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Here’s the real scoop on off-shore oil drilling in our country. 

Let’s start with the fact that the U.S. uses 25% of the world’s supply of oil, way more than any other country uses.  And the world’s supply of oil has already peaked and is now in decline.  The answer some have come up with is “Drill Baby Drill,” by which they mean, the risky drilling for oil off the shores of America’s coastlines. 

Right now there are around 4,000 off-shore drilling platforms that are operating in U.S.  federal waters, primarily in the Gulf of Mexico — mostly off the shores of Louisiana and Texas —  and also off the coast of Alaska.  We were shocked to know that there are so many rigs currently operating off  the coasts of the United States.  And yet, these 4,000 wells only produce roughly 7% of the amount of oil that is consumed yearly by our country.

The part of off-shore drilling that we here at CLN don’t think that most Americans really seem to get is that the small percentage of oil that is produced by these 4,000 oil platforms off of our own coasts — that represent ecologically and financially risky drilling — is not even for our own country’s use!  No, it is sold on the open, worldwide market and this oil (as with all oil) goes to the highest bidder — thereby producing, not more oil for our nation’s consumption, but more profits for the oil companies. 

Check out the chart below and you can see that the little sliver at the top of the chart represents a tiny, tiny amount  of oil that would be added from new off-shore drilling within the next two decades.  Yet, even if that sliver was kept by our nation for our own use, that sliver could be helpful.  However, this is not the case — that sliver also does not belong to us, it belongs to the international oil companies that do the drilling.  And they do not turn our own natural resource over to us.

Get it?  America risks destroying our coastlands so that oil companies can make even more money.  The company that has caused the biggest U.S. oil disaster in decades is a British company, British Petroleum!  Our Gulf Coast is seriously in danger and all for the profits of a British oil company.  Whatever oil that BP gets from this oil drilling will go to the world market for sale, NOT to the benefit of our country.  America takes the risk — Big-Oil reaps the benefit.

Is this the deal that Americans think they’re making with Big Oil?  “Drill Baby Drill!”  The oil pumped from the off-shore drilling (as with all oil from U.S. natural resources) is not meant for the U.S.! 

This is a major point of confusion on the part of many Americans, a confusion undoubtedly generated by the oil industry and their allies in Washington.  When we support “Drill-Baby-Drill” we are supporting international oil corporations and oil markets’ profits.  The oil that is drilled in the Gulf of Mexico, or in Alaska’s wilderness, along the coasts of California, or even the proposed drilling off  Florida’s coast,  is not reserved for our nation’s consumption.  It is sold to the highest bidder on the world markets.  It goes to Japan or China, or anywhere in the world that the drillers can get the best price. 

Obviously, we are risking our coasts, and that risk does nothing to reduce the amount of oil we have to buy, nor does it even lower the cost of gasoline at the pump by increasing the supply of oil.  It is estimated that there are only 18 billion barrels of oil to be had in the entire world in off-shore drilling.  And even if there were a more significant amount of oil produced off-shore, to be sold on the open market, all OPEC would have to do to keep the price of gas at the pump high is to limit their production of oil. 

The right lies when it implies that domestic drilling is important to our country’s energy independence.  This oil does NOT automatically go to our country for sale, and doesn’t even go to our nation’s domestic reserve.  Too many Americans believe that domestic drilling, including off-shore drilling, is helping our country’s quest for oil independence. 

That’s the Off-Shore Drilling Hoax.  We need to tell this story in a clear and concise way — and tell it often.  The Big-Oil supporters are deceiving us, and it’s time to put an end to their deception. 

Minnesota Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty said on CNN’s Sunday State of the Union show, “The Tea Party movement represents new energy, new ideas, passion around these themes of:  ‘we’ve had enough’; ‘government’s too big’; ‘the debt’s too big’; and to the extent that accrues to the Republican side of the ledger, we’ll take that energy.”  

REALLY?

Governor Pawlenty, you are wrong — the Tea Party does not bring new energy or passion, much less new ideas.  Tea Party energy, passion, and ideas have been around for decades — perhaps more than a century.  These ideas, exemplified by Kentucky’s Republican Senatorial candidate, Rand Paul, are in many ways the ideas of the Olde Confederacy.  States Rights and (no rules, no regulations) Laissez-Faire Capitalism — these are the old ideas of the Deep South — the ideas we fought a Civil War over.       

The South fought a war with the Union for the right of the states to maintain their economic system based on slavery, and for private businesses to have the right to refuse service to anyone they decided to discriminate against.  And they believed that the Christian God was on their side, against the wicked North (led by Abraham Lincoln) that wanted to take these rights away from them and federally impose “equality for all” on them.  When they say “we’re losing our rights and our freedoms (often prefaced  by ‘God given’)” these are the freedoms they want back.  

Big-Government, in many ways, means to them that the Federal Government is imposing “outsiders’ rules.”  We sometimes wonder if the Rebel Yell (still alive and well in the South) — “The South Shall Rise Again!” — doesn’t somehow mean more to them than just ‘colorful language.’  When we hear the Governor of Texas, and others, implying that they’d look favorably on the idea of their states seceding from the Union — well, it makes us wonder if the Old South has ever stopped fighting the Civil War, or the ideas that they fought to preserve.

So, they’re against what they call Big-Government (i.e. outsiders’ laws — such as Civil Rights?) being imposed on them, and they’re also against the federal government running a deficit.  WOW.  Where were they when W. doubled the deficit and ‘President Cheney’ said that deficits don’t matter, while that administration spent, and spent, and spent with their tax-breaks for the rich and federal contracts for their friends and supporters?

And, no, Tea Partiers, you do NOT own the deficit issue.  The Dems balanced the budget and left W. a surplus;  and they left the Paygo law for the Republicans to follow — which they didn’t do — instead letting the law expire so they could spend with impunity.  So, the left is pretty livid about the financial disaster that the right has left for the new administration to fix, and dear Tea Partiers:  We won’t let you self-righteously and hypocritically take that issue from us.

The Tea Party people are the same old people fighting the same old fights they’ve fought for ages.  They get energized from time to time and put people like W. into office, but they are not a new force — just the same old group saying the same old things, and with the same old anger and rage. 

They rage because, deep down, they know they’re on the losing side for America’s future.  And, they are P-Oed about it.  That’s your “passion and energy” Governor Pawlenty.  You’re welcome to it, because it will bring your party down.

So, when you hear Republicans like Rand Paul say, “The Tea Party has a message:  We’re here to take our government back” it’s important to understand exactly what back means, and what changes they actually have in mind.  It looks like back really means B-A-C-Kwards.

REALLY!

We’ve gone round and round here at CLN over Miranda rights in the age of terrorism.  We’re pleased to say that we found a wonderful opinion by Sol Wachtler in the New York Times that put it all into perspective.  Sol Wachtler is a professor of constitutional law, former chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals, and the author of “the emergency exception” (or “public safety” exception) to Miranda — which has been upheld by the Supreme Court.  This exception to Miranda rights says that in case of imminent danger to the safety of the public the authorities can delay reading rights to a suspect.  The “emergency exception” was most recently used during the questioning of the Times Square bomber, Faisal Shahzad. 

This op-ed explains why Miranda rights are important.  Judge Wachtler relates the history of the many problems with upholding convictions prior to Miranda — when there was a lack of clarity around interrogations that might conflict with the Fifth Amendment, which says that the government may not compel a person “in any criminal case to be a witness against himself.”  The Miranda ruling provides that clarity, and diminishes incidents of criminals being set free because of ambiguity around whether or not the accused was “compelled” to be a witness against himself during interrogation.  Seriously, check-it-out.

It seems odd to me that the American people, who are really mad and they’re not going to take it anymore, are mad at the g-o-v-e-r-n-m-e-n-t rather than mad at corporate America and Wall Street (who actually caused the economic melt-down).  So many have bought-in to the idea that ‘big government is to blame for the state of our country and our economy.’  When, in fact, it is the lack of government regulations and oversight (initiated by Republican deregulation ideology) that are to blame for the great recession.  Blame the government rather than the perps?  What’s up with that? 

Businesses and corporations do what they do.  They exist to make profits, and as much profit as they can.  They can’t be blamed for being what they are, anymore than the scorpion in the children’s fable can be blamed for stinging his friend the frog.  When asked by the frog why he stung him he replied, “I’m a scorpion;  it’s my nature.”  It’s the nature of corporations to make profits.   Some (many?) in any way they can.  Sneaky bookeeping, cutting safety corners, marketing products in deceptive ways — any way they can.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt said on January 20, 1937 — “We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals, now we know that it is bad economics.”  Heedless self-interest is the nature of greed, of the single-minded pursuit of profit.  Yes we now know, once again, that this is bad economics.  Do we have to keep learning this lesson over, and over, and over again?

And yet, and yet — the Republicans continue to cheer for deregulation.  Still.  After all this damage to our economy, our environment, safe toys, and safe food supply and medicines.  Republicans support profits over the American people.  They claim to believe that profits are in the best interest of the American people.  Even if that once was true, it no longer is. 

The right has cheered for profits and asserted that profits would make ours a better country by providing more jobs.  While they deregulated and cut taxes for corporations –thereby boosting profits — the business world took their jobs to other countries.  They raped our country, got mega-wealthy, polluted our environment, poisoned us with tainted and chemically sprayed foods, imported dangerous and lead laden toys, put unsafe medicines on the market, AND THEN TOOK THE JOBS AWAY! 

And still Republicans say, “Cut taxes on corporations and deregulate”  We here at CLN say, “We want MORE government!”

CHECK-IT-OUT:  Great article by David Leonhart in New York Times that says while there are superficial similarities between Greece’s budget woes and our deficits, that our economy is actually growing and Greece is close to default. According to the chief economist at the Treasury, “It’s not a matter of whether we have the resources to solve our [deficit] problems” … “It’s a matter of political will.”

CHECK-IT-OUT:  The Economist today has the following take on the proposition that America is going to be just like Greece soon:  “There are many different ways that America could close its budget gap; it’s merely having an intense political debate over which way is the best way. This could potentially be a problem, but it’s a different problem from the one in Greece. The Greeks have a massive current primary deficit that markets no longer want to fund. The Americans have a political debate over how to rein in the growth of health costs over the next three decades. Ultimately, casting the American fiscal situation in a Greek light obscures more than it illuminates.”

So the Republican-right’s story (and they’re sticking to it!) is that it is the Democrats and President Obama who are responsible for our country’s deficits.  Well, go ahead, just forget the facts:  Bill Clinton not only lowered deficits, but actually left a SURPLUS for George Bush’s administration. 

The last time the fiscal picture looked really good was under Democrat Bill Clinton — and that surplus was from an increase of taxes on the wealthiest citizens.  Did the “fiscally responsible” W. use that surplus to shore up Social Security or to pay down the debt?  Naw, he gave it all away (and more) in tax cuts that didn’t boost the economy at all, just left enormous deficits.  In fact, the most tepid economic growth and employment growth occurred after all W.’s tax breaks that mainly benefited the upper classes. 

And, let us not forget the infamous statement by ‘President’ Cheney:  “Deficits don’t matter.”  The right is really good at re-writing history.  They’re so good at it because they have SO much practice!

We do have a long-term problem with our deficit spending and our debt.  The current meme from the far-right is that “America is going to be just like Greece if we don’t immediately cut the size of government.”  But we are not Greece (which is close to bankruptcy) or anywhere near it.  However, that does not seem to stop the far-right from trying to make the comparison. 

Liz Cheney, right-wing attack pooch, actually asserts that the USA should adopt Greece’s austerity program!  This would devastate our fledgling economic recovery and throw us right back into a severe recession, as it will Greece.  It will be decades before Greece works its way out of this disaster.  But Greece has no choice, unless it wants to pull out of the eurozone and try to inflate its way out of this economic pickle.  Our country DID have a choice, and the administration chose the right path with its bold action early in President Obama’s term.

The right’s comparison between Greece and our nation falls apart when faced with the facts:  Greece’s economy is contracting and our economy is growing.  And (due to fears over the Euro) the value of the dollar is actually going up.  Greece is in danger of defaulting because it is unable to service their debt — because it doesn’t control its currency (the Euro).  The United States is no longer in danger of defaulting, thanks to the TARP, maneuvers by the Fed, and the stimulus.    

What we see unwinding in Europe is the reality of what would have happened in our country if Republicans had been in charge.  Germany’s leadership in Europe has been ultra-conservative in its approach to the worldwide economic crisis.  They resisted both economic stimulus and providing economic support to other European countries — while our nation provided a jolt to our economy early in the crisis with a healthy stimulus and support to the states. 

The US survived the crisis and has a growing economy;  Europe has gotten worse and now the crisis threatens to spread, putting the Euro and the entire global economy at risk.  Germany has finally gotten the wake-up call and, better-late-than-never, acted by agreeing to a massive bailout for Greece.  If Merkel had been willing to act earlier, as the Obama Administration advised, the bailout would have been much smaller.

But conservatives aren’t even close to letting go of their failed economic ideology, despite all the evidence that their old ideas just don’t work.  So, get ready to hear a lot about how America is heading toward becoming the new Greece. 

Republican ideas to bring the deficit under control do not meet the test of creating a country with widely shared economic growth — which is the only goal that will ensure a healthy, prosperous economy for all.  The economy we’ve had for the last 30 years (created by Ronald Reagan and the conservative movement) has left our middle and working classes behind, while rewarding the top 1-2%.  And today, the wrong-headed fiscal hawks on Wall Street want to cut the deficit by cutting payments to Social Security recipients, or by cutting important programs like education. 

This is no long-term plan for a healthy economy – in fact, we need to increase (not decrease) our investment in education across the board in order to really turbo-charge our economic growth for the future.  And cutting Social Security payments only diminishes the wide distribution of income that is necessary to ensure long-term growth.

The right tells us that we can’t afford our social safety-net.  But the fact is this:  it isn’t that we can’t afford it, it is that the wealthiest among us have taken for themselves the largest portion of the income gains.  The system is not fair, and it has been rigged by the conservative movement over the last 30 years.

It’s really pretty disgusting to watch the bonus-babies on Wall Street pocket their ill-gotten gains (after causing this crisis) and then turn around and tell those on Social Security that they have to take cuts on their fixed-incomes for the good of the country!  Hey, where’s your patriotism and sacrifice for country?

In fact, one way to help get the long-term deficit under control is to impose big increases in taxes on what speculators like the Wall Street bankers and Paris Hilton pay to live in the country that has been sooo good to them.

And, Social Security can be made solvent by simply increasing the cap on incomes that must pay Social Security taxes to include the top 1-2%.  Currently, Social Security taxes are only paid on the first $100,000 — the rest of their millions and billions do NOT get taxed for the program.

We need to protect Medicare and our new Health Care program.  And we have to double efforts to keep a handle on rising costs for both programs, but we need to also ensure that these programs are strong.

It was the policies of Wall Street, the Republicans, and the Chamber of Commerce that exploded the deficits and paved the way for the economic crisis we are just now coming out of.  Cutting taxes for the wealthy, removing regulations on businesses, and saber-rattling around the world has almost destroyed our nation.  And they have the nerve to point the finger at Democrats!   

We tried it their way, and look where it got us.  The right is wrong, wrong, wrong.  It is their short-term vision that has back-fired so badly.  We need to look to the long-term for our economic path, to ensure that our nation is fiscally responsible while it stimulates across the board economic growth for all — not just the few at the top.

The ideas being proposed by Republicans can sound so logical:  we have debt and deficit-spending, therefore we must cut spending to the bone.  Sounds right, right?  Actually, the opposite is right:  to tackle our debt and deficits we need to grow our economy and create jobs, which will provide more income in taxes, which will be used to reduce the deficits! 

We do also need to have a holistic approach to reducing deficits.  We need to restructure our tax system, reduce healthcare expenditures, and, yes, make some fixes to Social Security and Medicaid — without leaving our aging generations adrift and on their own.  For those of us blessed to have faith that government can work for the American people, there is still HOPE.

We found this photograph while doing research for the article, and were immediately taken with it.  The image is moving, and the fact that it was created by a 15 year old student makes it even more striking.  We asked the photographer, Julian Varah-Sikes to share with us what he was thinking and feeling when he created this haunting photograph. 

CLN:  This project was a class assignment to produce a photo using the American flag.  What was on your mind when you created this particular image with a shadow of a cross seeming to loom over an American flag?

JV-S:  I felt as though I needed to do something meaningful and different for my assignment, as opposed to a standard photo of a folded flag with dog tags on it. 

CLN:  A folded American flag with dog tags on top evokes thoughts of the sacrifices made by our military men and women.  But, your striking image reminds us that it is the obligation of ALL Americans to be vigilant in protecting our Constitution.  As a teenager, is the issue of separation of church and state something that you and your friends think about? 

JV-S:  I worry about this less than other issues, but it is still an important one.  My friends tend to think less about politics than I do.

CLN:  Do you think that America could move toward establishing a national religion? 

JV-S:  While it is certainly possible, I doubt that anything of the sort will happen in the near future. It is possible that it could happen later in this nation’s future.

CLN:  Is this an issue that could motivate you to get involved with politics by voting and encouraging your friends to vote when you are 18? 

JV-S:  While I was already planning on voting when I turn 18, I feel like this is one of the less important issues that face us today. I feel like issues such as gay marriage and our rather depressing public school system are more pressing at the moment, but yes, it will eventually be an issue. 

CLN:  Thank you, Julian! 

This 15-year-old student reminds us of the importance of protecting our Constitution from the promoters of theocracy in America.  And so, we are particularly jolted by Sarah Palin’s recent remarks on the subject. 

Sister Sarah claimed at a religious gathering in Kentucky that religion shouldn’t be separated from the state.  Her exact quote is, “Lest anyone try to convince you that God should be separated from the state, our Founding Fathers, they were believers.  And George Washington, he saw faith in God as basic to life.” 

Talk about revisionist history — these right-wingers are working hard at revising the American story!  In fact, the Founding Father’s even wrote into the Bill of Rights that:  “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;  or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;  or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” 

In a letter written by Thomas Jefferson this Founding Father interpreted those words by using the phrase, “separation of church and state.”  And James Madison said, “The general government is proscribed from interfering, in any manner whatever, in matters respecting religion.” 

The Founders of America intended, quite clearly, to establish a secular government and wrote the Constitution entirely as a secular document.  And yet, for years — despite the fact that many of the Founding Fathers were Deists, not Christians — the right has been calling the U.S. a Christian nation. 

They make this claim based on the fact that most of the country’s population is Christian.  While accurate, it is entirely irrelevant.  Most of the population is white, but that doesn’t make us a white nation!  They also claim that most of the writers of the Constitution were Christians, and again, while accurate it is irrelevant.  Most of them were also male, but that doesn’t make the U.S. a man’s nation! 

For us to consider the U.S. a Christian country would be to align our nation with other theocracies around the world — theocracies like Iran, Afghanistan, and Saudi Arabia.  These are not generally countries we try to emulate. 

The concept of separation of church and state has long been one that all Americans have embraced, and has been a model for other countries to follow our lead. 

Separation of church and state is one of our nation’s greatest strengths.  President Obama said in a speech to the Arab world that though the U.S. has, “a very large Christian population — we  do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation.  We consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideas and a set of values.” 

Amen.

PAPERS PLEASE

New York Times Sunday, April 25

Senator, our fathers both fought in World War II on foreign lands — and many of their friends sadly lost their lives far from home.  So many fought for so long and so fiercely in order that no dictatorship or police state demanding “papers please” could ever be established in our land.

In 1946 Pastor Martin Niemoller gave a speech in Frankfurt, Germany trying to gain an understanding of how in the hell German intellectuals allowed the Nazis to purge chosen targets, group after group in the German police state.

I know you know the following quote, Senator.  I can remember hearing it as I grew up in the 1950’s.  Many of us know it as “First they came…”

They came first for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up.

Senator, this is how it’s feeling to many of us out here: 

First they came for my freedoms, and I didn’t speak up because I was afraid of terrorists.

Then they came for the Muslims, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Muslim.

Then they came for the Hispanics, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t Hispanic.

Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up.

Guess what, Senator McCain — WE’RE READY TO SPEAK UP!  Where is your voice?

Okay, it’s pretty bad for Arizona when even Tom Tancredo says Arizona’s anti-immigrant “show me your papers” law is wrong.  TOM TANCREDO?!? — the ranting Mexican-hating, former congressman from Colorado!  (Tom is most recently infamous for the following sentiment delivered at a Tea Party:  “The President should be sent ‘back’ to Kenya.”) 

Add to that:  Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe and former Republican congressman from Florida (and Newt Gingrich acolyte), said this morning on the air that the Arizona law requiring Americans to carry proof of citizenship papers (presumably only brown people) does not represent the America he’s always loved. 

Well, I’m shocked.  Bi-partisanship at last.   Well, not actually bi-partisanship in the House or the Senate.  No, sadly… Washington Republicans, even John McCain who was the original author of the last comprehensive Immigration Reform bill, is standing with Arizona’s “papers please” legislation.

Arizona is an interesting state.  We lived there for almost 20 years.  Our daughter was born in Phoenix and both of our kids went through Arizona public schools.  It’s conservative, of course, but not usually the hateful kind, rather the residents of Arizona lean more to the libertarian side of the conservative movement.  Arizona is the home state of Barry Goldwater, a one-time Republican Presidential candidate and an ultra-conservative, who actually supported Bill Clinton for president. 

Conservative Barry Goldwater would never have supported the radical policies of W.  — policies such as:   “Deficits Don’t Matter” and “Preventive War” (you know, W.’s policy that we have a right to invade another country if we think that at some time in the future it might pose a threat to us).  Never would Conservative Senator Goldwater have supported George W. Bush.  Never.  And, he would have been revolted by this hateful, un-american law.

In the election campaign of 2008 – 2009 Democrats felt that if John McCain were not the Republican Presidential candidate, Arizona would have been in play for Barack Obama.  The previous Governor of Arizona was Janet Napolitano, a Democrat.  So, we ask:  What’s up with Arizona?

The national anti-immigrant mood has been stoked for the last decade by the right.  It’s always easy to blame the last ones into the country.  The Irish, the Italians, now Hispanics.  And, the hate and demonizing has spread throughout the country.  This is an ugly side of America that we don’t like to face. 

Check out an op-ed, by Linda Greenhouse titled Breathing While Undocumented, in today’s New York Times Opinionator here.  Linda says she is not going back to Arizona because it is now a police state.  Isn’t it just ironic that the right screams that Democrats and our President are Fascists, and yet it is the right that has brought us the very first police state in America?

To be fair, the drug war being waged in Mexico is beginning to spill over into our border states, and bringing violence with it. There needs to be more done in the way of re-enforcing our borders. 

We don’t know what those security efforts might look like, but one thing’s for sure:  Arizona’s “papers please” law is NOT the answer.