Luv2Read's Account Talk

[Buster]

."A contract to build what is being called the nation's first offshore field of wind turbines was announced Monday between a Delaware utility company and a firm that is to build the generators off the Atlantic coast," CNN reports. "Officials from Delmarva Power and Bluewater Wind announced details of the contract at a news conference Monday in Newark, Delaware." .

What happens when the wind don't blow?

..and of course there's Ted Kennedy

 

[luv2read]

What happens when the wind don't blow?

..and of course there's Ted Kennedy

Winds always blow offshore fella. Ever been out there?:blink:

Oh...and Teddy blows enough hot air to keep em going if the wind stops.

 

[Silverbird]

Hey, I live in the DelMarVA area, and I can tell you there is plenty of hot air coming off of DC in the middle.

 

[nasa1974]

There have been a series of test and studies here in the northern part of Ohio in regards to wind generated power. Some of the tests have shown that there is a steady breeze between 10-15 mph just off shore. Most of the studies have shown that this area of Ohio is ideal for wind generated power. Now the environmental studies are starting. Bird migration routes and all.

 

[luv2read]

go Texas!!!

The Daily News
conference Looks At Renewable Energy

by Leigh Jones

published June 25, 2008
renewable Energy Is Not The Panacea For America’s Energy Crisis, But Alternative Energy Experts Say That During The Next Few Decades, It Could Help To Ease The Pain.

power Generated By Wind, Waves And Ocean Current Is Fast Becoming An Important Component Of The Nation’s Energy Mix, And Its Role Will Only Continue To Grow, Said Randall Luthi, Director Of The Minerals Management Service, A Division Of The U.s. Department Of The Interior.

by 2010, Renewable Energy Sources Will Surpass Nuclear Power Plants In Primary Energy Production, Luthi Told Participants At Energy Ocean 2008, A Conference Devoted To Ocean-based Renewable Energy That Is Taking Place This Week In Galveston.

by 2030, Renewable Energy Is Predicted To Come Close To Equaling Petroleum-based Energy Production, Luthi Said.

"people Living On The Gulf Coast Should Be Very Excited About That," He Said. "texas Is Already Working On Renewable Energy Projects. That Sets The Framework For Companies That Want To Extend Their Efforts Farther Out."

unlike Other Coastal States, Texas Has Jurisdiction Over The Waters And The Seafloor For Nine Nautical Miles Off Its Coastline. Although Long Considered Inseparable From The Oil And Gas Industry, Texas Has Become The Poster Child For The Development Of Offshore Renewable Energy, Luthi Said.

plans To Diversify

that Surprises Many People, But State Officials Understand The Need To Diversify The Energy-generated Income Stream, Said Jerry Patterson, Commissioner Of The Texas General Land Office.

"this Is Energy, And We’re In The Energy Business," Patterson Said Of Renewable Projects. "we Realize That Revenues From The Oil And Gas Industry Will Go Away One Day."

the Land Office Gets Royalties From Oil And Gas Production, Funds That Help Fund Public Education. It Also Collects Royalties For Leases On Public Land Required For Renewable Energy Projects.

texas Leads The Nation In Installed Wind Power Production Capacity, At 4,356 Megawatts, According To Land Office Figures.

installed Wind Energy Generating Capacity Throughout The United States Now Totals 16,818 Megawatts, According To The American Wind Energy Association. It Is Expected To Generate 48 Billion Kilowatt Hours Of Wind Energy This Year, Enough To Provide Slightly More Than 1 Percent Of The Nation’s Electricity Supply And Power The Equivalent Of More Than 4.5 Million Homes.

moving Offshore

while All Of Texas’ Producing Wind Turbines Are Currently On Land, At Least One Offshore Project Is Expected To Start Production In The Next Few Years.

the State In 2005 Leased 11,355 Acres About Eight Miles Off Galveston To A Louisiana-based Company With Plans For A 50-turbine Wind Farm.

with Some Development Already Taking Place In State Waters, Private Companies Are Bound To Be Interested In Expanding Those Efforts Into Federal Waters, Luthi Said.

the Energy Policy Act Of 2005 Gave The Minerals Management Service The Authority To Develop A Program To Manage Alternative Energy Projects. The Agency Is About To Publish In The Federal Register Newly Proposed Rules To Regulate Projects On The Outer Continental Shelf, In Federal Waters.

the Agency Intends To Complete The Regulations By The End Of This Year, Luthi Said.

the Rules Will Pave The Way For Companies To Submit Proposals For Using The Underwater Public Land For Renewable Energy Projects.

luthi Said He Expected To Have A Lot Of Applications To Review.

"gas Prices Are Continuing To Rise, And It Hurts," He Said. "it Absolutely Hurts. Never Has The Need Been Greater To Develop Alternative Energy Sources."

 

[malyla]

There have been a series of test and studies here in the northern part of Ohio in regards to wind generated power. Some of the tests have shown that there is a steady breeze between 10-15 mph just off shore. Most of the studies have shown that this area of Ohio is ideal for wind generated power. Now the environmental studies are starting. Bird migration routes and all.

Check out these new windmills for urban rooftops. Quite, efficient, harmless to birds, and usable in variable wind conditions when mounted vertically. They will not fly apart in high winds and operate in low wind conditions.

http://jmcarroll-marinebio.blogspot.com/2007/11/mighty-wind.html

There is a better link, but I can't get it to work. Will post when I can find it again.

 

[malyla]

Check out these new windmills for urban rooftops. Quite, efficient, harmless to birds, and usable in variable wind conditions when mounted vertically. They will not fly apart in high winds and operate in low wind conditions.

http://jmcarroll-marinebio.blogspot.com/2007/11/mighty-wind.html

There is a better link, but I can't get it to work. Will post when I can find it again.

Found it:
http://www.aerotecture.com/

This is the company that builds the urban windmills.

 

[Steadygain]

Found it:
http://www.aerotecture.com/

This is the company that builds the urban windmills.

Wow!! Thank you !

We recently decided to put one in the backyard - Chicago isn't far.

Much appreciated

 

[luv2read]

… It is NOW time for us to do something. The great thing about Americans is that we get up and fight when necessary. We don’t have the luxury of sitting and complaining anymore, it’s time to “do something about the rising gas and oil prices, and it is time to do it right now.”
As Americans, we can show the oil companies and politicians that WE can stem the rising oil problem, and we can have a surplus of gasoline in 30 days. Please take a moment to read this message, and how we /you can cause an immediate positive affect.
Oil prices are absolutely out of control and it will take 3 to 4 months for Middle East oil production to get high enough to help us out. In the meantime, we are likely to face oil costs that will rise from $140/barrel to $150/barrel and then to $200/barrel. It will kill our economy, kill jobs, and cause inflation that will substantially hurt all of us. Yesterday’s panic stock market selling showed the level of fear that investors are reaching by the “do nothing about the oil paralysis mentality” that is going on. Shares of General Motors Corp. plunged to their lowest price in more than 33 years.
Out of control gas and oil prices can be stopped within 30 days. In a moment, I will tell you how.
Last night, I emailed Vice President Cheney. I am waiting for a response, but I am sure that he and the White House are underestimating what we, as citizens, are willing to do.
The essence of my message to Vice President Cheney was the following:
“We can drop the amount of gasoline consumption in a flash and dramatically reduce our usage during the next four months by doing just one thing. We did it years ago, and I don't know why we are waiting so long to do it now. Now is the time, before we pay dearly in the coming days or weeks by waiting “too long”.
What's the answer? Car pooling. If we can get 3 people per car going to work in our big cities, it will take two cars off the road for every three cars … and we will have a gasoline surplus in less than 1 month." (For those who were not around to car pool almost 40 years ago, this is just about driving to and from work, you can still go to the grocery store, visit friends, and go places on your own.)
Don’t think it will work?
Consider the numbers:
1. According to the government’s population polls in 2006, there were 74,559,554 citizens living in the 200 largest U.S. cities. That does not count the surrounding cities everyone drives in from.
2. Assume that we car pool with 3 people per car: 1 driver and 2 passengers. Also assume that the average distance driven is 20 miles each way … assume that it takes 1 gallon of gas to get to work and 1 gallon of gas to get back home. That would save 29,541,423 gallons per day.
3. That would be a reduction in usage of 590,828,468 gallons per month, and 7,089,941,612 gallons per year. That’s right … over half a billion gallons per month, and 7 billion gallons per year.
The reality is that we would probably only have to do it for the next 3 to 4 months until oil production levels get cranked up.
What would happen?
We would probably have a surplus of gasoline in less than a month. Gas prices would plummet, you could take that vacation you cancelled because gas prices were too high, stock prices would stop plummeting, and the increasing rate of inflation would be curtailed by a large amount .. something Bernanke needs help on.
Who can make this happen now …
It is now up to “us,” you and I … each of us to individually make a reasonably small sacrifice during the next four months to stop this insidious problem that is spiraling out of control with no one willing to do anything about it, except talk about it and wave their fingers at each other.
We are Americans.
We are “doers”.
We don’t have to wait for our politicians to do too little, too late.
We need to do something now, and WE CAN … but only if YOU are willing.
My suggestion?
Let’s take the initiative as concerned Americans and push for mandated car pooling now. Let’s car pool for only 4 months and then reassess the situation. If we don’t, we will have a recession bad enough for you to never forget.
How do we get it mandated?
We call or email our Senators, Congressmen, and State Representatives. We tell them that we want to save 2.3 billion gallons of gas every four months by mandating car pooling in at least our largest 200 cities.
We call or email our local newspapers and TV stations and tell them the same. We each send this message out to 10 people, and ask them to do the same ... if we don't, nothing will happen. I will personally start by emailing over 10,000 people that know me right away. If each person sends this message to just 10 people the same day after receiving it, then in 4 days time, TEN MILLION people will have received this message and Washington will do something about it. In less than 10 days, we could have all this passed as an emergency response act.
Our politicians won’t do a thing without us telling them that we WANT them to do it. The reason is that this is a big political year and everyone is scared about doing the wrong thing that would upset their voters. I will be upset if they don’t do anything and you should be too.
Let’s tell them we are willing to meet this necessary challenge now, that we are willing to make the sacrifice to avert a problem that will mean much bigger sacrifices later.
Are you willing to take just 15 minutes out of your day to contact those who can make this happen?
I will even make it easy for you by providing you with all the email addresses of our Senators, Congressmen, and State Representatives. All you have to do is click on the email address and send them a message.
Make a decision now ... a decision that will affect the rest of this year, your finances, and the economy. Make a decision for your family, your job, your company, your friends, and your neighbors.
Please … make a decision now and let’s show our politicians that we do not have to wait for them while we continue to suffer economically and personally.
By acting in unison with our friends, workers, and fellow citizens, we have the power to change things … with an incredible magnitude of power that only few can imagine.
Sincerely,
Marty Chenard, President
StockTiming.com
StockTiming.com
1. To contact your State Senator or State Representative, click the link below and then click on your State ... every Senator and State Representative will appear with their email address and phone numbers. Click on the email addresses and you can send your message in a flash. This is the link: http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/
2. The top 100 newspapers reach millions of people. Here is a reference link to the 100 top newspapers in the country: http://www.refdesk.com/top100pap.html

...

 

[luv2read]

Carpooling and vanpooling is just part of the answer. We have to take more vehicles off the road by ANY MEANS, and there's already a law out there. In 2001, Congress passed a telework law MANDATING that all government employees whose jobs allowed them to telework do so at least one day a week. This law was largely ignored by agencies. Congress updated the law with a threat to reduce the budget of any agencies not complying with the law. The agencies ignored it and it wasn't enforced. Congress recently updated the law AGAIN, and this time, it is being enforced. Agencies are now scrambling to comply, but violating the spirit of the law by figuring out how to deny telework to the majority of their employees. Congress needs to ENFORCE the telework laws on the books. The government should take the lead and set an example for private sector employers, not the reverse.

There are 700-800 federal employees in this building. How many are there in DC? If each one of them worked from home one day a week, how much less gasoline would be used, how much less pollutants would be emitted, how much time would be saved...

 

[Fivetears]

L2R, I I'm not too sure about this teleworking stuff...



more info on it here
http://www.telework.gov/

...If each one of them worked from home one day a week, how much less gasoline would be used, how much less pollutants would be emitted, how much time would be saved...

 

[nasa1974]

LOL!!! Too funny:laugh::laugh::laugh:

 

[nasa1974]

Luv2Read,

Just trying to spread the word. Thanks for your insites.


Below is a link to govexec.com and an interesting article about our TSP. There are some people involved that represent us and positions and names are mentioned. We need to write these folks to try and improve our availibility to manage our accounts. With the market the way it is it would be nice if we could see 4 IFT's per month or at the very least move our trade time from noon eastern to 4 or 6pm eastern. I know that I am fairly new to the MB and others before me have tried to convince our politicians to help us but this may be an opportunity we shouldn't pass up. Let's see what we can accomplish.


http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=40347&dcn=todaysnews

 

[Steadygain]

Carpooling and vanpooling is just part of the answer. The government should take the lead and set an example for private sector employers, not the reverse. how much less pollutants would be emitted, how much time would be saved...

L2R - Have I told you lately that I love you

bum baumm baummm bummm bumm bumm

Have I told you lately that I care

I really like your fire and determination - thank you!!

 

[luv2read]

L2R - Have I told you lately that I love you

bum baumm baummm bummm bumm bumm

Have I told you lately that I care

I really like your fire and determination - thank you!!

Do you want to know a secret...do wah do...

Steady, NASA, and everyone else in the MB family....have a great Fourth of July! I love all of you too, brothers and sisters.

 

[luv2read]

well, I thought all the money was going into commodities, but I just took another peek at the charts and AGG is tanking along with stocks so I have a new thought. ECB is expected to raise rates, which will help the Euro and kill the dollar again. Anybody look at FOREX? I'm thinking the money is going into FOREIGN CURRENCIES....anything but the dollar, stocks and US junk bonds...

Oh, and contributions were going to F/G, but I changed to I fund. I'm buying that stuff up at these bargain prices....

 

[luv2read]

PM update:

July 10 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose more than $5 a barrel after Iran test-fired more missiles in the Persian Gulf and a Nigerian militant group said it will end a cease-fire this week.

That pretty much killed the rally. When will everyone realize that Iran is playing these silly games just to raise oil prices? As if an Iranian warhead would be sent to Israel, a nuclear power. And we can take the strait of Hormuz away from the Iranians if they ever decide to block it, we have the largest military presence in the area since 1992. Ridiculous. I'm sure glad Wall street traders are not in charge of our military, as it is a cub scout would show more courage and foresight.
Pension funds that are buying into this are destroying their own backyard. I guess the only way they can figure out how to make money is either buy AAPL or oil. And they get paid for that?
By the way, the oil trade to pension funds was a big Goldman Sachs push. Now we have their ex CEO at the helm of our treasury. Small world.

:nuts:

 

[luv2read]

Remember this? Ben thought he had trouble with BSC....he ain't seen nuthin' yet.

Freddie, Fannie debt may pose risk to economy
The housing slump has compelled the two entities to buy up mortgages on the secondary market that banks are backing away from. But that could end badly, charges one regulator.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
February 7 2008: 1:16 PM EST
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The increased share of housing debt taken on by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae during the housing slump has put the two government sponsored enterprises at risk, it was charged Thursday.
The two outfits are "reducing risks in the market, but concentrating mortgage risks on themselves. These risks are beginning to take their toll," said James Lockhart, director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), which regulates Fannie and Freddie. He was speaking Thursday at a Senate Banking committee on regulatory reform.
Freddie will report its first ever annual loss for 2007 at the end of February, while Fannie, is expected to report its first loss in 22 years for the year.
As the subprime crisis has grown, banks have backed away from buying mortgages in the secondary market. This has left Fannie and Freddie, which do the same thing, to pick up the slack.
As a result, the two government sponsored entities (GSEs) saw the housing debt they and the Federal Home Loan Banks carry grow by 16 percent to $6.3 trillion, more than the total public debt of the United States, according to Lockhart.
Some experts worry that if Fannie or Freddie take on too much debt and fail, that the government would have to bail them out using taxpayer money.
"The conforming market supported by Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500) and Fannie Mae (FNM) is the only well-functioning segment of the mortgage market," said Richard Syron, CEO of Freddie Mac. "We're experiencing greater losses as house prices decline, but that is not surprising since this is the market we were created to support it."
And Daniel Mudd, Fannie's CEO agreed. "Our business is meeting the increased demand for liquidity and our overall credit book has held up relatively well," he said. "Yes, these are tough times, but that is when you want a Fannie Mae."
But Lockhart argues that the GSEs require more regulatory oversight as their market share grows, in order for them to maintain the confidence of both the public and investors.
"[GSEs] have become the system for secondary mortgages," said Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL), and that creates a risk to the general economy. If Fannie or Freddie run into trouble, that could lead to severe disruption in the mortgage market, which could then ripple through the entire financial system. Because they maintain capital that is a very small fraction of their debt obligations, the GSEs particularly vulnerable. Lockhart said, "It's critical that their capital grow as their risk grows and that's going to take a lot of work.

 

[luv2read]

Remember this one too. Let's buy up the junk nobody else wants and not have enough capital to back it up....we can always turn on the printing press or set up another RTC...

This scheme might have worked except they couldn't raise the capital..or didn't try hard enough because they knew they didn't have to, that the government would step in with a bailout. It also might have worked if they had stuck to refinancing underwater homeowners who were trying to make payments, and not bought up default "securities" that nobody wanted.

BA (some of them) got it right, for once. But big oil and the financials own the government - er, um...puppetmaster.

Gov't Eases Fannie, Freddie Restraints
MARCY GORDON | March 19, 2008 12:10 PM EST |

WASHINGTON — The government on Wednesday relaxed capital requirements at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as part of a plan to quickly inject an additional $200 billion of financing for home loans.
The initiative, which will require Fannie and Freddie to raise substantial funds, is part of a broader government strategy to ease a credit crisis that has made it difficult for consumers and businesses to borrow, and spread fear throughout global financial markets.
The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, which oversees the government-sponsored companies, said the mandatory cash cushion for Fannie and Freddie _ now nearly $20 billion for the two _ will be reduced by a third under the new plan. The goal is to free-up money to help new home buyers take out loans and to help existing home owners refinance into more affordable mortgages.
The capital requirement for each company will be reduced from the current 30 percent to 20 percent, and further reductions will be considered by the regulator in the future. Fannie and Freddie will likely raise billions of dollars through special sales of stock.
"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have played a very important and beneficial role in the mortgage markets over the last year," OFHEO Director James B. Lockhart said at a news conference. "We believe they can play an even more positive role in providing the stability and liquidity the markets need right now."
The companies' shares were buoyed by news of the agreement. Fannie stock jumped $2.64, or 9.4 percent, to $30.86 in late morning trading, while Freddie shares advanced $2.98, or 11.4 percent, to $29. The companies' shares have plummeted to fresh 52-week lows in recent weeks amid concern over their ability to find buyers for their mortgage-linked securities amid plunging home prices and rising foreclosures.

The new agreement was the third step the government has taken in recent weeks to allow Washington-based Fannie and McLean, Va.-based Freddie to shoulder larger burdens in the mortgage market despite their multibillion-dollar fourth-quarter losses and expectations of further red ink this year.

The $168 billion economic stimulus package enacted last month included a temporary increase in the cap on mortgages that the companies can purchase or guarantee, from $417,000 to $729,750 in high-cost markets. And, as a reward for filing timely financial statements following multibillion-dollar accounting scandals, Fannie and Freddie were freed on March 1 of a combined $1.5 trillion cap on their mortgage-investment holdings.
OFHEO estimated that the combination of these efforts should allow Fannie and Freddie to purchase or guarantee roughly $2 trillion in mortgages this year. The two companies together hold or guarantee around $4.9 trillion in home-loan debt. As the mortgage crisis and ensuing credit crunch have worsened in recent months, policy makers have increasingly looked to them to step up their participation in the hobbled market for securities backed by mortgages.
"This is what (Fannie and Freddie) were put in place for. ... And we will deliver," Freddie Mac Chairman and CEO Richard Syron said.
Influential Democratic lawmakers have been pushing for a reduction in the companies' capital-holding requirements. Bush administration officials and numerous Republican lawmakers, on the other hand, have long opposed allowing Fannie and Freddie to take on more debt, contending that doing so could threaten the global financial system.

 

[fedgolfer]

But big oil and the financials own the government - er, um...puppetmaster.

Don't forget the sovereign wealth funds. The Arab kings spend vacations with our Presidents. This isn't conspiracy, its fact.