Topic: Politics
Wall St. firm behind slow solar pace on federal lands? - Goldman Sachs subsidiary bought lots of leases but hasn't used them ROACH DRY LAKE, Nev. Not a light bulb's worth of solar electricity ... moreWe need a better understanding of the 'environmentalist's paradox' We hear lots of concerned chatter these days not least, here on this site - about peak oil, peak water, deforestation, resource d ... more
John Michael Greer - Green Wizardry: A response to Rob Hopkins Rob Hopkins is a smart guy, and even though he s garbled a fair number of the details, his post raises useful points regarding some of ... more
This week a study on peak oil by a German military think tank was leaked on the Internet. The document shows that the German government is closely studying the issue of peak oil, and is aware of the p ... more
This week a study on peak oil by a German military think tank was leaked on the Internet. The document shows that the German government is closely studying the issue of peak oil, and is aware of the p ... more
Kurt Cobb - Personality profile: Do you "go with the flow" or do you "stock up" just in case? Why is it that some people believe they can really store up much of anything? Yes, it is wise to have emer ... more
Biofuels Firms Buy Up African Land, Cause Deforestation, Food Output Loss Biofuels companies from the U.K. to Brazil and China are buying up large swaths of Africa, causing deforestation and diverting ... more
Dealing With Scarcity Julian Cribb, in his book The Coming Famine (which I reviewed today over in Arts), contends that we ve already seen peak oil the time when production can do nothing b ... more
Big Oil ticked off at new money law NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- A new law requiring oil companies to disclose all payments made to governments has sparked a sharp debate, with Big Oil saying it will pu ... more
Summary: When I wrote Money-Driven Medicine, the Real Reason Health Care Costs So Much (Harper Collins, 2006), #0160; Rick Scott stood out as one of the more memorable characters in a #0160; rogues ... more
Five years after Hurricane Katrina barreled its way through New Orleans, flooding hospitals, the healthcare industry has yet to recover, WAPT reports.More than 80,000 residents in eastern New Orleans ... more
Oil analyst: U.S. policy detached from market reality The world is running out of oil. This prediction could be made today, of course, but it also has been stated with moral certainty numerous times ... more
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a highly popular topic in the corporate world and in politics. Yet, current progress in many areas of CSR lacks behind promises made in the past and many stake ... more
The last Presidential election here in the U.S. was run on a platform of change. But, as usual, most of that change has happened far beyond the political arena. Meanwhile, here in the small business c ... more
More than 100 pages of medical records related to a veteran's heart condition and benefit claims went missing, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. George Wincapaw, a 63-year-old Vietnam War vetera ... more
After the House voted this week to approve a $26 billion aid package to states $16 billion of which will go toward helping keep strained Medicaid programs limping along Rep. Joe Barton, of Texas, ... more
On Tuesday, President Obama quickly signed into law a bill that will give $26 billion to struggling states. Although most media reports are focusing on the aid for teachers, nearly two-thirds of the m ... more
Not So Easy The writers and editors at Nature this past week boldly proclaimed, with some carefully qualified caveats, that producing enough food for the world s population in 2050 will be easy. M ... more
Health Wonk Review offers a summary of some of the most provocative health care posts of the preceding two weeks. The newest edition went up today, and it s hosted by the Disease Management Care ... more
Oil glut in Middle East as crude sales falter The Gulf region, which supplies 40 per cent of the world s oil, is glutted with crude that producers cannot immediately sell, even as US and European oi ... more
That Republicans don t support health care reform.Opponents of health care reform have been touting the results of yesterday s primary in Missouri as if it were a national referendum on the wil ... more
In a mostly symbolic swipe at the Obama administration's healthcare reform law, Missouri voters overwhelmingly opposed the provision that requires people to buy health insurance, the New York Times re ... more
Missouri voters vote today on a ballot measure that would ban laws requiring people to have health insurance, Associated Press/Columbia Missourian reports.The vote presents the first time that voters ... more
Buying gas to fuel Gulf oil sales Maximising oil exports from the GCC will hinge on the region importing more gas, the Scottish consultancy Wood Mackenzie says. Wood Mackenzie has belatedly realised ... more
ANALYSIS - Iran sanctions could add to gasoline glut (Reuters) - The impact of disrupted Iranian fuel supplies following tough new sanctions is likely to hit gasoline markets after the peak summer sea ... more
Summary: As regular readers know, not long ago Cato Institute senior fellow Michael Tanner published a 52-page critique of the new health care legislation titled Bad Medicine, and I decided to write ... more
Three of every four oil and gas lobbyists worked for federal government Three out of every four lobbyists who represent oil and gas companies previously worked in the federal government, a proportion ... more
Scientists: Oil plumes definitely from BP's well TAMPA, Fla. -- Researchers in Florida say they have the first scientific proof that two plumes of oil beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico came fr ... more
A Big Oil Field in Central Asia Isn't Earning What Chevron Planned On ATYRAU, KAZAKHSTAN A single oil field here in Central Asia stands ready to produce nearly as many barrels each day as the enti ... more
What #8217;s your small business story? And what are the small business stories of other entrepreneurs just like you? Today #8217;s small business news roundup from Small Business Trends looks at the ... more
The Cato Institute s Michael Cannon has replied to Part 1 of my response to Cato s report on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) .You ll find his reply here. Unfortunately, the ... more
Caribbean System Has a 40% Chance of Developing Into Cyclone, Center Says An area of thunderstorms and clouds is becoming more likely to develop into a tropical cyclone in the next two days, the U.S. ... more
This week, the Cato Institute released a 52-page report on health care reform titled: Bad Medicine: A Guide to the Real Costs and Consequences of the New Health Care Law. The tract was written by Mich ... more
The Peak Oil Crisis: A Mid-Year Review Nearly everyone will admit that continuing oil shortages and that high (above $100 a barrel) oil prices would be devastating to the prospects for economic recove ... more
As potential Medicaid fee cuts loom, physicians in Texas are threatening to drop Medicaid patients, the Dallas Morning News reports. Forty-five percent of doctors polled by the Texas Medical Associati ... more
Jeff Rubin: Oil must rise to make oil sands economical It s not its carbon trail that stands in the way of the Alberta tar sands picking up the supply ball dropped by deep-water drilling in the ... more
Saudi Arabia's House Of Cards Seventy-eight years after Abdul Aziz ibn Saud triumphantly carved out his kingdom on the Arabian Peninsula following a quarter-century of warfare against rival tribes, Sa ... more
Summary: Don Berwick, who will soon become the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, has declared himself an extremist insofar as he is a passionate advocate of patient-centered care ... more
Lloyd's says won't cover Iran petroleum shipments LONDON (Reuters) - Lloyd's of London will not insure or reinsure petroleum shipments going into Iran, the insurance market said on Friday. U.S. Presi ... more
If an outsider were to pull back the covers and show people what is going on, what would be said of The Oil Drum and its contribution to society? How is the content perceived by others? Has the effor ... more
When Less Was More We tend to think of the decades immediately following World War II as a time of exuberance and growth, with soldiers returning home by the millions, going off to college on the G.I. ... more
Using China's semiconductor design industry as a case, this article examines the claims made by global production network (GPN) and transnational technology community (TTC) scholars that transnational ... more
Analysis: U.S. Shale Gas Could Play Large Role in Future Production U.S. onshore shale natural gas could potentially become a large portion of future U.S. gas production with an assumed 347 Tcf of tec ... more
Gulf gas shortage threatens oil production Gulf states seeking to prolong the lives of aging oilfields face a big problem: insufficient gas to pump in to maintain their crude output. And the problem i ... more
Kuwait looks to boost output State-run Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) chief executive, Sami Rushaid said the country will raise production from its northern oilfields to 820,000 barrels per day by the end ... more
With gas prices so low, will anyone buy a Volt? Talk about an awkward position: General Motors, under pressure to be profitable and start selling stock again, is benefiting from relatively cheap gasol ... more
Analysis: U.S. Shale Gas Could Play Large Role in Future Production U.S. onshore shale natural gas could potentially become a large portion of future U.S. gas production with an assumed 347 Tcf of tec ... more
Atul Gawande gave the commencement speech at Stanford s School of Medicine this year. Below, the speech, which was published in the New Yorker http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2010/06/ ... more
Following on from a recent post on defining aging as a disease, I see that an article from Proto Magazine looks at the same question. This is really an examination of the slow boat mainstream of aging ... more
After an internal human resources investigation uncovered lapses in care that led to the death of a patient, Oregon State Hospital (OSH) sent five longtime employees letters of reprimand, a punishment ... more
BP And Goldman Sachs Sued For Oil Fraud Dozens of small oil and gas producers across Oklahoma and the Midwest are suing Goldman Sachs, BP and ConocoPhillips, claiming the defendants conspired to defra ... more
The Peak Oil Crisis: The Deepwater Horizon No matter how much environmental and economic damage results from the Deepwater Horizon blowout, the ramifications of the spill are likely to linger for dec ... more
I think I learned about workplace reviews the hard way. Or maybe the wrong way. I never liked them. I never did them very well. I m glad to see Time to Review Workplace Reviews on one of the New Yor ... more
Reliance on Oil Sands Grows Despite Risks CONKLIN, Alberta Beneath the subarctic forests of western Canada, deep under the peat bogs and herds of wild caribou, lies the tarry rock that is one of A ... more
What is the state of small business? Unlike the State of the Union, we need a report more than once a year and here is the latest. A recovery is coming, distinguishing your business remains key and th ... more
Summary: #0160; A startling study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reveals that just as doctors in some towns are more aggressive in treating their patients, physicians in some places ... more
Mexico's president visits America #8226; THE Mexican president, Felipe Calderon, visits America for meetings with Barack Obama and other senior officials and will also address a joint session of Congr ... more
John Michael Greer: After money During the 350 years of the industrial age, a good fraction of Europe did consume more than it produced, by the simple expedient of owning most of the rest of the world ... more
Wind power growth in China's deserts ignored financial risks Across the country, seven wind-power zones, each with a capacity of 10 gigawatts, have been approved. In the space of just a few years, thi ... more
Trying to follow a complex ongoing story like the oil spill on a blog like The Oil Drum is difficult, so I thought I would put together some pointers and useful links, especially for new readers. In t ... more
Trying to follow a complex ongoing story like the oil spill on a blog like The Oil Drum is difficult, so I thought I would put together some pointers and useful links, especially for new readers. In t ... more
A pattern of senseless attacks in China's schoolsALL month schools in China have been on what the state-controlled press calls a #8220;red alert #8221; for possible attacks on pupils by intruders. In ... more
A pattern of senseless attacks in China's schoolsALL month schools in China have been on what the state-controlled press calls a #8220;red alert #8221; for possible attacks on pupils by intruders. In ... more
Rig Owner Had Rising Tally of Accidents The sinking of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, which triggered the spill spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico, caught the energy world by surprise. The opera ... more
Droughts Turn Out the Lights in Hydro-Dependent African Nation NAIROBI, Kenya -- The restaurant manager shrugs as his customers eat in darkness and his kitchen limps along on half power. "What they ... more
A new look at the landscape of climate politics calls for subtler and more thoughtful approachesWHAT does climate policy have to learn from Capability Brown, whose landscape designs provided the setti ... more
DOE Still Disavows Peak Oil Forecast, Despite New Studies A few weeks after the joint force report came out, there was speculation that the DOE had endorsed peak oil theory after Glen Sweetnam, former ... more
This is a guest post by Dr. Joerg Friedrichs, University Lecturer in Politics, University of Oxford. In a recent article (found here (pre-publication PDF) and at Science Direct), I have investigated h ... more
Organic farms 'produce less than HALF as much food as conventional ones' The benefits to wildlife and increases in biodiversity from organic farming are much lower than previously thought, scientists ... more
This is a guest post from Oil Drum commenter shelburn, who is a retired manager for an offshore underwater service company. I have been reading the various reports from the media for the last few days ... more
Financial Sense Newshour: Peak Oil 2014 - Warning and Precautions (audio) Jeremy Leggett Founder Executive Chairman Solarcentury Dr. Oliver Inderwildi Research Fellow Smith School of Ent ... more
This is a guest post from Oil Drum commenter shelburn, who is a retired manager for an offshore underwater service company. I have been reading the various reports from the media for the last few days ... more
Small business is the true engine of economic development and job growth. And today plenty of people, either dislocated in layoffs, finding it difficult to find the right kind of employment in a tough ... more
Does a controversial new Oklahoma law encourage doctors to lie to patients who are pregnant? The measure prevents patients from seeking damages against physicians who fail to disclose information abou ... more
(TrendHunter.com) Responding to the U.K. 2010 general election, the Billbored project is an interactive art initiative that asks people to submit their personally-designed billboard. Tired of false p ... more
Russian special forces storm oil tanker, free ship ABOARD THE HSwMS CARLSKRONA Russian special forces rappelled onto a disabled oil tanker taken over by Somali pirates, freeing 23 Russian sailors ... more
This is a guest post by Dr. Joerg Friedrichs, University Lecturer in Politics, University of Oxford. In a recent article, I have investigated how different societies have responded to sharp and rapid ... more
The long and divisive fight over U.S. health care reform exposed basic weaknesses in the processes of governance. As is so often true in American politics these days, politicians and lobbyists kept co ... more
More and more small business is being conducted in the online world. But taking things online hasn #8217;t changed the basics when doing business and online business isn #8217;t necessarily immune to ... more
Jeff Rubin: Oil disaster may prove tipping point for world oil production What are the consequences of another Three Mile Island? Will the unfolding environmental catastrophe from the ruptured Deepw ... more
Deffeyes: Blowout There are two possible scenarios for the Gulf Coast blowout. The drilling rig had just finished running casing in the hole and pumping down cement to fill the annulus between the cas ... more
Deffeyes: Blowout There are two possible scenarios for the Gulf Coast blowout. The drilling rig had just finished running casing in the hole and pumping down cement to fill the annulus between the cas ... more
Have you ever encountered one of those life-altering moments that turns your business around? Sarah Shaw had one such experience when a friend introduced her to a die cutter who helped her expand her ... more
With the recession still hitting many Americans hard, and near-universal healthcare years away, providers continue to seek alternative ways to get paid for their services. For some, it means skipping ... more
At best, Paul Levy, CEO of Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, will have to pay financial penalties after admitting he had an inappropriate relationship with a female subordinate, the Bosto ... more
With the recession still hitting many Americans hard, and near-universal healthcare years away, providers continue to seek alternative ways to get paid for their services. For some, it means skipping ... more
Britain #8217;s environmental politics are a bit dullThere are many thrilling aspects to the British election due to be held on May 6th. A hard-fought battle over environmental priorities is not one o ... more
Is your small business a cyber business? Well, in so many ways the use of online technology can help your small business compete, survive and flourish like never before. In this small business roundup ... more
INTERVIEW - Oil over $100 damaging, OPEC would act - Kuwait KUWAIT (Reuters) - OPEC would pump more oil to prevent a rally in oil prices above $100 from hurting the global economic recovery, Kuwait's ... more
Robert Bryce: Five myths about green energy Americans are being inundated with claims about renewable and alternative energy. Advocates for these technologies say that if we jettison fossil fuels, we' ... more
Iran begins war games in Persian Gulf oil route TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard held war games Thursday in the strategic Persian Gulf oil route, the Hormuz Strait, a show of it ... more
Fossil-fuel subsidies hurting global environment, security A comprehensive assessment of global fossil-fuel subsidies has found that governments are spending $500 billion annually on policies that un ... more
Normal politics, and hard questions, loom in PolandIN THE churches of Warsaw and other Polish cities, the funerals continue but questions are looming. Why were so many of the country #8217;s top brass ... more
Kuwait Hires LNG Tanker as Offshore Terminal for Summer Imports (Bloomberg) -- Kuwait has hired a liquefied natural gas tanker to serve as an offshore terminal to help the country meet rising demand ... more
President Barack Obama has officially nominated Donald Berwick, MD, of Massachusetts to be the next administrator of the Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services. If confirmed, Berwick would carry out ... more
Hurricane season's set to test lessons learned TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The oil and natural gas industry's best weapon against production disruptions during the Atlantic hurricane season this year may c ... more
This is a guest post by George Mobus, who is an Associate Professor of Computing and Software Systems at the University of Washington Tacoma. His blog is Question Everything. He recently wrote another ... more
Saudi Arabia sets up nuclear energy science centre KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia said it would set up a scientific centre for civilian nuclear and renewable energy to ... more
While it is early in the morning in Europe the following picture shows the impact of the volcano in Iceland on European air traffic (as of Thursday), if you compare Northern (none) and Southern (60) E ... more
The is a guest post by John Michael Greer, excerpted from a longer post he wrote. I have also included a short excerpt from Sharon Astyk's response to JMG's post, and a few Campfire questions. John Mi ... more
Algeria Oil Minister: New US Gas Output Leading To LNG Glut ORAN, Algeria --(Dow Jones)- New natural gas production from the U.S., along with liquefied-natural-gas projects globally, is leading to an ... more
Gas drilling debate rages in Del. River watershed While gas companies refuse to identify the chemicals they use claiming that is proprietary information critics cite contamination problems in ... more
The is a guest post by John Michael Greer, excerpted from a longer post he wrote. I have also included a short excerpt from Sharon Astykz's response to JMG's post, and a few Campfire questions. John M ... more
While it is early in the morning in Europe the following picture shows the impact of the volcano in Iceland on European air traffic (as of Thursday), if you compare Northern (none) and Southern (60) E ... more
This is a guest post by George Mobus, who is an Associate Professor of Computing and Software Systems at the University of Washington Tacoma. His blog is Question Everything. He recently wrote another ... more
India to build 1st oil reserve facility by Oct 2011 NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India aims to build its first strategic oil reserve facility with a capacity of 1.33 million tonnes at Visakhapatnam in south ... more
Are you an innovator?Β Is your small business on the bleeding edge #8212; from technology to management, marketing to products and services? Today #8217;s edition of small business roundup for April ... more
EXCLUSIVE - China's top oil firms sell gasoline to Iran - trade DUBAI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - State-run Chinaoil has sold two gasoline cargoes for April delivery to Iran, industry sources said on Wedne ... more
Many challenges face small businesses especially as they grow. For this April 13, 2010 edition of the small business roundup at Small Business Trends we look at the vast array of growing pains faced b ... more
Stuart Staniford: It Can't Possibly Be That Easy Now, if the economy is going to be a bit more than three times larger, but we are only going to emit 17% of the current level of carbon emissions, then ... more
Iranian Tankers Expand Oil Storage to Echo 2008 Surge (Bloomberg) -- Iran, OPEC s second-biggest crude producer, expanded the number of supertankers being used to store surplus oil, echoing a progra ... more
Thw death of Poland's president carries a terrible echo of his country's pastHE WAS a figure from another age. Weekend guests at Lech Kaczy #324;ski #8217;s presidential retreat on Poland #8217;s Balt ... more
Organic farming movements in Europe are widely recognised as a positive force by market actors and civil society, as well as relevant actors in policy networks. At the same time, the organic movement ... more
Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev sign a new strategic arms-reduction treaty in PragueHE HAD stopped over briefly in Prague for a handshake with Russia #8217;s president, Dmitry Medvedev, on a new stra ... more
The Peak Oil Crisis: Countdown at the Guri Now, if you are wondering why a falling water level in the Venezuelan highlands should be if interest to Americans, the answer is easy. Despite years of pol ... more
Jeff Rubin: New U.S. drilling will prove meaningless Maybe it s a gesture to the American right, which is still seething over the recent passage of Barack Obama s national heath care package in Co ... more
An appalling slaughter signals the inadequacy of India #8217;s counter-insurgency effortFOR those who consider India #8217;s Maoist insurgency a grave and urgent threat, the evidence keeps mounting. O ... more
Congressional Research Service - Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress [PDF] The USGS estimate for total undiscovered oil and gas in the Arctic exceeds the total discovered amount ... more
Peak oil man shifts focus to peak price, demand (Reuters) - The economic shock of global recession has led a prime exponent of the theory conventional oil output has peaked to shift his view of the co ... more
Health insurance companies in Massachusetts are fighting back after the state's insurance commissioner last week rejected 235 of 274 proposed rate hikes, effectively implementing a premium rate cap. S ... more
Michael Klare: Is the World s Future Resource Map Tilting East? Think of it as a tale of two countries. When it comes to procuring the resources that make industrial societies run, China is now the ... more
Lisa Margonelli: Drill Better Baby! Personally, I can't get too upset about the possibility of drilling off the coasts. While I love walks on unspoiled beaches, I don't believe we in the U.S. have any ... more
UK Treasury lukewarm on plan for Iceland to pay debt in energy Iceland could pay the Β£3.48bn it owes the UK and Holland by providing the two countries with a steady stream of green electricity instea ... more
UK Treasury lukewarm on plan for Iceland to pay debt in energy Iceland could pay the Β£3.48bn it owes the UK and Holland by providing the two countries with a steady stream of green electricity instea ... more
Politicians today are giving considerable lip service to helping small business and in a broader sense the economy to survive. But advocates of small business on the Web this week in the wake of a con ... more
The Cloud Juice brand of bottled water parlays the conventional image of a small island ndash; in this case, King Island ndash; into a popularly agreeable narrative of prestige, purity and ecologica ... more
In response to my recent note about health care reform (see: Enacting Healthcare Reform Could Have Been Much Easier for the President). Dr. Mark Pool who blogs over at The Daily Sign-Out submitted a t ... more
Countries Blame China, Not Nature, for Water Shortage BANGKOK In southern China, the worst drought in at least 50 years has dried up farmers fields and left tens of millions of people short of ... more
We #8217;ve talked a lot about small business going global. But in recent weeks it seems many bloggers we follow have been talking about the need to think internationally as well. What #8217;s the dif ... more
Faced with the alternative of losing already tight Medicaid reimbursement, Georgia hospitals agreed to a 1.45 percent fee or "bed tax" on patient revenue to remedy its worsening budget crisis. With th ... more
Jeff Rubin: Expect a new peak for oil next year What does $80-per-barrel oil say to you? Three years ago, it would have told you that global oil markets were at record tightness. Back then, the U.S. ... more
In the April 5 New Yorker Atul Gawande writes about the backlash that health care reformers can expect in the months ahead. #0160; He reminds us that when Medicare passed it faced a year of nearly ... more
Over at the New America Foundation s New Health Dialogue, Joanne Kenen, who covered Congress for more than a decade before becoming a healthcare maven, reports that at least one well-placed Sen ... more
In the April 5 New Yorker Atul Gawande writes about the backlash that health care reformers can expect in the months ahead. #0160; He reminds us that when Medicare passed it faced a year of nearly ... more
Herman Daly: What Is a Green Economy? A green economy is an economy that imitates green plants as far as possible. Plants use scarce terrestrial materials to capture abundant solar energy, and a ... more
The following guest essay is by Kevin Kane. Kevin is an energy market strategist, Asia political affairs analyst, and Korean language linguist living in Seoul, South Korea. Kevin previously published ... more
Analysis: U.S. to Reap Fruits of Deepwater Labor The Gulf of Mexico is expected to increase oil production over the next several years, largely due to ultra-deepwater field development. The MMS believ ... more
Pemex Ready to Link Contractor Incentives to Output (Bloomberg) -- Petroleos Mexicanos, Latin America s largest oil producer, is ready to offer performance- based contracts to reward foreign contrac ... more
A surprising number of Congressmen would acknowledge, privately, that in the past, legislators have meddled with Medicare reform, blocking Medicare s best efforts to squeeze waste out of the system. ... more
The following guest essay is by Kevin Kane. Kevin is an energy market strategist, Asia political affairs analyst, and Korean language linguist living in Seoul, South Korea. Kevin previously published ... more
Faced with the alternative of losing already tight Medicaid reimbursement, Georgia hospitals agreed to a 1.45 percent fee or "bed tax" on patient revenue to remedy its worsening budget crisis. With th ... more
Following in the footsteps of Illinois, the Georgia Supreme Court on Monday ended limits to jury awards for malpractice damages. By upholding a nearly $1.35 million award for Betty Nestlehutt, whose b ... more
Platts: China's Oil Demand Tops Record High in February China's apparent* oil demand in February jumped 16.6% from a year ago to a historic high of around 8.5 million barrels per day (b/d) or about 33 ... more
Below the fold is a guest post by John Howe, an engineer who invented the solar tractor. In this post, John says, "Our only hope for a drastic course correction is to support grass-roots movements to ... more
Below the fold is a guest post by John Howe, an engineer who invented the solar tractor. In this post, John says, "Our only hope for a drastic course correction is to support grass-roots movements to ... more
Virginia may have beaten Missouri to the punch nearly two weeks ago when it became the first state to approve legislation allowing its citizens to avoid a federal mandate to buy health insurance, but ... more
Climate change's Hail Mary NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The horse trading over climate change law is in full swing, and Senators are trying to appease interests on both sides of the aisle. In the next ... more
Excise taxes on unhealthy foods or substances like tobacco have an irresistible appeal to state and national politicians. They help to correct budget deficits, particularly in hard economic times. The ... more
It #8217;s time again for another small business news roundup at Small Business Trends. It #8217;s March 16 and we #8217;ve got plenty of tips and news. Invest a few minutes of your time, and we guara ... more
What role should corporate citizens play in politics?THE effort to elect Murray Hill to Congress is a political campaign unlike any other. It is rare for an election candidate to pledge to #8220;put ... more
Republicans continue to warn Democrats that if they pass health care reform, they will lose their seats in November.For what it s worth, I believe that a fair number of incumbents (Republicans as we ... more
Oil Production Gets Tougher Abu Dhabi, the emirate that holds almost all of the United Arab Emirates' oil reserves, has ambitious plans to boost oil-production capacity to 3.5 million barrels a day by ... more
Georgia hospitals got leveled by the equivalent of a gubernatorial body slam last week when Gov. Sonny Perdue revealed new plans to reduce the state's budget by $443 million to offset projected revenu ... more
Gasoline refining lacks its spark, for now NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- While the cost of crude has risen in the past year much faster than the price of gasoline at the pump, Big Oil absorbed a huge body ... more
Oil King Warns Of 'Green Bubble' It's Ghawar that is of utmost interest to the industry. The biggest oilfield ever found, it has been producing for five decades, often putting out more than 5 million ... more
Not only is Texas facing a shortfall of $11 billion to $15 billion when the next state budget is due in 2011, but unanticipated healthcare costs have already driven the state's current two-year budget ... more
Shell's discounted bid for Arrow reflects the present world oversupply of gas The bid and Arrow's decision to take it seriously despite the price discount reflect the much more complicated outlook fo ... more
Energy world is in a new mode The title of this year's conference, Energy: Building a New Future, reflects that renewed optimism. But it also suggests that, while the worst of recession may be o ... more
How food and water are driving a 21st-century African land grab We turned off the main road to Awassa, talked our way past security guards and drove a mile across empty land before we found what will ... more
China lawmakers call for more crude, fuel reserves BEIJING (Reuters) - China should step up efforts to build up state reserves of crude oil and refined fuel to enhance the country's energy security, s ... more
Renewed diplomatic efforts over Iran's nuclear activities #8226; AFTER Iran announced that its long-delayed Bushehr civilian nuclear plant will be operational within a few months, American diplomats w ... more
Iran s Ace (or Deuce): Its Oil Reserves Diplomacy and energy are never far apart in the Persian Gulf. So, as American officials seek new international sanctions against Iran this week, it s probab ... more
Expensive oil to shorten supply chains: Top economist Rubin said the price of energy will ultimately decide which modes of shipping will be used by supply chains in the future, but he disagrees with ... more
This afternoon, President Obama spoke with the confidence and determination of a leader who knows that he is right and that he has won.He is no longer pleading for bi-partisan co-operation. His fina ... more
Oil demand threatened by big shift to green policies Green energy policies in the US and China could spell the end of growth in global oil demand, countering a widely held belief that the value of oil ... more
A late, and philosophical, return to American political campaigning for Jerry BrownTHE dark, floppy hair has gone, and the face is a little rounder, but otherwise Jerry Brown, at 71, looks much as he ... more
Jeff Rubin: We re all PIGS now The fact of the matter is, wherever you go in the OECD, we re all PIGS now. That s because we mistook an energy shock for a financial crisis and bailed out everyon ... more
As I noted in the post below, the media seems to be turning reconciliation into an ugly word. But filibuster is the word with a more unsavory history. (Thanks to HeathBeat reader Barry Car ... more
Like Rome Before the Fall? Not Yet VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN complains that he is being driven crazy because so many people are betting on America s demise. Reports of it are not just exaggerated; ... more
Rather than coming to any sort of understanding or agreement with regards to healthcare reform, Thursday's nationally televised summit proved to be a battleground for more vicious partisan politicking ... more
Utilities Finding Peer Pressure a Powerful Motivator National Grid, the electricity and gas provider to several Northeastern states, last week announced the expansion of its Home Energy Report program ... more
President Obama s latest plan for health reform brought a flurry of commentary in the last two days; including divergent views on whether his commitment to "transparency " is helping or hurting the ... more
Israel Urges Iran Oil Embargo Even Without U.N. Okay JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Monday for an immediate embargo on Iran's energy sector, saying the U.N. ... more
Wednesday, the New York Times once again launched an attack on what has become known as the Dartmouth research. As regular HealthBeat readers know, more than two decades of studies done by medic ... more
(TrendHunter.com) These Michelle Obama features will delight any followers of American and global politics. This First Lady of the United States is definitely an icon of her generation. Michelle Ob ... more
Crude diplomacy: Iraq, Iran and the politics of oil Iraq is now trying to recover its glory, with plans to quadruple production or more. This could transform the global oil industry; it also threatens ... more
This swirl of issues surrounding Medicaid, including increasing enrollments, federal reimbursement for the insurance program, and potential cuts in service, should come to a head at the National Gover ... more
A presidential commission may provide a start on cutting America's deficit, but not much moreAMERICA is spending beyond its means, both parties and the president (not to mention pundits and protesters ... more
Several health insurance companies--most notably Anthem Blue Cross in California--are under fire with calls for justification of premium increases. Unfortunately for consumers, a report from the Depar ... more
Ohio's stressful launch of a hospital tax to try to balance the state budget may not be the trend to come. Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue's plan to create a hospital "bed" tax to alleviate shortfalls in th ... more
Jeremy Rifkin: The third industrial revolution My sense is that we're nearing an endgame for the modern age. I think we had two singular events in the last 18 months that signal the end. First, in Ju ... more
Eastern Europe-friendly boycotts are difficult to pull offVOTING with your wallet is a tempting substitute for real politics. Time was when the British left demonstratively boycotted South African ora ... more
The Peak Oil Crisis: The Crunch The first two issues encompass the balance of new oil supplies and declining production from existing oil fields. Here the report suggests a fairly specific time frame ... more
Jeff Rubin: When do smart prices get dumb? As they say in stock brokerage, find a strong enough wind, and even pigs can fly. Pay 19 cents per kilowatt hour for power, and you can let the wind turn on ... more
(TrendHunter.com) The Diane Burko Politics of Snow series has effectively captured the Earth s rapidly changing landscape with her depictions of the glaciers. Her series takes inspiration fro ... more
Christie's and Sotheby's jockey for position in 2010IN 2009 Christie #8217;s year on year sales fell by a third, but it was definitely Christie #8217;s year. The private auction house, owned by Franco ... more
Climate Change May Spur Unstable Oil Prices, Regions, U.S. Says (Bloomberg) -- Climate change and U.S. reliance on fossil fuels could have severe consequences, including potential surges in oil ... more
Lucio Pimentel of Petrobras sent The Oil Drum a response to Tony Eriksen's post World Oil Capacity to Peak in 2010 Says Petrobras CEO that TOD published last week. In the spirit of courtesy and the e ... more
Lucio Pimentel of Petrobras sent The Oil Drum a response to Tony Eriksen's post World Oil Capacity to Peak in 2010 Says Petrobras CEO that TOD published last week. In the spirit of courtesy and the e ... more
The Next Crisis: Prepare for Peak Oil Against the gloomy economic backdrop that Europe currently provides, siren voices shrieking that a potential energy crisis is imminent and could be worse than th ... more
Massachusetts has succeeded in providing health care insurance for all but 2.6% of its citizens. Yet the Commonwealth still struggles to make that coverage affordable. Health care inflation is driving ... more
UK gas rises as suspected field faults hit gas supply: sources A gas shortage caused by several suspected faults affecting UK North Sea gas fields lifted prompt gas prices toward 40 pence/therm, trad ... more
Sri Lanka #8217;s president cracks down on opponents once moreNOT content with trouncing his main opponent, General Sarath Fonseka, in Sri Lanka #8217;s presidential election last month, President Mah ... more
Ghana Blocks Exxon Oil-Field Deal The government of Ghana blocked the estimated $4 billion sale of a stake in a huge oil field, foiling months of talks between potential buyer Exxon Mobil Corp. and th ... more
During this weekend's CBS Super Bowl coverage, President Barack Obama announced plans to hold a half-day healthcare reform summit on February 25, bringing together Democrats and Republicans in a live ... more
During this weekend's CBS Super Bowl coverage, President Barack Obama announced plans to hold a half-day healthcare reform summit on February 25, bringing together Democrats and Republicans in a live ... more
I notice some thoughts from Colin Farrelly, who came to support as much progress as possible in longevity science from a very different original position to my own: As a political theorist interested ... more
Beyond the black stuff: Big Oil is being forced rethink its future (Economist) In the long term, however, the firms success depends on sustaining reserves. The big western oil companies are trying ... more
(TrendHunter.com) Thank you, Carly Fiorina. You have made me believe in politics again. I was disenfranchised after I turned 18 the day after the presidential elections, but you made me believe again ... more
Gas Sites Spur Air Fears The city of Fort Worth, Texas, one of the biggest beneficiaries in the natural-gas boom, is questioning its largely supportive stand of the industry after a study found high ... more
Exxon Dives Deep into High-Risk Exploration Hardly known as a wildcatter, Exxon Mobil Corp. is searching for oil in most of the world's regions where high-risk exploration is under way, even as other ... more