The Answer Is Blowin’ In The Wind
The pig-in-a-poke that is advertised as the war on world terror (but is in reality a terror war for world oil) is not going well. If one were educated in proper engineering principles, one would have long since noted that the desired result intended to provide the United States with energy source stability isn’t forthcoming, and another solution must be attempted.
But to a neo-confidence hammer, every energy problem looks like a terrorist nail, and every terrorist nail must be driven home - no matter how likely it is to bend or break the hammer before one can do so.
Impetus for the Bush administration continuing to pound away with a proven failure of policy was just released. The Financial Times of London reported about a study of Iraq’s oil reserves conducted by IHS, an engineering consultancy servicing the petroleum industry. They concluded - assuming that Iraq were peaceful - that Iraq would be a very attractive place for drillers to operate, as production costs are estimated by IHS to be less than $2 a barrel.
Unlike the Bush administration, however, IHS officials aren’t blind to the realities of Iraq. Financial Times quotes Ron Mobed of IHS as saying:
“Obviously the security situation is very bad. But when you look at the sub-surface opportunity, there isn’t anywhere else like this. Geologically, it’s right up there, a gold star opportunity.”
When one looks at a few basic Iraqi oil production statistics, one can see how Mobed makes that assessment. Iraq has 78 oilfields. Only 27 are currently producing, with 25 not yet completely developed, and 26 available for development. That’s enough to make a dry-hole Texas Oil Man forget he’s a guest in someone else’s homeland and go for the gusto.
There’s only one problem, Pilgrim! The ol’ Peacemaker is about out of bullets.
How many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they’re forever banned?
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.
The Marine Corps Times revealed that the Senate Armed Services Committee heard testimony from Lawrence Korb, a former senior Pentagon official, and retired Army Gen. Barry McCaffrey that making George’s Oil Legions larger is a bad idea, because the all-volunteer military isn’t attracting high-caliber recruits. McCaffrey asserted, “Ten percent of Army recruits are of low caliber and do not belong in uniform.” As a result of this situation, Korb declared that there is no other “responsible” option for Bush but to resume the draft.
Veteran Republican Senator John Warner of Virginia isn’t in the market for Korb’s polemic. “We must, at all cost, preserve the all-volunteer force.”
How many deaths will it take till we know
That too many people have died?
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.
Blogger SanJoseLady of diatribune.com takes issue with Korb as well, and calls his bluff. She notes that
“… to stay in Iraq we must have a draft. So are the war supporters going to do what the ‘responsible’ thing and ‘call for reinstating the draft?’ I have to wonder how many of those who support this war, like [conservative columnist Michelle] Malkin, will put out the call for a draft… Americans will not stand for a draft in this war, they already [don’t] support this president or this war …
How many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn’t see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.
It certainly is, and the formerly-Red State of Ohio is aware - very aware. The International Business Times reports that Gov. Ted Strickland and State House Speaker Jon Husted are very interested in taking advantage of research provided by the U.S. Department of Energy that shows that “vast areas of northern and western Ohio have winds strong enough [17mph] to make wind power profitable.”
Bowling Green, Ohio, generates a large portion of its electrical power from just four windmills which produce 7 megawatts - an amount greater than the entire wind power capacity of eight states. Daryl Stockburger, operator of North Coast Wind and Power, was formerly Bowling Green’s utilities director. He supervised construction of the four windmills. Stockburger said he has found the winds to be consistently faster at 330 feet than at the top of Bowling Green’s 250-foot windmills. “The extra wind speed would cost-justify the taller tower,” he said to reporter John Mccarthy.
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind.
It certainly is. All one has to do is listen.