of ourselves in a nation whos economy and currency have collapsed.

any oil drilled would go on the free market and China could buy it.

so change the rules. politicians do it all the time.

[Sstashmoo]

Quote: "Nations like China and others pride themselves off of prosperity, harnessing and developing natural resources, and expanding thier economy, while nations in decline like the US and Europe treat those very values like they are the black plague."

Not a good analogy. We have taken a proactive path to protect our environment and natural resources. China has not and is now one of the most polluted places on the planet. We are on the right path in regard to protecting our planet. We need to impose stiff tariffs immediately. "Black plague" would be a good way to describe even the Detroit river in the 70's. We don't want that again.

[mjs]

Papasito, Obama's actions don't affect international waters. By the very definition of international, its outside of his jurisdiction. They affect our exclusive economic zone, the 200 nautical miles each country gets to control under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Check your sources that imply that other nations can fish or drill within our zone without our permission.

[mjs]

I saw a show recently about Grouper fishing in Florida and other Southeastern states. US Fisherman have to adhere to strict size requirements in order to keep thier catch.

Fishing boats from other countries go to the very same international waters [[International waters being only several miles away from our coasts by the way), and haul in whatever thier nets happen to catch. Then they sell the undersized fish right back to us. Go to your local grocer and look at the grouper - it's undersized grouper, much of it caught not far offshore from the US.

You have to cite this as I'm just dying to see this show. It sounds like your are describing gray market goods and gray market goods are seized and destroyed by U.S. Customs.

[firstandten]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/01/op...01thu1.html?hp

Before everyone gets all hyped up about this . Editoral from NYT explains what Obama is doing.

I'm posting one section from the editorial that really explains what he is doing

"Mr. Obama noted pointedly and correctly that increased oil and gas drilling cannot possibly address the country’s long-term energy needs. It should be seen as just one element of his broader energy strategy — including fuel efficiency standards to be announced on Thursday, big investments in alternative fuels in the stimulus package and new loan guarantees for nuclear power.

The new strategy — the result of more than a year of work by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar — also confronts an essential political reality: the Senate will insist on offshore drilling as part of a broader bill, expected after Easter, addressing climate change and other energy-related problems. Mr. Obama is trying to anticipate and shape that discussion by identifying areas that he thinks can responsibly be opened for exploration while quarantining others.

[rb336]

no surprise. Obama supported offshore even in the primaries

[3WC]

There are many inaccurate statements on here.

The most egregious is the assertion that oil produced in our Outer Continental Shelf will go on the "free market" and be bought by China. That's nonsense.

It costs money to ship oil from point A to point B, wherever located. Oil produced here stays here. [[Historically, through the '50s, we exported oil.)

Oil is basically fungible. A barrel of oil doesn't care who owns it.

The way it works is that all our produced oil stays here. Every new barrel of oil discovered and produced here replaces a barrel of foreign oil, which is then sold by the foreign producer [[wherever located) to the highest bidder, which often is China [[and India, and Japan ad infinitum.)

[jiminnm]

I have to wonder if this will result in any net gain in producable U.S. petroleum, as the Obama administration had cancelled a few hundred onshore development leases on federally owned land in Utah, Montana and Alaska during the past couple of months. If we're serious about supplying as musg of our own energy as possible, then we should we producing oil wherever we have it.

[3WC]

Jim, you are correct. In fact, as a result of canceling onshore leases, there may be a net loss of oil production.

Obama is a master, in a long line of them, of consummate deceivers - liars to be more precise.

His recent alleged opening of offshore drilling areas is more of a PR event than anything else. Overlooked are the areas which were eliminated from offshore drilling, areas where oil will most likely be found in economical quantities.

Some of the areas he has now "permitted" to be drilled were included because the government had already entered into enforceable leases and would have been compelled to permit drilling by the courts had it not honored the leases.

The areas opened up for drilling are 125 miles offshore, and will be very, very expensive to explore for and drill for oil. It will be several years before any oil that is found will be produced and sold.

Obama prohibited drilling in an area of Alaska which has tremendous potential and allegedly "opened up" drilling in Cook Inlet near Anchorage, and area that has already experienced much oil development for many years. Obama continues the policy of Bush and others to prevent drilling in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, west of Florida, for political reasons. That's where most of the country's undeveloped oil is [[in addition to offshore CA, also off limits.)

Smoke and mirrors.

Do I care? Hell yes. While his policies are very damaging to the country, they're great for me. What do I want, more oil coming on the market, from any source, which will lower prices? Hell no. GO OBAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The U.S. will never [[unless it develops it oil shale reserves) be energy self sufficient no matter how many areas it opens to development. They can build a million windmills, and tilt at them forever, before it helps us much.