Though I specialize in working with non-native speakers interested in practicing English-language skills, I’m willing to speak with readers of this blog who have ideas they want to share, complaints they want to air or just a lot of time on their hands.

Of course, it’s going to cost you something like $2 per minute. But, hey, that’s a pretty reasonable rate, I think.

To schedule a call with me, click here, click on the graphic above right or dial the toll-free phone number below:

1-888-MY-ETHER ext. 01894313

]]> http://bobmccarty.com/2008/07/19/you-can-talk-to-bob-mccarty-writes/feed/ http://bobmccarty.com/2008/07/19/sos-now-hardly-a-recipe-for-success/ http://bobmccarty.com/2008/07/19/sos-now-hardly-a-recipe-for-success/#comments Sat, 19 Jul 2008 21:10:52 +0000 hotoffthepress2 http://bobmccarty.com/?p=3636 Eight days ago, I wrote and published a post, Open Letter to Airline Customers Misses Mark, in which I explained how I had cast aside my initial inclination to side with airline executives on the matter of oil speculators in favor of Hugh Hewitt’s more-sensible stance on the issue. Today, I found yet another solid basis for my opposition to the Stop Oil Speculation Now (a.k.a., “SOS Now”) movement.

I found that “solid basis” in the form of a communication — which served as the cornerstone of a Peter Robinson post, What Needs to Be Stopped is “Stop Oil Speculation Now,” published Friday at The Corner on National Review Online — from George Savage to the Airline Owners and Pilots Association.

The first paragraph of Savage’s message (below) was spot-on, able to stand on its own:

SOS Now proposes to address the fuel shortage caused by government intervention in the domestic energy market through more government intervention in the domestic energy market; on its face, hardly a recipe for success…

…while the last paragraph (below) shot straight to the heart of the matter:

Self-interest is at work here. Politicians want money and political support from the green lobby. Green venture capitalists, like Kleiner Perkins general partner Al Gore, stand to make billions of dollars on “cleantech” investments, but only if oil prices continue to climb. A lot of venture portfolios are in trouble the day after Congress permits unfettered domestic oil exploration. And these folks are nothing if not well-connected.

Good job, Mr. Savage, Indeed! Stop Oil Speculation Now!

Watch the video below first, then read the comment that appears below it at HotAir.com. I think you’ll agree.

Now, read the hopeful comment:

I work with yellow dog democrats. Real Bush haters. MoveOn types. The other day when Obama was giving his latest Iraq etc. speech, one of them exclaimed “Either this guy is the dumbest son of a b!tch on earth or he thinks the rest of us are.” — Beto Ochoa on July 18, 2008 at 11:01 PM

Americans for Limited Government Calls Upon All

GOP Senators to Join Sen. Tom Coburn’s Filibuster

Against $25 Billion Omnibus Bill

Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson called upon all Republican senators to join Sen. Tom Coburn’s (R-OK) filibuster against a $25 billion omnibus bill that will combine over 100 pieces of legislation into one and change Senate rules.

“The economy is very sick, and it is sick because of the excessive spending and debt that Congress creates year in and year out,” said Wilson in a statement. “Our overall financial system is teetering on the brink of ruin, the dollar is collapsing, prices are soaring, inflation is on the rise, and the national debt has never been larger.”

“This is no coincidence,” said Wilson. “All roads lead back to Washington on the current economic crisis, because Congress keeps on spending. Their response to every crisis is to spend more. A $25 billion omnibus bill here. A $300 billion bank bailout there. A $150 billion economic ‘stimulus’ package. It never ends.”

Wilson explained, “The problem is that Congress’ spending habits—they spend more than they take in revenue—further increase the money supply and the national debt, directly causing the economy’s downward spiral to continue. They call it ‘stimulus,’ but really it’s cyanide for our economy and our future.”

“Enough is enough,” he added. “This is why it is imperative that all Republicans in the Senate join Senator Tom Coburn’s filibuster of the $25 billion omnibus bill.”

Senator Tom Coburn recently stated that 20 Senators had already joined the filibuster. Procedurally, it takes 41 votes in the Senate to maintain a filibuster.

According to a July 17th a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senators may not even be allowed to offer amendments to the omnibus package.

Wilson believes that Majority Leader Reid’s move will erode the Senate minority’s ability to keep the majority in check. “How this bill turns out will absolutely set the pace for the next session of Congress. Senate Republicans have a chance to turn the tide,” said Wilson.

“But, it’s going to take fiscal discipline, something that has been severely lacking in Washington for generations,” he added. “Senator Coburn needs a lot of help from his colleagues if that is ever going to change. Right now, he’s the true conscience of the Senate.”

Click Here For Senator Coburn’s Letter

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If only Senator Coburn would run for president, he’d have my vote based upon where he stands on key issues like the ones shown on his web site. Click here or on the graphic above to visit his web site and learn more about this good man who still believe in representing his constituents and governing by the Constitution.

The Al Gore quote above appeared in a Bryan Walsh effort, Gore’s Bold Plan to Save the Planet, published today in TIME. After reading the article and the front-page teaser photo shown beneath the word “Analysis” (below), I was forced to conclude that none of the people involved in the article — not Gore, the writer or the magazine’s top executives — share any commitment to honest and objective journalism, especially when it comes to the subject of global warming.*

All three chose to discount tens of thousands of scientists when they opted to publish the piece without mentioning some important facts published Wednesday in a DailyTech article:

• The American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists (a.k.a., “scientists”), has reversed its stance on climate change and that many of its members do not believe in human-induced global warming; and

• That article is backed up by an Editor’s Comments on the APS web site.

So much for honesty and objectivity in journalism. Oops. Did I just describe TIME’s publishing effort as journalism? My mistake. I didn’t mean to do that.

*Editor’s Note: I could not, in good conscience, describe Walsh as a journalist or reporter. Similarly, I could not place an “editor” label on any of the magazine’s decision-makers involved in publishing Walsh’s puff piece. Why? Because professionals carrying the titles of journalist, reporter and editor, in my opinion, must be objective and believe in objectivity. The folks at TIME do not.

* * *

See also: Al Gore Not Practicing What He Preaches

* * *

UPDATE: After publishing this post, the DailyTech article cited above was pulled down, apparently the result of politicking going on at both the web site and the APS. Regardless, I stand by my belief that human-induced global warming is a farce and that TIME sucks up to Al Gore.

UPDATE #2: More about the APS and their stance on global warming can be found in this interesting article published today at The Corner on National Review Online.

I have two older brothers who ride motorcycles, so I pay attention to efforts aimed at promoting motorcycle visibility and safety in hopes of reducing fatalities. One such effort debuted earlier this week in Florida.

On Monday, the Florida Department of Highway Safety launched an ad campaign, dubbed RIDE PROUD. DRESS LOUD. Those behind the campaign are banking upon research that suggests motorcyclists who make themselves more visible — or “conspicuous” — are less likely to have their right-of-way violated by other vehicles on the roadways.

Take a look at the campaign ads here and see if you think the effort — which, because of its name, might be mistaken for a gay pride parade invite — will pay off.

Hat tip: AdRants

The video below shows both Gore and his supporters arrived at the event in EVERYTHING BUT public transportation. I’d call that blatant disregard for the environment. Wouldn’t you? Watch it and laugh!

Maybe, just maybe, Gore and his devotees really think the marketing effort surrounding so-called “climate change” should be redesignated as “GLOBULL WARMING.”

EXTRA!! According to this article, the folks at the American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists, have reversed their stance on climate change and are now proclaiming that many of the group’s members disbelieve in human-induced global warming. Perhaps they agree that it should be labeled “GLOBULL WARMING,” too.

Hat tip: Gateway Pundit

• The role of the overburdened taxpayer was played by the man trapped beneath the soil;

• The role of the IRS tax code was played by the soil; and

• The role of the army of accountants and attorneys one must hire when faced with a tax audit was played by rescuers.

Sadly, too few lawmakers realize that if a flat tax or national sales tax were implemented, we could both relieve taxpayers from the incredible pressures placed upon them by the current tax code and eliminate our need to maintain an army of rescuers whose primary job is to rescue those same people from unwanted and unnecessary emergencies.