Saving Our Planet: Arizona's Controversial Solution to Global Warming

(From frontpagemag.com 2Feb2010)


Many of Arizona's good citizens know a con when we see one, and for anthropogenic global warming, we caught on to the problem long ago. Man causes global warming by the horrible practice of daylight savings time.

You see, the extra hour of sunshine and daylight half the year heats up the planet. It is established science; there is no room for disagreement. More daylight means more heat. That is why the enlightened leadership in Arizona did away with daylight savings years ago. It is working! December of 2010 saw snowfall in Phoenix.

But, all is not well. Word is spreading fast in Arizona that the sinister forces of Soros, Gore, Pelosi, and Obama (Harry Reid is off somewhere gambling online) are pouring money into community organizations in Arizona to pass an initiative in 2012 to mandate Daylight Savings Time in Arizona. These evil forces need to extend and expand the Global Warming Crisis to continue the march of big government in America. How crass, how selfish, how shortsighted they are that they would destroy the planet for their own profits and personal gain.

Save the planet! Support Arizona with tourism, conventions, and new industry. Help lead the fight against Global Warming!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Luke 2:7-14
7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes,
and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone
round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ
the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host
praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Water and Energy: Transportation by Automobile

I am still on "vacation" from blogging, but I felt compelled to post the following.

Water and energy are strongly linked. Energy production takes water, a great deal of water. Transportation fuels are to water as food is to water. Water is the basic requirement for life and water is a basic requirement for fuel production for transportation. Water and energy are linked and this fact is inescapable.

But, how much water is required for various forms of fuel for transportation?

First, we define some nomenclature and units used in the calculation. One way is to determine how many gallons of water are required to produce a gallon of transportation fuel (fuel hereafter). Because the use of fuel varies by the type of vehicles being used and fuel efficiency in miles per gallon of fuel varies widely, we will use a term to relate water and fuel efficiency directly. This term is gallons of water required per vehicle mile travelled. This term, gallons of water per mile travelled (abbreviated as gal H2O/mile) then spans the various fuels and the various vehicle fuel efficiency if we use an average fuel efficiency in miles/gal. Much of this material is from a paper by King and Webber (2008). "Water Intensity of Transportation", Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 42, No. 21, pp. 7866-7872. source.

Let's Consider Some Numbers

If we assume an average fuel efficiency of a mix of cars, light trucks, and SUV's with an average efficiency of 20.5 miles/gallon, then we can compare the water use per mile (gal H2O/mile) of various fuels. The following are averages from the paper cited above.
1. Petroleum based gasoline and diesel fuels: 0.105 gal H2O/mile for gasoline and 0.08 gal H2O/mile for diesel.
2. Plug-in electric cars using the power grid: 0.37 gal H2O/mile (about 3.5 times as much as using gasoline).
3. Ethanol E85 (85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) from irrigated crops: 28 gal H2O/mile (about 267 times as much as gasoline).
4. Diesel fuel derived from irrigated soybeans: 8 gal H2O/mile (about 100 times as much as from petroleum based diesel).

These statistics mean that plug-in electric vehicles use about 3.5 times as much water per mile driven as conventional gasoline fueled vehicles. In addition, remember, electric power from the grid is highly dependent on electricity generated by coal power plants and nuclear power plants. Biofuels (ethanol (E85) and diesel) use about 100 to 300 times as much water per mile driven, as do conventionally powered gasoline vehicles.

Significance of Higher Water Use with Alternative Transportation Energy Sources

Supplies of traditional gasoline and diesel fuel can be obtained by expanded domestic exploration and drilling. Obtaining huge increases in available water (to use alternative transportation fuels) is much more difficult (or impossible) and it is expensive.

Quite simply, we can get more energy (oil, coal, nuclear power) for transportation, we know how, we know where, and it is economically viable. Water is another matter. Fresh water is a finite, and tightly limited resource. Water conservation will help, but we cannot conserve more that we use. It is not a matter of just pumping more groundwater (supplies are generally over used and groundwater levels are declining) or building more dams. Surface waters are already over allocated (more people have claims to the water than the amount that exists) and some dams are being removed based on questionable environmental reasoning. Desalination requires huge amounts of energy and where will we get the additional energy? Reclaimed sewer water can be used but most of it is already seen as a resource and supplies are limited. All potential sources of additional water are limited, infeasible, or impossible when we are considering increased water demand for transportation of approximately 3 to 300 fold.

Is it Right?

Every acre of cropland converted from food crops to biofuel production results in a reduction of food for people. While you as an individual may not be hungry, there are millions of Americans who are and billions more around the world.

Is shifting agriculture from food production to biofuel production wise? Is using food for transportation just? Is this a waste of food? In addition, is it a sin to waste food?

My Dear Friends, it is Time for a Break

After about 5 years, I am tired. This blog has been a good outlet for me and I believe it let me accomplished a few things. I certainly made some great online friends and kept in touch with good friends and family. You have brought me happiness, thank you.

I have found myself busy with other things, all of which bring good feelings, love and happiness. My work remains a pleasure and something to look forward to every day.

Therefore, I have decided to take a break for a few months. I might be back with an occasional post, but plan to do little here until my annual Christmas story. In the meantime, please come back near the holidays and look for a Christmas story.

Until then, may God bless you and keep you. I hope you find comfort in your faith and your families. They are what count the most in life.

Loma Alta
Aug. 23, 2010

Did Harvard Get its Marching Orders?

This received no State Press notice in the U.S. Then,the Drudge Report linked to it Aug 16.

You thought it was terrible about U.S. actions in the UN and the president's support for the mega-mosque at ground zero. Well, it just keeps getting worse. Seems the radical leftists and radical Islamists are lining up behind our radical-leftist, Muslim president to formulate even more anti-Semitic policies. Of course, the State Press completes this unholy triumvirate.


It was reported in Israel's Globe on August, 15, 2010 source.

Harvard University fund sells all Israel holdings

No reason for the sale was mentioned in the report to the SEC.
15 August 10 17:15, Hillel Koren

In another blow to Israeli shares, the Harvard Management Company notified the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday that it had sold all its holdings in Israeli companies during the second quarter of 2010. No reason for the sale was mentioned. The Harvard Management Company manages Harvard University's endowment.

How Low Will The Leftists & Islamists in America Go?

God only knows the depths of their prejudice, hatred, and evil. However, I think we will see more and more of it, especially during the Nov. 2010 - Jan 2011 lame duck Congress period and Obama's lame duck period from now through Jan 2013.

The only solace we have as people of faith and good will is that we know. Yes, we know of the inevitable judgment and we know what will happen to the evil forces opposing and oppressing Israel. Let's pray that America can become decent and tolerant again, and soon.

Some Myths & Realities about Illegal Immigration

You have all heard the myths of illegal immigration, open borders, and amnesty.

Here are some quick examples:

1) "They are only taking jobs Americans won' do." -- Proven false when immigration raided business such as the meat packing plant in Greely, CO. Tens of thousands of Americans sought work there after the raids. This pattern has been repeated across the land whenever illegal aliens are arrested and jobs become available.

2) "They are good people and have the right to enter our country." It is a crime to enter America illegally. It is a crime to work here illegally, it is a crime to be involved in identity theft, it is a crime to falsify job applications, ...

3) "If I were poor and starving, I would do the same thing." Well, unemployment has skyrocketed to over 10% and as high as nearly 50% in some job applicant classes; youth, unskilled, etc. I wonder why people saying this nonsense do not go to Mexico or any country in the world illegally and find work? The simple answer is they face arrest and imprisonment if they enter another country illegally.

One could write a book about the thousands of myths and lies used by the enemies of America to justify illegal immigration.

Here is the truth about illegal immigration. It is from the recent protests against Arizona's SB1070. (SB1070 would have brought equal justice under law in Arizona).

You will not see it in the state media.

Like Other Leftist Projects, the Volt is a Scam, at the Taxpayers' Expense

Like other loony leftist ideas the Government Motors Volt is illogical, indefensible, much more harmful to the environment than helpful, and all done with taxpayers money for a very few of the leftist elite.

Here is some of what Jonah Goldberg had to say.

Because the Volt’s sticker price might be too high for even that crowd, the government is offering a federal subsidy of up to $7,500 (Californians have a state subsidy, too), which means that working-class people will be helping to pay for playthings for upper-income people.

“Like the EV1 that GM tried to peddle in the California market,” Kenneth Green, an environmental scientist at the American Enterprise Institute, says, “the Volt is a vanity car for the well-off that will be subsidized by less well-off taxpayers at all stages, from R&D to sales and to the construction of charging stations.”

Indeed, the Volt’s price is $41,000, but the cost is much higher. “Government Motors” is already selling the car at a loss. According to the blogger Doctor Zero, if you apply the subsidies that have gone directly into the car to just the first 10,000 vehicles, the cost is more like $81,000 per car.

Of course, electric-car boosters say this sort of thing is necessary to get the industry up and running. (Green responds: “Supporters claim that electric cars need subsidies because they’re still in their infancy. Electric cars have been around for over 100 years. That’s some infancy.”)

But would it be a good thing if we all switched to electric cars? The point is to reduce CO2 emissions, right? But in some regions, we get our electricity from CO2-spewing coal. The more electricity pulled from the grid, the more coal is burned, essentially replacing dirty oil with dirtier coal (which is why some coal backers see much promise in electric cars). Studies confirm that China — which is allegedly “beating us” in the race to a green economy — would produce vastly more greenhouse emissions if it switched to electric vehicles. source.

There you have it. Another "green swindle" at the taxpayers' expense.

What is Your Share of State Debts?

The following link is to a map showing per capita debts to state government. This does not include the trillons of dollars of the federal debt, but it is still massive in leftist states. Values range from $15 per capita in Nebraska to nearly $4000 to $5000 in the leftist states on both coasts and Hawaii.

Your share of the state debt
States are taking on more debt. Here’s your state’s burden per capita. source.

Amazing for Leftist California

This is an amazing story to come from California, the home of leftist, judicial activist judges.

THE JUDGES SAVE THE PEOPLE:
THE CALIFORNIA STATE SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

THE CALIFORNIA STATE SUPREME COURT RULED AGAINST THE CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO AND SAID THAT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION MUST END IN CALIFORNIA. source.

The Bagpiper

A friend sent me this one.

As a bagpiper, I play many gigs. Recently I was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man. He had no family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in the Kentucky back country.

As I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost and, being a typical man, I didn't stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late and saw the funeral guy had evidently gone and the hearse was nowhere in sight. There were only the diggers and crew left and they were eating lunch. I felt badly and apologized to the men for being late.

I went to the side of the grave and looked down and the vault lid was already in place. I didn't know what else to do, so I started to play. The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around. I played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends. I played like I've never played before for this homeless man. And as I played 'Amazing Grace,' the workers began to weep. They wept,I wept, we all wept together.

When I finished I packed up my bagpipes and started for my car. Though my head hung low, my heart was full. As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say, "I never seen nothin' like that before and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years."

Apparently I'm still lost....

Prince of Fools and Vast Confederacy of Fools

This came via email.

QUOTE OF THE CENTURY, MAYBE EVEN THE MILLENNIUM


Some people have the vocabulary to sum up things in a way you can understand them. This quote came from the Czech Republic . Someone over there has it figured out. We have a lot of work to do.

"The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America . Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president."

Oil and Red Ink Spills

I received these via email. Had to pass them on. Have to love John Wayne.

Vacation and Deadlines

Hello everyone.

High pressure business deadlines to meet before a scheduled vacation.

Will see you in a week or two.

Take care my friends and May God Bless You.

Radical Left Discovers What Decent People Have Known for Centuries

First, I Wish You a belated Happy Independence Day. Thank God for his divine inspiration of our Founding Fathers and the freedoms we have enjoyed and hope to enjoy in the future.


It seems that a very few of the radical leftists running many of our state governments and many counties and cities within other states have discovered a cause and effect relationship between crime and punishment. Would that all politicians and bureaucrats discover this, the criminals surely know it.

In short, if criminals are held accountable for their crimes and punished accordingly, they will commit fewer crimes. Likewise, if criminals released on probation are forced to obey the rules of their probation, their recidivism is drastically reduced.

Here are some excerpts from a recent trial period of enforcing probation rules and the dramatic results. And this is from far left Hawaii!

HOPE (Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement), a new program that has been implemented in Honolulu, successfully links the criminal justice system to substance abuse treatment when needed. This program has the potential to command strong bipartisan support and substantially extend the reach of drug courts. HOPE holds the promise of significantly reducing the demand for illegal drugs, crime, and prison populations across the US. This innovative program can be branded and promoted as a high-visibility, high impact upgrading of the nation’s efforts to reduce illegal drug use and crime at the same time that it will reduce the nation’s prison population.

The drug abusers who use the most drugs and create the highest social costs frequently are also criminally active as drug dealers themselves and as property and violent offenders. They are also the most reliable customers of other drug dealers. It is their money that keeps the illegal drug markets in business, thereby damaging the neighborhoods where open dealing takes place. Their recidivism contributes greatly both to the crime rate and to the unconscionably large prison population.

Most of the drug using offenders are on probation, parole, or out on bail. Drug courts harness the leverage of the criminal justice system and the nation’s treatment system to reduce drug use and recidivism in this group, but drug courts are expensive and limited in scope. For example, most drug courts will not accept offenders with a history of violent crime. HOPE, however, extends the best features of drug courts to far larger populations at much lower costs.

Four years ago Project HOPE was started by Judge Steven S. Alm, a dedicated and creative judge in Honolulu, Hawaii. Alm’s vision was related to that of the founders of the drug court movement, but used a different approach, one with the promise of eventually encompassing every active drug user under criminal justice supervision in the community.
SNIP
The current system for handling drug use by criminal offenders under community supervision is akin to ignoring a child’s misbehavior for years and then, at some unpredictable moment, disowning or kicking the child out of the house. That strategy does not work for children and works even less well for criminal offenders released under supervision into the community. In contrast, the HOPE model includes quick, predicable, but relatively mild punishments for continued drug use. HOPE’s results, both in reduced drug use and less time behind bars, are striking.
SNIP
Compared to routine probation, HOPE has been shown in a careful, independent evaluation to reduce drug use by more than 90%1 and new crimes by more than 50% while shrinking the average number of days a probationer spends behind bars. In contrast, violation rates for non-HOPE probationers grew steadily worse over time, with 37% eventually having their probation revoked, compared with fewer than 5% for participants in HOPE. source.

In other words, uniformly enforcing existing probation rules works. Not enforcing them does not. If everyone in the criminal system knows that all violations will be punished, repeat drug use and crime are dramatically reduced. All this resulted from one judge in a very liberal state.

Arizona Is Going to Try Enforcing Probation as they did in Hawaii

Ever since the abominable Gov. Janet Napolitano and her radical leftist veto and obstructionist policies left Arizona to neuter Homeland Security, Arizona has been passing a series of laws expanding citizens' freedom, cracking down on illegal aliens and their crimes, and reversing some of the insane liberal burden Arizonans suffered under.

If conservative legislators work with a conservative governor, then much can be accomplished toward equal justice under law and a civil society.

Now, Arizona is trying a probation reform based on Hawaii's HOPE. Here are some excerpts from a recent story in the local paper.

Kim Smith Arizona Daily Star | Posted: Sunday, July 4, 2010 12:00 am

In one way, at least, it's good to be a drug addict on probation in Arizona.

Probationers are typically allowed to test positive for drugs multiple times before they are finally hauled into court.

If they own up to violating this rule or that rule, and ask the court for a second or a third chance, they have every reason to expect those prayers will be answered.

Not anymore. Starting this fall, punishment will be swift and certain for those selected to participate in Project SAFE, or Swift Accountable Fair Enforcement. Use drugs on probation, and go straight to jail.

Six years ago, officials in Hawaii grew tired of people on probation missing drug-testing appointments, using drugs or absconding, so they developed HOPE, or Hawaii's Opportunity Probation with Enforcement. source.

There is Hope for Arizona

Unlike California where the radical leftists have pushed the state so far left that it may never recover, there is hope for good government in Arizona. However, we must temper the optimism with the obvious warning. Hope will remain only so long as Arizona voters continue to support the good and the decent among our politicians, the patriotic conservatives.

Red Flag Warning--Mexico may Elect a Communist President

Here is one assessment of the top two candidates for President of Mexico in 2012.

MEXICO CITY — They appear on the covers of society magazines flanked by their partners, soap-opera bombshells. They use street parties, cheerleaders and slick televised productions to tout their state-level accomplishments to a national audience.

Neither the mayor of Mexico’s biggest city nor the governor of its most populous state have confirmed their 2012 presidential ambitions, but already they are seen as the ones to beat. And while there are stylistic similarities between Marcelo Ebrard and Enrique Pena Nieto, the very different directions they propose could set Mexico’s path for years to come.

While similar in age, the 50-year-old Ebrard and 43-year-old Pena Nieto bear little resemblance to the stiff, bespectacled President Felipe Calderon, 47, a no-nonsense technocrat whose term has been dominated by a brutal drug war that has killed more than 15,000 people since he took office in 2006. So far, no one from Calderon’s conservative National Action Party has emerged as a top candidate to succeed him.

“Definitely, this is a new generation,” said Lorena Carreno, president of the Mexican Association of Public Relations Agencies. “They are closing the circle to create an integrated marketing strategy, a prefabricated brand.”

Pena Nieto, of the Institutional Revolutionary Party that ruled Mexico for most of the 20th century, is known as “Gel Boy” for the seemingly immovable wave in his hair and his sexy good looks. He appears regularly on the national Televisa network with celebrities who fawn over public works in his impoverished state that rings Mexico City.

Ebrard, of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party, is a charismatic politician recognized internationally for greening one of the world’s smoggiest cities, and has created so many subsidies for single mothers, students, retirees and others that some working-class parents jokingly refer to their kids as “the children of Marcelo.”
Both are flamboyant in their pursuit of attention. source.

Here is a brief description of the leftist candidate. This sounds very familiar. We heard how much Hugo Chavez was going to do for Venezuela. He is becoming a dictator and has forged political and military ties with Russia, China, Cuba, and Iran. Chavez has been seeking military alliances against the United States, military hardware, and probably nuclear weapons from Iran. We had our own dose of a stealth leftist in 2008, we seem helpless as Obama, and his handlers, shred the Constitution and march the United States toward socialism and bankruptcy.

Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubón (born on October 10, 1959 in Mexico City) is the current Head of Government of the Federal District since December 5, 2006. He is a Mexican politician affiliated to the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) who served as Secretary-General of the former Mexican Federal District Department, minister of public security and minister of social development of the Mexican capital. He was the successful candidate of the PRD-led electoral alliance to serve as Head of Government of the Federal District in the 2006 Federal District election. source.

We see the dangers of leftist tyrants in Venezuela Cuba, China, North Korea, Iran, etc. Come 2012 we could have another Castro or Hugo Chaves on our border. With no oceans to protect us, no fence, and nothing but an open border policy and a push for amnesty, we are sitting ducks. Imagine a communist takeover in Mexico. We now have a few thousand jihadists and other terrorists crossing our southern border, a flood of drugs and violence, and millions of illegal invaders. Imagine the problems we would have if Mexico's 110 million people fell to communism and its radical government invited our enemies to their country (as Venezuela has done) and we had a possible nuclear threat on our border.

Also, imagine a communist bloodbath of their political enemies in Mexico causing mass illegal immigration of 20 or 30 million fleeing from the violence. Could America protect itself? Would our radical leftists even try? Hard, sad, disastrous days may be coming. Watch the elections south of the border and pray for deliverance from our enemies.