In a press release dated April 24, 2006, Pelosi said, "Democrats have a commonsense plan to help bring down skyrocketing gas prices by cracking down on price gouging, rolling back the billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies, tax breaks and royalty relief given to big oil and gas companies, and increasing production of alternative fuels."

Howz that working out there, Nan?

Not high enough for me either. Let's see $15-20 per gallon and start strangling certain segments of the population out of existence. $30-40 if necessary... I'll be just fine as long as I'm not eating crackers while laughing my ass off.

Dancin_In_Anson:Howz that working out there, Nan?

the democrats would probably need a controlling majority to start actually pushing their agenda.

Let's just build 500 new goddamn nuclear plants, run them at capacity, and switch to electric-powered vehicles.

You know, older Camry's get damned good gas mileage. I understand some people can't afford to pay to fill up their SUVs, but you can picked up a used Camry for $2000 that gets 30-35 MPG highway, 26-27 city.

A lot of people can't afford to purchase a car, and I understand that, but surely people with SUVs and the like could downsize to something like this if their lifestyle permits it (re: they don't have to lug around lots of kids, or aren't using their vehicles to haul things for work).

Listen to her..Holy cow. She just snarfed a trillion dollars from the public and she's spewing this shiat?

Fark you, Darth Pelosi.

Oh those gosh darn librul demoncrats!
Let's burn all the school science books in protest.

GaryPDX:Listen to her..Holy cow. She just snarfed a trillion dollars from the public and she's spewing this shiat?

Fark you, Darth Pelosi.

It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires, including from those I know who used to think she was going to reform the nation with a flick of her wrist.

But, then again, Congress didn't get their lowest approval rating EVER for nothing.

Nobody's stopping her from paying more.

burndtdan:Dancin_In_Anson:Howz that working out there, Nan?

the democrats would probably need a controlling majority to start actually pushing their agenda.

The tax incentive expirations yanked the rug out of solar and other alternative projects to the tune of billions. She's solely responsible for that by tabling the 09 budget. And now she's going to say....ohh let's give money to alternative energy projects!!

Farking coont..it's a shell game.

FitzShivering:It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires

I'm not. Many people live for the opportunity to hate everything and everyone they can.

Most of them are on Fox News, but there are still quite a few feral ones out in the wild.

Kyosuke:FitzShivering:It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires

I'm not. Many people live for the opportunity to hate everything and everyone they can.

Most of them are on Fox News, but there are still quite a few feral ones out in the wild.

Oh, I know. But I'm not talking just about some of the crazies I see online. Some of the true-blood Democrats I know who were so far gone as to say they'd do Pelosi all night long now equate her to the anti-Christ. I never liked her to begin with, so it's somewhat surprising to me to see people who almost never change their opinions do a 180 like that. Actually somewhat refreshing to see it, too, considering I think they're right on this one.

Mordant:Not high enough for me either. Let's see $15-20 per gallon and start strangling certain segments of the population out of existence. $30-40 if necessary... I'll be just fine as long as I'm not eating crackers while laughing my ass off.

On one hand, I totally agree with you. Since gas has gone through the roof, traffic has eased up noticeably in west Los Angeles. I usually don't go east of the 405, so it might as well not exist, but on this side of town, the beat-up pickups flattening the springs with overflowing bedfuls of pallets, flattened boxes, plastic bottles, old bicycles, and tree trimmings are diminishing in number. Add to that the eco-conscious yuppies riding those ghey little scooters up and down Wilshire, instead of Land Rovers (so 1990s) and it' almost pleasant to go somewhere.

On the other hand, the 'strangled segments' are soon going to come for you, your gasoline, your food, and your toilets (assuming Zimbabwe is a model). Your government has stripped you of the right to defend yourself in any meaningful form. So it's better, I think, to feed them, so they don't eat us.

kronicfeld:Let's just build 500 new goddamn nuclear plants, run them at capacity, and switch to electric-powered vehicles.

Fact. Well, kinda... It would only take ~300 to get our grids off of fossil fuels. I guess the other 200 we use to sell power to Canada, Mexico, and maybe recharge the cars, perhaps.

NO logical reason why we aren't building nuclear power plants anymore.

RoxtarRyan:NO logical reason why we aren't building nuclear power plants anymore.

I am sympathetic to the issues with waste storage. But it's not like we're using Utah or Montana for anything particularly constructive right now, so why not just turn one state into a giant storage facility? Done and done.

RoxtarRyan:NO logical reason why we aren't building nuclear power plants anymore.

Well..there is still modern concerns (new window)

FitzShivering:It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires

Hate?

Mutant Mormons and Montananians. Scary, but worth it.

Dancin_In_Anson:FitzShivering:It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires

Hate?

Yea..understatement..:)

stjohn:On the other hand, the 'strangled segments' are soon going to come for you, your gasoline, your food, and your toilets (assuming Zimbabwe is a model). Your government has stripped you of the right to defend yourself in any meaningful form. So it's better, I think, to feed them, so they don't eat us.

I would also add that less gasoline consumption overall means less gas tax for the government. How long do you think those highways will last if only the wealthy can ride them?

burndtdan:Dancin_In_Anson:Howz that working out there, Nan?

the democrats would probably need a controlling majority to start actually pushing their agenda.

I think a supermajority held by one party, completely controlling two branches of government is exactly what this country needs. With any luck, a couple of Supreme Court Justices will die, and they can have all three.

Did anybody read the farking article? All she did was call the administration's plan to lift the ban on offshore drilling as a solution to high gas prices a hoax. Which it is.

kronicfeld:I am sympathetic to the issues with waste storage. But it's not like we're using Utah or Montana for anything particularly constructive right now, so why not just turn one state into a giant storage facility? Done and done.

Actually, we have the technology available to recycle + re-enrich the waste, using it again. Granted, there will be some biproduct. With everything we do, there will be, be it carbon emmissions, dead batteries that no longer hold charges from solar plants, etc.

Seeing as nuclear power plants are safe, efficient, and are damn near self run, why not build them? It's a farking no brainer.

Dancin_In_Anson:FitzShivering:It amazes me how much hatred this woman inspires

Hate?

I dunno. Is there a better word? :)

FitzShivering:I dunno. Is there a better word?

Disagree.

This does not equal hate in my world.

GaryPDX:RoxtarRyan:NO logical reason why we aren't building nuclear power plants anymore.

Well..there is still modern concerns (new window)

It's France.. whaddayagonnado?

I really love how the oil lobby has capitalized on the high gas prices to push this agenda. For the love of FSM, offshore exploration is not going to solve anything. While more oil production MIGHT reduce gas cost by increasing supply, the fact that it takes years to develop a sight into full production means that this will do nothing to help with gas prices today, or even in the next several years. So in 5 to 10 years when these news drilling sites are finally at full production we might see lowers prices, that is if international gas consumption stays exactly the same or lowers. Its much more likely that international demand will simply rise and we will see no change what so ever. Simply put, gas costs $5-ish/gallon and that really isn't likely to change.

MorrisBird:Did anybody read the farking article? All she did was call the administration's plan to lift the ban on offshore drilling as a solution to high gas prices a hoax. Which it is

Lift it and finding out is really the only way of finding out for sure. I don't know what she's so afraid of.

OutLawJD:I really love how the oil lobby has capitalized on the high gas prices to push this agenda.

Bingo! Give that man a cigar.

Dancin_In_Anson:I don't know what she's so afraid of.

Telling the truth is not a sign of fear. The proposal is frivolous.

MorrisBird:OutLawJD:I really love how the oil lobby has capitalized on the high gas prices to push this agenda.

Bingo! Give that man a cigar.

LOL, thanks but what I really need is my morning caffeine, then I wouldn't have had so many typos .

/waits for the grammar police to come arrest him

Etchy333:stjohn:On the other hand, the 'strangled segments' are soon going to come for you, your gasoline, your food, and your toilets (assuming Zimbabwe is a model). Your government has stripped you of the right to defend yourself in any meaningful form. So it's better, I think, to feed them, so they don't eat us.

I would also add that less gasoline consumption overall means less gas tax for the government. How long do you think those highways will last if only the wealthy can ride them?

I'm gonna go ahead and guess "a crapload longer" because they won't be seeing as much wear and tear from road transportation that isn't absolutely necessary. Of course, when they do go tits-up, it's less likely they'll be fixed. Maybe we can shift some money away from Iraq's infrastructure to our own. I'm not a stats whore, but I'd also be willing to bet there's a lot of slop between what's taken out in tax and what's actually put into the highway systems.

kronicfeld:I am sympathetic to the issues with waste storage. But it's not like we're using Utah or Montana for anything particularly constructive right now, so why not just turn one state into a giant storage facility? Done and done.

Or, stop moderating the reactors with water. Then all that waste is fuel. Unrefined uranium and thorium are fuel. The shells in the tank cannons are fuel. The old nuclear warheads we bought from the Russians are fuel. The waste is reduced by 99+ % and doesn't contain actinides. It only needs to be sequestered for a couple hundred years, instead of a couple hundred thousand. The fuel is proliferation-proof, and never needs to leave the site, nor does the reactor require periodic refueling, just periodic refining. When the plant wears out, the core is fuel for a new one.

Sodium or Lead FTW! Lead runs hot enough that it can thermally dissociate water to hydrogen when you don't have a demand for electricity. Say at night.

MorrisBird:Did anybody read the farking article?

But that takes all the fun out of vitriolic responses

Dancin_In_Anson:Lift it and finding out is really the only way of finding out for sure.

That's true of every policy proposal in the past, present and future of human existence.

MorrisBird:Telling the truth is not a sign of fear.

How do you know this to be the truth, my Love?

The proposal is frivolous.

There is only one real way to find out. Open it up, and let them in. Conjecture is not fact.

Mordant:Not high enough for me either. Let's see $15-20 per gallon and start strangling certain segments of the population out of existence. $30-40 if necessary... I'll be just fine as long as I'm not eating crackers while laughing my ass off.

Honestly we would probably be OK if gas it $20 an hour. I'd buy my husband a freaking bike and make him ride the 5 miles to work and I'd pull my son out of daycare and get a nanny for the same price as his expensive preschool. My school is 3 miles down the road and I've always really wanted a Vespa.

I could even cut out enough bills to make with our grocery bill trippling.

Why yes I have already planned out the budget for this. I've also started growing my own vegetables and we have black berries, blue berries, and raspberries out the wazoo in our forest. I've been picking and freezing them for a week. In the past we've always just taken a little and let the animals scarf the rest.

Dancin_In_Anson:How do you know this to be the truth, my Love?

Science Friday on NPR, of course! (Revealing my damned liberal news habits again!) Great to see you, BTW.

RoxtarRyan:kronicfeld:Let's just build 500 new goddamn nuclear plants, run them at capacity, and switch to electric-powered vehicles.

Fact. Well, kinda... It would only take ~300 to get our grids off of fossil fuels. I guess the other 200 we use to sell power to Canada, Mexico, and maybe recharge the cars, perhaps.

NO logical reason why we aren't building nuclear power plants anymore.

I'm usually quite environmentally conscious and even I am wondering why the hell we don't go nuclear.

Dancin_In_Anson:There is only one real way to find out. Open it up, and let them in. Conjecture is not fact.

Better implement all those anti-global-warming proposals, too. And pollution controls, like Kyoto. After all, it's the only real way to find out. Conjecture as to their efficacy is not fact.

Gwendolyn: My school is 3 miles down the road and I've always really wanted a Vespa.

My 18 year got a job at a Vespa store. He says they are selling like crazy and he's having a blast.

I've been picking and freezing them for a week. In the past we've always just taken a little and let the animals scarf the rest.

I've been canning. Buying bulk from local farmers markets and canning for the winter. Like the old days. It works!

jay-zus kee-ryst. did any of you mouth-breathers actually read the article?

listen: right now, $4/gal. gas is not a supply-and-demand issue. the saudis have ramped up production and demand is down - yet oil prices still rise. why?

1) speculation
2) the plummeting dollar
3) middle-east conflict

what did oil cost per barrel before the iraq invasion? anyone? anyone?

MorrisBird:Did anyone read the farking article

What is this "article" thing of which you speak?

oh, and:

FlashHarry:jay-zus kee-ryst. did any of you mouth-breathers actually read the article?

listen: right now, $4/gal. gas is not a supply-and-demand issue. the saudis have ramped up production and demand is down - yet oil prices still rise. why?

1) speculation
2) the plummeting dollar
3) middle-east conflict

what did oil cost per barrel before the iraq invasion? anyone? anyone?

You need to back up and calibrate India and China's demand into your equation. Whatever we reduce in demand, they are sucking up like there's no tomorrow. Global demand far out weighs supply.

Dancin_In_Anson:Lift it and finding out is really the only way of finding out for sure. I don't know what she's so afraid of.

As someone who actually lives in Florida, I'd rather not see our waters farked up so that the oil companies can make just a little more money. I know Florida isn't perfect, but please let's not turn it into Texas, we see what comes from there.

kronicfeld:Better implement all those anti-global-warming proposals, too. And pollution controls, like Kyoto. After all, it's the only real way to find out. Conjecture as to their efficacy is not fact.

Absolutely. Which one of the two proposals (opening up oilfields and Kyoto) will put more direct government control over your life?

OutLawJD:As someone who actually lives in Florida, I'd rather not see our waters farked up so that the oil companies can make just a little more money. I know Florida isn't perfect, but please let's not turn it into Texas, we see what comes from there.

So when Florida is under water, according to Al Gore, then can we drill out there?

OutLawJD:Dancin_In_Anson:Lift it and finding out is really the only way of finding out for sure. I don't know what she's so afraid of.

As someone who actually lives in Florida, I'd rather not see our waters farked up so that the oil companies can make just a little more money. I know Florida isn't perfect, but please let's not turn it into Texas, we see what comes from there.

Most proposals have left it up to the individual states to decide whether or not to allow drilling off their shores. I realize Florida values its coastlines, and rightfully so, but for states like Louisiana, the revenue would be a windfall, and certainly in the case of Louisiana, the revenue would largely be dedicated to wetlands restoration.

GaryPDX:My 18 year got a job at a Vespa store. He says they are selling like crazy and he's having a blast.

The number of scooters in town seems to have gone up tremendously here over the last few months.

Personally (and when I get the time), I want to get a motorcycle/sidecar combo and try to make it an electric cycle, using the sidecar trunk for battery storage.

Related to the article...
"Pelosi and other Democratic leaders also unveiled another series of proposals to deal with the energy and gas price crisis, and renewed their calls for immediate drilling on nearly 100 million domestic acres already approved for exploration."

They do have a point. The industry probably shouldn't cry for more land when they aren't using what's already available.