In the Pipeline: 5/31/13

For some of us, this hits close to home. So I have a few suggestions: Quit bragging about the non-stop flights that are offered from Newark to Jackson. Shut down the tram (it runs on coal). Stop selling skis, boots, jackets and goggles because they are made with carbon-based petrochemicals. And those of us who are still (physically) able can hike to the top of Rendezvous and ski on wooden boards like the good ol’ days. Unless that sounds like a good plan, quit begging for the heavy hand of the EPA and Congress to strangle your own industry. Wyoming Business Report(5/29/13) reports: “The past ski season was a banner year for our guests and for our resort, but we can’t gamble on the weather in an uncertain climate. We have to take action,” said Jerry Blann, president of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in Wyoming. “Resorts have made tremendous efforts to raise awareness on the issue of climate change and to adjust our operations to reduce carbon emissions and manage resources efficiently. We need Washington to take those strategies seriously through stronger policies.”

Like we’ve always said, the science is settled. Phys.org (5/30/13) reports: “Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are to blame for global warming since the 1970s and not carbon dioxide, according to new research from the University of Waterloo published in the International Journal of Modern Physics B this week…  ‘Conventional thinking says that the emission of human-made non-CFC gases such as carbon dioxide has mainly contributed to global warming. But we have observed data going back to the Industrial Revolution that convincingly shows that conventional understanding is wrong,’ said Qing-Bin Lu, a professor of physics and astronomy, biology and chemistry in Waterloo’s Faculty of Science. ‘In fact, the data shows that CFCs conspiring with cosmic rays caused both the polar ozone hole and global warming.’”

Next up in California, a lifeguard is required to hold your hand as you walk out into the waves. It’s a great program that will create hundreds of thousands of jobs for new lifeguards while ensuring the safety of the population; it’s not at all creepy and overbearing; and it certainly won’t erode your sense of personal responsibility and good citizenship. NYTimes (5/30/13) reports: “But these days, a blizzard of restrictions — on everything from dogs to playing horseshoes — is being imposed on beach activities up and down the coast, turning beaches into sanitized zones that longtime beachgoers say barely resemble the freewheeling places they once knew… Smoking is banned at many beaches across the state. On San Diego beaches, playing ball or tossing a Frisbee has been outlawed. Alcohol is no longer allowed on the sand in Huntington Beach. Even surfing is restricted to designated areas here, though this is ‘Surf City.’… And the next thing to go could be the fire pits — concrete rings designed to contain bonfires — which for many people are enduring features of a free, outdoor California lifestyle.”

In a nutshell, the EPA is a very dangerous agency. Washington Post(5/30/13) reports: “A Wednesday shootout on the streets of Washington Highlands left a cop injured and a carjacking suspect dead. But before the suspect expired, he went on an unusual ambulance ride that involved moving him from one vehicle to another on the shoulder of Interstate 295. While this might appear to be another story of Fire and Emergency Medical Services dysfunction, the story is rather more complicated. As WUSA-TV explains, newer-model diesel engines are required by federal regulations to have emission-control features that, in some circumstances, require the motor to shut down for “regeneration” — a process in which the exhaust system burns off trapped soot.”

Big talk for a guy with the largest “carbon footprint” on the planet. Maybe he should lead by example (cough cough) and do more of his celebrity fundraisers via Skype or Google hangout. Weekly Standard(5/30/13) reports: “Obama: ‘I Don’t Have Much Patience for People Who Deny Climate Change’… ‘My only interest is making sure that when I look back 20 years from now, I say I accomplished everything that I could while I had this incredible privilege to advance the interests of the broadest number of Americans and to make sure that this country was stronger and more prosperous than it was when I came into office.  That’s my only interest,’ the president said.”

Join us next Friday for a luncheon and panel discussion hosted by National Review and the American Energy Alliance! Get a spot while they’re hot…