Failure to articulate core belief lost the Republican Party a presidential election last month and now disarms it on fiscal policy.
Archive for '2012'
Weak articulation of fiscal belief hurts Republicans
December 20, 2012 1:43 PM by bobtIn growing global market for energy, coal still dominates
December 13, 2012 10:43 AM by bobtA surge in natural gas production in North America and regulatory assaults in the US can give the impression that coal’s future is grim. Not so, says Energy-Facts.org.
Iterative approach to regulation a pattern for EPA
November 29, 2012 12:23 PM by bobtWith its iterative approach to regulation, the US Environmental Protection Agency is looking anew at air-emission standards rejected in court.
Regulatory siege continues for oil and gas industry
November 16, 2012 11:46 AM by bobtFour more years for US President Barack Obama means 4 more years of regulatory siege on the oil and gas industry.
Freedom of Thought prizes underscore pressures in Iran
November 1, 2012 12:13 PM by bobtMuch about the price of crude oil this year has had to do with Iran, but Iran has to do with much beyond the price of oil.
China and Germany not proper energy models for the US
October 26, 2012 12:27 PM by bobtIn the Oct. 16 debate, US President Barack Obama clarified his energy hopes instructively.
Fact-checkers flub debate analysis of oil industry taxes
October 12, 2012 11:13 AM by bobtFact-checkers who can’t keep facts straight perform no service.
Fraud in renewable fuel marker sales was predictable
October 4, 2012 9:19 AM by bobtMany people never would cheat to make easy money. Regulation must account for the people who would and do.
Economies cooling in countries key to oil demand growth
September 27, 2012 10:49 AM by bobtThe economies of two countries crucial to oil-demand growth are cooling and, in one case, might be worse than indicated by official data.
Survey respondents favor balance in energy policy goals
September 20, 2012 11:15 AM by bobtBelieve it or not, support exists in the US for an energy policy that balances core objectives.
Obama recommits to green energy as others wisely bail
September 14, 2012 11:01 AM by bobtApproaches to green energy are diverging on opposing sides of the Atlantic as the incumbent US administration presses expensively forward and European governments come to their senses.
EPA fuel economy announcement notes problems with E85
September 6, 2012 4:43 PM by bobtThe document announcing new fuel-economy standards for US cars and light trucks contains a quiet observation that shrieks about problems of renewable-fuel mandates.
Fine distinctions crucial in issues of transparency
August 31, 2012 11:03 AM by bobtIn the era of Twitter and Facebook, with information increasingly flashy and decreasingly illuminating, fine distinctions too often yield to the blur. The oil and gas industry still must keep pressing for clarification in two issues related to transparency.
Voters will recall excesses of a push to not waste crisis
August 24, 2012 10:33 AM by bobtEnergy represents a large piece of a gaudy policy mosaic likely to influence the US presidential election in November more than might be apparent at this stage of the race.
Old oil fits broad category with big supply potential
August 17, 2012 10:13 AM by bobtAlthough new oil is much in the news these days, old oil represents big potential worth similar attention.
Politics crimping export outlets for Alberta heavy oil
August 6, 2012 8:57 AM by bobtFinding a politically accommodating route to market for Alberta bitumen is becoming even more difficult than producing the abundant stuff.
Hydrogen reappears as a fuel of the day on US political menu
July 31, 2012 4:44 PM by bobtHas hydrogen reemerged as a fuel of the day in American politics?
Outsourcing spat shines light on jobs not created
July 26, 2012 10:03 AM by bobtTo the oil and gas industry, a political spat over outsourcing must seem especially ironic.
Oil market swing shows why analysts need the asterisk
July 16, 2012 12:37 PM by bobtThe asterisk fixed to oil market analysis has asserted itself again. Twice.
Tax confusion dogs politics of health care and gasoline
July 6, 2012 1:57 PM by bobtThe oil and gas industry can relate to confusion over what constitutes a tax, which figured prominently in the historic June 28 decision by the US Supreme Court upholding health-care reform.
RAND study offers US military useful guidance on energy
June 28, 2012 1:37 PM by bobtBecause its biggest energy problem is price rather than supply, the US military should concentrate on lowering consumption rather than developing renewable sources.
Bureau of Labor Statistics colors many jobs green
June 28, 2012 1:35 PM by bobtYou might have a green job and not know it.
US regulatory costs amplify pressure of the mammoth deficit
June 15, 2012 1:43 PM by bobtWith annual spending by the US government approaching $4 trillion and the federal deficit exceeding a quarter of that, why worry about an extra trillion bucks or two in regulatory costs?
Surface nonsense refutes Interior on idle leases
May 23, 2012 12:10 PM by bobtSome arguments refute themselves with surface nonsense evident to anyone. A glittering example is the recurring argument that operators buy federal oil and gas leases in order to do nothing with them.
Here’s the economic spark Obama needs to win reelection
May 11, 2012 3:46 PM by bobtNew job numbers, crackling with political context, suggest a potent move President Barack Obama might make in his bid for reelection—but almost certainly will not.
YPF expropriation clouds the allure of Argentine shale
April 24, 2012 10:45 AM by bobtOn its way down the proverbial slippery slope toward economic statism, Argentina has laid claim to oil and gas assets worth, oh, $18 billion or so.
Ahmadinejad speech sets edgy tone for nuclear meeting
April 18, 2012 10:45 AM by bobtIran raised the stakes of an important meeting about its nuclear plans by insulting Arabs and picking a new fight over islands in the Strait of Hormuz.
Congress trying to sneak past its ethanol fiasco
April 11, 2012 10:45 AM by bobtIf they were not in an election year, lawmakers might be fixing America’s fuel ethanol wreck instead of skewering consumers and hiding the damage.
Guide to surviving the boom: Resist the eternal mistake
April 4, 2012 10:45 AM by bobtAn eternal mistake in the oil and gas business is believing some current trend will last forever. The ruinous mistake is betting money on it.
Energy independence better as sales slogan than as policy target
March 28, 2012 9:04 AM by bobtIn service to the quality of discourse, the oil and gas industry should fall silent on energy independence and hope that others who converse about energy recognize the consequent boost to public enlightenment and do likewise.
Canadians assail political intrusions funded by US groups
March 19, 2012 9:04 AM by bobtJustifiably steaming over US inaction on the Keystone XL pipeline, members of Canada’s Conservative Party are counterattacking what they see as sovereignty incursions from the south.
Being right would make the righteous more persuasive
March 15, 2012 9:04 AM by bobtWhen people are confident enough about their righteousness to make a public display of it, should they not also be right?
Oil sands alliance forms to build on environmental gains
March 7, 2012 9:04 AM by bobtThe oil sands industry of Canada has taken an important step toward refuting the “dirty oil” claims of environmental activism.
Surface effects part of fracing in popular view
February 29, 2012 8:50 AM by bobtPolitical conflict over hydraulic fracturing turns on a semantic point crucial but perhaps not evident to the oil and gas industry.
New clean energy standard move shows failure to learn
February 17, 2012 8:50 AM by bobtAs Congress begins its latest effort to choreograph energy choice, Americans should lock their cash drawers.
Scorecard needed to gauge oil market worried about Iran
February 8, 2012 8:50 AM by bobtPerils linked to Iran are escalating so rapidly that an observer needs a scorecard to gauge market effects.
Politics makes emissions trading a peculiar market
February 6, 2012 11:20 AM by bobtThe trading in units of permission to emit carbon dioxide is supposed to be a market-based response to global warming. It’s really politics.
Antioil agenda lies behind fights over pipelines, hydraulic fracturing
January 16, 2012 12:51 PM by bobtIn battles over hydraulic fracturing and the Keystone XL pipeline, the oil and gas industry must never underestimate the resolve of its opponents. Groups hostile to oil and gas know they have much to lose.
Fidel Castro joins forces opposed to hydraulic fracing
January 9, 2012 9:38 AM by bobtFidel Castro has raised his revolutionary voice against a well-completion method revolutionizing production of oil and natural gas.
Campaigns to call Obama conservative stumble on energy
January 4, 2012 8:46 AM by bobtFrom the perspective of the oil and gas business, campaigns by liberal commentators to make President Barack Obama look politically conservative seem otherworldly.
