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Do you believe in magic? Professor Folbre commands wind and solar to be cost competitive with fossil fuels and to displace nuclear energy New York Times (3/28/11) reports: More important is the rate of change in the cost and utilization of these technologies, particularly those that rely on wind, water or solar power and will not contribute to global warming…The cost per kilowatt hour of generating electricity from wind and solar power has declined steadily in recent years and is projected...
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Energy crisis by design — the war against affordable and reliable energy will not go without casualties Washington Post (3/24/11) reports: Last month, Seahawk Drilling declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced the sale of its assets to shallow-water driller Hercules Offshore. This devastating decision was the culmination of a long period in which we found our customers unable to secure permits for work in the Gulf of Mexico despite the fact that both our industry and our company have...
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Chu said wind and solar will be cost competitive with oil by end of the decade, which makes sense because under the plan they promised,  the cost of energy would necessarily skyrocket Yahoo (3/24/11) reports: Clean sources of energy such as wind and solar will be no more expensive than oil and gas projects by the end of the decade, US Energy Secretary Steven Chu said Wednesday…President Barack Obama's administration has been encouraging companies to invest in green growth, calling...
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It’s sad that a new coal permit is newsworthy — Sec. Salazar relishes the pomp and circumstance as he conducts what should be routine business Tribune (3/23/11) reports: Nearly 758 million tons of Wyoming coal will go up for sale in the coming months, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Tuesday… The sale of the leases announced Tuesday could produce up to $21.3 billion when factoring in bonus bids and royalty payments, Salazar said. Just more than half of the total would go to the...
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Must be something in the water…President Obama encourages Brazil to develop their offshore oil fields but continues permitorium at home The Hill (3/21/11) reports: Republicans and the oil industry are working to translate President Obama’s weekend comments in support of Brazilian oil development into political ammunition in their battle against the White House’s U.S. drilling policies…The American Petroleum Institute, the country’s most powerful oil and gas trade association, and...
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Captain CAAAAAVEMAAAAAAANNNN. Chu seeks to rescue us from high gas prices by returning to the stone age. How 'bout we just drill instead Fox News (3/20/11) reports: Reduced demand in Japan combined with uncertainty in Libya has caused short-term instability in the price of gasoline globally, but it's nearly impossible to mitigate the long-term effects without changes in energy policy, President Obama's point-man on the topic said Sunday….Energy Secretary Steven Chu, who in 2008...
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IER’s Dan Kish explains that the beatings at the pump will continue until morale improves Human Events (3/17/11) reports: President Obama finally held a press conference on the subject of rising gas prices last week that required anyone who has been watching his administration's war on domestic energy to suspend disbelief.  Instead of announcing a reversal of his anti-domestic energy policies, he explained that on his watch, oil production is...
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Greenies rejoice after shutting down a coal port in WA and retreat to their tree houses to burn animal dung for heat while the poorest among us suffer Wall Street Journal (3/15/11) reports: Environmental groups claimed a victory Tuesday when a unit of Australia-based Ambre Energy Ltd announced it withdrew its permit application for a proposed export terminal to ship coal mined in Montana and Wyoming to Asia via the Columbia River port of Longview,...
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Great article that puts the nuclear situation in Japan in perspective New York Times (3/13/11) reports: The difference between a partial meltdown and a full meltdown at a nuclear plant is enormous, both in the degree of damage and in the potential release of radiation, experts in nuclear power said…A partial meltdown, like those suspected at two reactors in northeastern Japan over the weekend, may not necessarily mean that any of the uranium fuel in...
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