Response to Duffy

Duffy is God’s answer to a prayer.. I miss the old days of blogging when we were debating principals instead of people… Duffy has stuck to the old line of debating principals with facts, and that is what makes him special in the eyes of bloggers everywhere…

Since the passing of Steve Newton, he has been the only one to challenge me in any argument, and usually some pretty good stuff comes out of both sides during the exchange… I have respected that.. Cause once again, opinions mean dick. Facts are what we steer by.. It is my hope that in responding to his challenge that an answer may make itself apparent.. Who knows? It may not come from me… But if I’m the catalyst for bringing it out in the open, then… none of this was in vain..

Why I like to debate Duffy is simple.. Neither side, he or I, is concretely set in their opinions… We accept it when the other side makes sense… I usually go into such debates having no idea where they’ll end up… I hope the rest of you enjoy the ride as welI….

That said..

Duffy leads: Wall Street’s problems were caused by Fannie and Freddie loaning money to people they knew couldn’t pay and moreover, forcing banks to lend money to people who couldn’t pay. That was not deregulation but misregulation

kavips rebutt’s:Uh… Mr. President. That’s not entirely accurate.

First off, the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 was developed for, and locked in on, urban developmental areas and had no part of the subprime boom, which primarily occurred out in western desert regions where owning 4 to 5 investment homes was normal… Those homes were overwhelmingly funded by loan originators NOT SUBJECT to the act… We all know the crises was not because people couldn’t afford a payment on their house. It came about, because with no occupants, people could not afford the payments of 4 to 5 houses….. Instead of one loan per borrower turning up in default; four to five were.

Second off, The housing bubble reached its point of maximum inflation in 2005.

Courtesy of NYT

Third off, During those exact same years, Fannie and Freddie were sidelined by Congressional pressure, and saw a sharp drop in their share of loans secured by the Feds… Follow the dotted line on the very bottom of the graph…

Courtesy of NYT

Fourth off; During those exact same years, private secures, like Delaware’s own AIG, grabbed the lions share of the market.

Courtesy of NYT

Remember these graphs for later on when I discuss the results of deregulation, versus regulation… But like it or not, these graphs conclusively show that private insurers, who thanks to Marie Evans, we now know were deregulated by Phil Gramm in the 2000 Omnibus Bill, were the primary cause of the worlds financial collapse.. Probably put best by these words of AIG’s spokesperson, who when asked why they didn’t have sufficient funds to cover losses, said point blank, “We were deregulated. We were no laws requiring us to keep any funds, ..so we spent it…”

Duffy leads: The loosely regulated hedge funds escaped this mess largely unscathed. Why? They can’t count on a bailout like the big banks. The Too Big To Fail banks were counting on a bailout (not unlike the S&L bailouts which started on the Republican’s watch) and they got them.

kavips rebutt’s:Uh… Mr. President. That’s not entirely accurate. I agree that the hedge funds did survive better than the banks. Not because of bailouts, but because they sold short during the crises and made billions while firms closed and people got thrown out of work. There is nothing wrong with that; I did the same. In fact close readers may remember my warnings that the crises was impending almost a year earlier. Very close readers may remember my telling them exactly when to sell, and at what point the stock market would rebound… I must say: I called it rather well. 🙂

“Hedge funds were not in my understanding, at fault in the credit crisis,” said David Ruder, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. “At the most what they did was to sell securities when some of their investments were declining and they needed to have liquid funds. They were not the architects of these problems.”

De regulated hedge funds are not the issue… De-regulated, excessively leveraged, mortgage securities, are a different story however… They, not the banks that held them, are the cause of the crises…Years from now, when academics search for causes of the stock market crash of 2008, they will focus on the pivotal role of mortgage-backed securities. These exotic financial instruments allowed a downturn in U.S. home prices to morph into a contagion that brought down Bear Stearns a year ago this month – and more recently have brought the global banking system to its knees.

Where you err is when you state that banks too big to fail, assumed they would be bailed out… By implication, you say imply they failed from squandering money, and wanted the bailouts.. But your tax dollars didn’t flow directly to the bottom line.

The roughly $200 billion the Treasury Department has handed out to battered banks was swapped for a special class of stock that pays a 5 percent dividend (rising to 9 percent after five years.) As of April 15, the Treasury had collected about $2.5 billion in dividend payments on its investment.

So in that sense, the bailout money represents an expense for banks. That’s one reason a number of banks have said they want to give the money back as soon as possible.

You say big banks were counting on a bailout, and they got them? That didn’t happen to these banks. New Mexico, Georgia, and Florida each lost a bank just last Friday. That brings to 8, the number of banks failed in June. Unfortunately if a bank is failing, it can’t bet on itself to fail, as can a hedge fund.

Duffy leads: Banks have successfully lobbied to get their losses absorbed by taxpayers and gains are kept private. How nice for them. They felt comfortable making insane gambles because they knew they’d be bailed out. Most of them were right. Also remember that it was Bill Clinton who tore down the wall between retail and investment banking. The idea was to give banks more stability as they typically perform as exact opposites in bull and bear markets. (FWIW, I think that was a good idea and I can tell you first hand that two of the Fortune 100 banks I worked for were carried by retail banking in bear years. They may not have had bonuses those years but they didn’t have layoffs either)

kavips rebutt’s:Uh… Mr. President. That’s not entirely accurate. The idea is that the banks made bad decisions knowing taxpayers would bail them out is the issue that is inaccurate. For the record, I have no qualms that it was the Clinton legacy who tore down the wall between banks and investment banking. Like you, I feel it was a good idea to do so… Again the problem was not primarily with banks making loans to people who could not pay.. Although, it was as late as October 2009, when I was made aware of one private Bank in Denver still exaggerating income to make loans look good enough on paper to get approval of securitization. What caused the collapse was the leveraging of those loans as securities, so that as the housing market became overextended, and the ARM jumped past the low cost opening years, the damage was 100 times worse because of leveraging. What made the collapse criminal, was that the insurance most financial institutions had bought from AIG, to cover such an improbable event, had already spent by that companies executives, out on bonuses to themselves. What made it doubly criminal, was that when they received government dollars through a taxpayer bailout, those same executives assumed it was to first go towards paying their bonuses again. However, very recent events may give some cover to the argument that some collusion was implicit in the bailing out of Goldman Sacs and AIG… Basically, once bailed out, AIG paid Goldman Sacs for shares twice as much as they were worth. The documents also indicate that regulators ignored recommendations from their own advisers to force the banks to accept losses on their A.I.G. deals and instead paid the banks in full for the contracts.

Outside The Perimeter: Fragments…

Courtesy of Department of Defense

If there is any correlating theme coming from this past week, would have to lie deep within the meaning of this word: fragments.

Whereas before, the blogging community seemed to be one amorphous blob, with all of its patrons joined together in a fight for survival against the study of the illogical (illogogy)…. it almost seems that with the passing of the Bluewater Wind controversy and the closing of Legislative Hall for another 6 months, that without a common enemy, the blogging world is running all over the place, like a week’s worth of wind-up McDonald’s toys set loose at the same time.

It was different last summer. The evil Stockbridge was the ogre of that time. (Copeland and McDowell surfaced as the insidious ones later in the fall)… During those lazy, hazy days, one could always on a slow day count on someone posting something about Mitt Romney. Others could be counted on to praise Obama, or damn Mike Castle, and many Ron Paul supporters were just beginning to get the wind beneath their wings. Giuliani even had a supporter or two, and one Sussex County person, was anticipating the great Fred Thompson’s march all the way into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue…. Last summer bred some exciting times. It was a great time to be a blogger…..

This week, each blog is on its own agenda. Even one fascinated with blogs as myself sometimes skims and clicks out if nothing jumps out like a fanged dog at me….That never happened last year… Did we overwork ourselves with all of our successful endeavors?

One difference between the two summers, lies in the march of events. Events have increased their frequency this summer. Every day destiny provides us with a fait accompli before we even get a chance to comment upon it.  We will have a presidential campaign soon upon us with two conventions. We will have the Olympics starting on the ominous day of 8/8/8. We are hanging by just a thread from collapsing into the abyss of bank closures, unemployment, with a broke federal government unable to guarantee any other bailout. We will have a good Phillies’ team for once.

But for whatever reason each of us are starbursting, which is management speak for just bouncing around, making a scene, yet accomplishing little in the long term because of a lack of any follow-through…

Everyone is on their own agenda….. If you were new to Delaware’s blog scene and just happened to visit us for the first time this week, you might think Delaware Liberal was misnamed. Although they smatter their posts with some liberal content, most of their time within posts and comments was tied up on the global significance of the Thursday election of Delaware’s hottest blogger. Fortunately Donvitti provides pictorial relief from his blatant lobbying attempt to keep the title coming to himself….. This is worth the visit just to see what some rather famous names look like…..There are also some nice photo’s of some trees…..and portable chairs….. On a serious note, mark your calendars for the Thursday July 31st fundraiser for Tommy….. Voting will be done on site…..

One controversy stirring among Delaware’s elite, is over the use, or misuse of Democratic party funds to fund one candidate over its challenger.

In a detached way it almost seems like we are sifting too hard, forcing out controversies in otherwise everyday occurrences, then fanning the flames, just because we have too little to argue about… (and more like the main stream media than we would like to think)…… to draw attention to ourselves.. We are, after all, human beings too…. But when all is said and done, it still is the party’s money to spend as they see fit. But in judging it’s overall importance, after  looking over each blog’s links,  this giant controversy also covered by our main stream media,  is mentioned in only two blogs, both of which lean towards Markell.  Is it then really such a big deal if it is only being mentioned by just one side?  Just asking…

Now, moving on……..

Delaware Watch jumps around between the national political scene and controversies occurring on the home front. Taking on the fickle Lee turnabout, it appears that the sentiments of the actual Republican Gubernatorial candidate, do not fall in line completely with his handlers. We in a glimpse see that their party’s flagship candidate, who until he was restrained by his programmers, actually had a moment of courage and credibility. With his reversal, we see we are now exposed to just another hologram, a human face put on some shady backroom dealings….He is truly just following his handler’s directions…… On the national front, Delaware Watch covers the real reason McCain reversed himself and went with offshore drilling…. It wasn’t for America’s interests……it was done in the interest of his campaign treasury… With his reversal…. his campaign treasury swelled with oil man’s money. No doubt this was noticed by Christine O’Donnell who thought she could get free money as well……  Continuing…..

Delaware Way has dived down deep into New Castle County Politics. While struggling to protect The Grange’s historical significance from the Scott- aided developers who are just itching to bulldoze that remarkable historical site under….. her commentary is long and full of information…. Truly this is corruption in its highest form. It is the local equivalent of Iraqi oil. We’ll take it because we can, thank you very much….. As one nation under God, we fought against this concept of entitled royalty during our Revolution War. No wonder Clark-Scott want to remove any local traces of that rebellion from Delaware’s future collective memory…. They are establishing themselves as the nouveau caste of elitists…. it’s Capano and the Highway Radisson all over again………

On a side, this controversy reminds me that for one week in late summer of 1777, thirty thousand troops were camped in New Castle County. (To get a visual of that amount, climb to the top of St. Francis Hospital’s parking garage and look out over all of Wilmington. Half of all you see, represents the number of troops, both British and American, being bivouacked here). Even more historic, is the fact that the war could have been settled here in the British’s favor, had the British capitalized on one of Washington’s errors….. They didn’t. Clark-Scott want it covered up…. $$$$$$$ Shall we let them?

Oddly since mentioning Scott and Clark in the same sentence makes one want to throw up, the local blogosphere, perhaps in a subtle tribute to Al Mascitti, has decided to go the route of food critic. DWA’s Dominique recommends juicy hamburgers, and Jason330 issues accolades for a tuna pineapple appetizer…. And for those who salivate at visual images…….

Next, getting to the spirit of political fundraising, we are shown two opposite approaches. Delaware Politics. Net has this article of one union shaking down its members to meet an arbitrary goal. Just when unions finally have an election season going for them, one of their members pulls a stunt like this…. Down With Absolutes has a tongue in cheek posting in similar vein. Apparently to facilitat their solicitation for donations, they need a mechanism that responds to sexual favors (see comments).

Meanwhile our favorite Curmudgeon is standing guard over our rights,… (naturally including our right give and receive sexual favors).(lol) Most particularly important to her, is the right to pursue our own form of happiness. That July 4th right is under attack by two local towns. A giant controversy, covered nowhere else, has its silence broken by Shirley. Apparently they do not have sex in Middletown. or at least certain elements of that city want to pretend that they don’t…. Banishing Waters and dropping Bernhardt seems like much ado over nothing. Surprisingly this has not gotten airplay from anywhere else… But such controversies will forever haunt the human condition. It is what happens when you let stupid people into government….. Personally I’m looking forward to the response to Newark’s singling out motorcycles for their noise abatement enforcement. I’ve never seen a million motorcycles before. I wonder if they could get that many to show? They have the mailing lists, and most bikers I know would drive at least 500 miles to an event like this….

On a side, I wonder how long it would take a million bikes to pass down Newark’s Main Street? Taking the average of 5 feet per bike and going with a tight 4 bike abreast formation with twenty feet separating each row…. To pass by one point, the answer is 79 hours; from noon on a Friday until 7 pm Monday evening. Now that would be an event worth seeing. I don’t think any other locality would dare venture so far as to single out motorcycles in the future, were bikers able to pull something like this off…….

The Colossus is starbursting from the other side… Now a movie critic they cover the The Great Debaters and The Dark Knight.. The latter was more of a Ms. Manners’ commentary on the behavior of those watching with him. (No wonder boot-legs sell well on the black market.) (lol) But to test your brainpower acumen, check out the trivia question included near the bottom of The Dark Knight... I wonder whether sight unseen if you can guess the winner? If you guessed “Mr. Trivia”, Allan Loudell, you are close….. almost.

Starbursting from the other side…. the staff of Colossus has decided to rule the Isle of Lost Causes and scours the media outlets for anything to throw at Obama. Most of them don’t stick….but the theme picture is worth commenting upon. Here is pitch one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, etc…. and a couple of small arms fire, one and two, aimed at Protack. Perhaps I’m nuts, but the only thing missing in this exhaustive anti-Obama coverage, is any substantial argument as to why someone in their right mind would ever want to vote for Obama’s opponent? Darn, after such extensive reading, I forgot his name…….

Third parties often are manned by well meaning dolts. One ducks and dodges them in any public event…..or fails to return their phone calls because of their tendency to focus on one narrow issue that appears to most, to be relatively unimportant. But,…. when a third party is manned by someone of superior intelligence, they offer a view of the other political parties unseen by those confined within…. Browsing through Delaware Libertarian recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find a rather good description of the Democratic Party…..

Using Delaware Liberal as a template, Steve Newton dissects the Democratic Party with a surgeon’s precision. As his discussion evolves it becomes self-evident that perhaps Progressives of all parties need to unite and elect intelligent candidates for a change, instead of the usual ones put up by parties whose sole appeal lies in the fact that they obey orders….. His proposal for an amalgamated Progressive Party made of many parts (smart Dem’s, smart Repub’s, and smart Indi’s), is a thinking man’s proposal for finding a way out of our cardboard maze we have chosen to place ourselves inside. It is proposal worth pursuing…..For both Steve, Shirley, and myself are pulling for one Republican: Tyler Nixon. Common Sense may need a little help in this race.

In my pick for the best post of the week, we have the breakdown of our Medicare System. By breakdown, I mean totally….broken…..down….. Our medicare system is busted and in this post we actually feel a father’s anguish of a daughter caught up in a bureaucracy-gone-wild under the current Republican unfunded mandates….. Read at your own discretion… It made me angry…. Just be prepared to laugh out loud when Copeland, Lee, Castle, and McCain say their administration has trimmed costs by reducing the rolls of those on Medicare. Be prepared to laugh them all the way down below 10%…. The post is truly non- partisan, but I guarantee your anger after reading it….will be partisan…..no matter what party you hail from…..

But be careful of what you say….. not.. Obviously Delaware Libertarian has been compromised by the Fed’s searching for information on face it, this and other local deviants, who they fear more than any blah-blah propagandist. For they have no defense against facts. Facts pertaining to what they have done wrong , facts showing they care not for their constituents, facts that will anger a population so much that their power base will shift to another…. They must find those who prevent their story line from being seriously taken at face value and take them out….

Commendation must be given to the Delaware Libertarian for following the letter of the law, but posting the warning for all to see is genius. I had not yet thought of that form of civil disobedience which is perfectly legal, ( I checked) since it is a blanket warning and is not one expressly tipping off the person that their records are being culled. I encourage all others receiving such notification to follow this defiant act. At this early stage, searching through the records of one blogger (obviously not a threat to this or any other nation, but equally obviously a threat to an already very dead political movement within this nation), may be legal, but is very hard to justify politically. Now is the time to push back, and not wait until after Israel bombs Iran and we go into Emergency Powers……

But running scared is the opposite of what we bloggers do. If you have ever trained as a United States Marine, you know that when you hear enemy fire, you race hell bent towards it… So that is what we are doing…. Causalities are a cost of doing battle with evil… To this poor soul, violating the laws of the Constitution of the United States, is about as close to treason and evil as anyone can get…..

Thanks Steve for finding that solution… Of course if it was done as a “punk”, it worked well enough so that we have acquired a defense against a Department of Homeland Security staffed only by sick Republicans….. if everyone posts a similar notice we can show the world that within our own country, our freedom is under attack…..

Joe M of Merit Bound Alley comes out of his two month sabbatical, no doubt, because of the hostility given to his view posted in Delaware Liberal‘s comment section regarding the pope. He applies scientific principals to the Catholic position, and proves that the church’s stand on this issue, is, if not completely unsound, still rather controversial.

Now on a lighter note… much needed I think after that…… Ok…we had our food critics….we had a movie critic…. and now, (drumroll please) from lower Delaware, we get our automotive critic. Mike Mahaffie has left the hybrid community. “What? No more mileage posts?” Gone is the Prius. Mike’s Musing‘s author has settled on a new Scion as his next best thing…..Being familiar with anime artistry, I laughed at his quote….”The styling is sharp; a colleague described the front view today as like a Japanese anime character. I can see that.” if needing a good game of golf to relax, you can find it here…. But making vehicle changes is not the only change his blog has undergone… the blog itself has received some major housekeeping….

Last but not least, as he prepares for Thursday’s Drinking Liberally accompanied by the sideshow of choosing Delaware’s Hottest Blogger, Tommywonk is getting his writing ready for the big time of national politics in Denver…. His three posts about Obama, naturally are sandwiched between three posts about energy…… Obviously Christine’s illogogy has gotten his dander up a little, as she did mine….. To paraphrase Dusty’s admonition to Bill, the tornado chaser in the 90’s thriller...Twister…. “(She)’s gonna rue the day (she) goes up against “The Extreme.” Better give it up Christine O’Donnel, challenger to Joe Biden’s Senate seat,…. By going against Tommywonk, you are simply competing out of your league………..

So you see…. we are all fragments… our blogosphere has lost its cohesiveness…. A vast pit of randomness is what we have become, disconnected, diverse, looking away from each other and chasing our own rainbows…

Which reminds me to take off my hat and give David Anderson a deep bow of respect for deciding to make a difference by running for office... Watching David’s writing change over the last two years, has been a pleasure. It’s been a while now, since he has started writing from his own heart, instead of his party’s standard talking points. I’m thankful for the insights which his view has provided, some of which have grounded my own views with a deeper truth… I know he ran before. But based solely on his writing, this time in my heart, I believe he is ready to do what is needed for his constituents, and not follow what is asked of by his party’s higher up’s. Thumbs up, David. You represent us all. Make us proud……

So fragments we collectively are.. and you know… as I processed all this information, I realize that being fragmented so is not all that bad, as you too can now see by this rather lengthy, exhaustive post…

Unless, of course, the economy has dealt you a blow. Unless, of course, you are desperately trying to make ends meet with no steady stream of finances. Unless, of course, by this time all you have left is fragments…. and it shows up in your writing style…. because that is how your life………………… is.

Outside The Perimeter: HCR38 Edition

Courtesy of Department of Defense

The most notable event that took place in our recent blogosphere, was the unceremonious “fuck you, assholes” sent by the Delaware House of Representatives (25 to 11) to those turds in the Senate, who are, and have been for too long,….. clogging up the plumbing of good government. By now, all should know that Charlie Copeland, Harris McDowell, Tony DeLuca, and Thurman Adams, are impersonating the Four Whoresmen (sp?) of the Apocalypse, responsible for keeping Delaware from becoming anything more modern than…………a feudal government.

Gloom and Doom opened the morning of the tenth. The News Journal and WDEL both took the fake, went chasing after a foul ball, and ran squarely into the right field fence. Anyone reading past the headlines would have instantly realized that something was wrong, There was nothing lurking in the background to back the headlines. It was a rumor gone wild. Someone had whispered that the wind farm was in mortal danger.

“What?” “The wind farm is in danger?” “Oh, No!”……..

But no report was out, said both news sources, but fortunately for us, four senators were squealing to the press about the issue.

What? Four Senators? Could it be?……Were we about to see the New Age reincarnation of the four Whoresmen of the Apocalypse? Was Armageddon just around the corner?

The News Journal named no names but gave background quotes from 4 sources…..Can we guess? “Desk Drawer” Adams? Harris McDowell? Tony DeLuca? Charlie Copeland? My………………………..how did you know? What amazing powers of prognostication you all possess! (That could, in part, be why you are bloggers).

So as we listened to Karen Petersen stammer from having been aroused too early in the morning (session went late the night before), things didn’t sound so good, Especially everywhere one turned, something was being said about the end of the windfarm……..

But those of us in the know, saw it as a concerted effort by four people. A quick look at the math, leaves 783,596 Delawareans still unaccounted for.

Any basketball team losing 4 to 783,596, would never be considered, even by its most ardent believers, as sitting on the edge of an upset!…………Some of us are wondering why those within the media, who should be immune to this type of fake out, were so gullibly sucked in……..

Tommywonk set them straight on Loudell’s Noontime broadcast, notable for being the first guest in recent memory, that Loudell has allowed to go over his time limit, during an interview without pulling the plug…….. Meanwhile, down south, Maria Evans was filtering through the News Journal story as well.

This flap had occurred just on the toes of Delmarva releasing their on shore prices for renewable wind energy. Or lets say they issues a perspective…..a rosy perspective…..an almost too rosy of a perspective to be taken with a grain of salt………This was quickly debunked by several of Delawares bloggers as purporting to buy wind energy from windmills whose building rights on the tops of mountains, were not even proposed?

And then, HCR 38 went to a vote. Tommy has the scoop on how it happened. as well as does John Kowalko. It came out………… in favor of Bluewater Wind by a vote 25 to 11. Almost all of the 11 came from Sussex County, and were Republican……..Looks like no help will be forthcoming from Dave for these notorious bashers of Dave Burris and backers of John Atkins. Sussex County is wind country. Don’t believe me? Just ask Lynn Bullock?

There is no doubt that Harris McDowell is tearing up all of the fabric of compromise within the second smallest state, in his all out scorched earth attempt to kick out Bluewater Wind.

Dana at Delaware Watch, sings the praise of one committed Legislator, intent on working for the people of his district, unlike his compatriots in the Senate, who have sold their people “out”. That’s the problem with keeping politicians in office too long. It is only inevitable that they eventually, they spoil like a ripe papaya

There has been a surge of spirit among those willing to take on the sad state of affairs known normally as Delaware Politics. Strange events are occurring. People are not willing to sit back and just take it anymore. Many will wonder where this spirit is coming from, and why it suddenly manifests itself among us……..But some of us know exactly from where it comes ….and will fight to keep that free spirit alive.

Delaware Politics.Net has absolutely nothing on Bluewater Wind this past week. Too occupied with “being bitter” and like the rest of us, they are nostalgic for 1999. When Republicans start fondly reminiscing about 8th year of a Democratic president, during the middle of the 8th year of a Republican one, you know something has broken down somewhere in their philosophy.

However all friendly kidding aside, they, along with JTTR, and Rick Jensen, are taking on the 10% cuts being forced upon our educational departments. This is an issue. Schools are being asked to give back money as well as every other state government entity. Dave asks if that is fair? Is it the best option on the table? Dana shows us where that money is going to. Take it from the schools and give it to………….Kilroy has a better answer…..Translate that feeling into action……Steve Newton takes the message directly to the source. Obviously our soon-to-be-retired Governor, having heard Allan Loudell who seems to be the only one mentioning the catastrophic food shortages, (that quite possibly has the potential to change our global political landscapes relatively soon), is worried that in her retirement, she will run out of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Stay tuned for a photochop of Minner enjoying her retirement dinner, with a twenty years stash stored behind her. Those of you who are parents, get yourselves ready for conversations such as this: “Dad,” “Yes, son,” “Why did you let the governor eat up all our school’s money?” If you are prepared, your answer should go like this……”Well, once upon a time…..It all started off when four people got together, and all of them had funny names. Their names were Tony “On The Take” DeLuca, Charlie “No Wind Here” Copeland, Harris “I love Delmarva” McDowell, and “Desk Drawer Adams”…………………” (more to come later)

From the Libertarian side of things, Shirley shows us that there are other people in this world who also have brains, balls, and the know-how to use both, other than Tyler Nixon. Figures this link would come from the “Live Free or Die” State. What is it with small states having the most vocal Libertarian contingents?

Thank heavens some one is finally getting wise.What a beautiful day

Bet it wasn’t a beautiful day for these people in Berks County, PA. (There is a highly recommended YouTube clip in this post’s comment section.) Obviously some laws are still subjective when it comes time to met out their punishments……

Alan Coffey lays the Republican hypocrisy right on the line with this post. Don’t forget, up until just last November, we were going to bomb them…….

Delaware Libertarian has a short post (Yes Duffy! It’s true……Check it out… 🙂 ) about how an above mentioned controversy will impact our local politics. Try as you may to simplify and reduce it further, it can’t be done……..

Along the same lines…..Duffy has some similar advice about finding simple solutions to big problems: always check the registry, and then, check it again………………..Duffy’s stories always make me feel human again; its nice to know I am not the only one upon who life is not always smiling….

On a more serious note, Duffy brings home just exactly what America is all about. Honor, Duty, and the willingness to sacrifice for a greater cause. Irregardless on how you feel about the war, you can feel nothing but pride after reading this tribute…….It infuriates me that back home, in Dover, we are forced to deal with those pursuing a narrow,specific, personal agenda, focused only on themselves and the accumulation of their own wealth, with not even a smidgen of responsibility to those who will suffer because of their actions.

What a huge difference between our military heroes, and those politicians who stay at home……………..

People ask me if I am worried…….I tell them no, I had an omen that in this week something great would happen……I was right. It did. Blue bug eyed aliens were discovered in and around Sussex County (must see picture). And after some trouble with a blood clot, Mahaffie is now in New Orleans, giving us a first hand look at the aftermath of Katrina. I was relieved to see the Cafe du Monde was still around with their awesome beignets. I hope he gets a chance to ferry over to Algiers, but his schedule may be a little too tight…….I’m still waiting for him to show up at the South Pole, to check out the accuracy of his GPS device. 🙂

And we need to keep Joe M. close to our hearts and in our prayers. Anytime one of us goes silent, I start to worry.

But a real event spinning off one of JTTR’s posts had be worried even more. Although I am fond of his analysis covering his taste in music, he did exceptionally well in reviewing this product. I was able to fight the power of suggestion for twenty one minutes before heading out to the nearest 24 hour location…………only to find, that because of the slowness of the economy, it had cut back its hours…….stranding me unfulfilled with JTTR‘s words echoing though my head….(By the way, his review is on target, and the purchase is worth the effort…) His mirror image, has finished his four years and like everyone who has traveled that path, looks backwards and says ………………..”ok”.

Matt Marshall is on TV. No not like water on Mars, this is the real thing. Those who follow DWA can also get a glimpse of the always articulate, and eloquent Dominique…..
But even bigger news it how Gene Reed, insurance commissioner gets his money……..and how the News Journal tried to hide it and cover it up……Just imagine the Pottersville this state would be in if it weren’t for us bloggers?

The Colossus of Rhodey points out that not all stupidity lies with our administration. The University of Delaware is getting ready for another national firestorm, especially during an election year, by putting this up for all to see….”The University of Delaware has revised a speech code that used to classify “[a]ny instance that is perceived by those involved as being racist, sexist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, or otherwise oppressive” as an emergency equal to fire, suicide attempts, and alcohol overdose.” Hmmm…a little hyperbole we have there, perhaps? Perhaps the University of Delaware’s officials should watch Battlestar Galactica to learn how one deals with those having different viewpoints, even if that person is yourself. I’m telling you. It’s the best show on television.

Finally full circle back to Bluewater Wind. Jason at Delaware Liberal shows us that as we squabble away valuable time arguing with, instead of simply bypassing one Harris McDowell, the rest of the world is moving forward with Offshore wind very quickly. We have just days before the announcement that the East Coast Hub of Offshore Wind development, will no longer be in Delaware. Because we (1st Senatoral District, Wilmington) elect stupid asses to our Legislature.

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The Cataclysmic Cost of Rising Seas

You may have read this from the Federal Report titled “The Cost of Holding Back the Sea.” The following shows us the national cost of doing just that. These costs are adjusted for a 1 meter rise.

Previous studies suggest that the expected global warming from the greenhouse effect could raise sea level 50 to 200 centimeters (2 to 7 feet) in the next century. This article presents the first nationwide assessment of the primary impacts of such a rise on the United States: (1) the cost of protecting ocean resort communities by pumping sand onto beaches and gradually raising barrier islands in place; (2) the cost of protecting developed areas along sheltered waters through the use of levees (dikes) and bulkheads; and (3) the loss of coastal wetlands and undeveloped lowlands. The total cost for a one meter rise would be $270-475 billion, ignoring future development.

We estimate that if no measures are taken to hold back the sea, a one meter rise in sea level would inundate 14,000 square miles, with wet and dry land each accounting for about half the loss. The 1500 square kilometers (600-700 square miles) of densely developed coastal lowlands could be protected for approximately one to two thousand dollars per year for a typical coastal lot. Given high coastal property values, holding back the sea would probably be cost-effective.

The environmental consequences of doing so, however, may not be acceptable. Although the most common engineering solution for protecting the ocean coast–pumping sand–would allow us to keep our beaches, levees and bulkheads along sheltered waters would gradually eliminate most of the nation’s wetland shorelines. To ensure the long-term survival of coastal wetlands, federal and state environmental agencies should begin to lay the groundwork for a gradual abandonment of coastal lowlands as sea level rises

The report comes with his warning.

“Sea level rise is an urgent issue for coastal environmental planners for the very reason that it lacks urgency for some directors of public works. If state and local governments fail to develop plans to protect the coastal environment as the sea rises, the public will almost certainly call upon engineers to protect their homes in the years to come.”

So as we ignore the potential of having windmills blowing off our east side, we will be asked to pay increasingly more to fight back the sea. All this at a time when according to this man, we can least afford it.

As far as I know no one yet has tried to account for the additional cost required to build ourselves above oblivion, but in all fairness, that should be added to the Delmarva side of the ledger when it comes to debating just how much this proposed Wind Farm will cost us.

The answer…….ironically comes in the form of another question:

How much will NOT building an offshore wind farm……cost us?
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OOGA, OOGA, OOGA

Open government. Now that’s a New Year’s Resolution I could get behind….Wouldn’t it be nice if all dealings between cronies were open for all to see and hold those perpetrators accountable?

For one, I would like to see how Russ Larson feels he represents the entire legislature by voting down Bluewater wind, an event that was supported twenty to one by Delawareans. Surely his vote does not represent the entire legislature. It must represent just a few who are in Delmarva’s pocket. Come on now….twenty to one and you are going to vote it down. Something is not right.

For two, I would like to see how many bills are gathering dust in Thurman Adam’s (D-Bridgeville) Senate drawer. Again the question needs asked, when a majority of Delawareans want a bill to be passed, and it can’t by a silly rule, what kind of government is that? Communist I say. Only a communost would stick a bill in a drawer never to be voted on…Communists? Weren’t they the enemies of the United States at one time or another? Apparently now they run our legislature.

Third, I would like to know which corporation supports which bill. If I disagree with their position, I and my friends certainly should be allowed to protest its actions by boycotting its products. We already know who the lobbiest are, they have to sign up. We just can’t drop in and see them writing out the bills for lazy representatives, gearing up support for lazy representatives, and throwing wild parties for the lazy representatives….

Common sense tells us why our government should be open. Common sense also makes it quite understandable why the powers-that-be, fight so hard to keep things as they are. They are afraid that they will be exposed as crooks. The only other reason one can assume, is that eventually we will find out just how little they know about what they are doing……

Comment overheard in the alcove at Legislative Hall:

“I’m confused. I just don’t know what to do.”

Here you go, here is a list of all the votes up today. Just do what the list says and vote yes or no….

Oh, thank you sooooo much. You’re an angel.

Obviously if the rest of the public was aware of that Senator’s performance, things would change…..

We who support open government, think they will change for the better. Those that are corrupt, think open government will change things for the worst.

You can make your voice heard at the “ooga ooga ooga” educational event at legislative hall on opening day next Tuesday January 8th around 2 pm. “Ooga, ooga, ooga,” sounds like a Model T car horn doesn’t it? That is how far behind the times our current Senate rules are. They are as old as a Model T Ford….

But “ooga” is really an anocrym for “Open Our General Assembly”

On Tuesday, show your representive in person, that this time, you will not take NO as an answer. After all it is your money they throw away. You’ve got a right to know who is spending it and where it is going……………………..

See you there. Ooga ooga ooga

Copeland’s Strategy

Nancy informs us that the purpose of the infamous letter sent to Larson, ordering him to report back to Copeland so he may be instructed to vote the way Copeland wants him to, was to provide a check and a balance to this energy generative process. This would actually be a good tactic, if it were some sneaky land grab (eminent domain?) being performed in the darkness without oversight. But that is exactly what this is not.

What we are witnessing as we go forward with the Blue Water Wind proposal, is an extremely rare case where the People’s will, though public hearings and wide public support, actually triumphs over those wills of the special interests, in an event that has profound economic implication for every Delawarean man, woman, and child…..

Like roaches finding themselves exposed by the flick of a switch, the special interests are scurrying for cover in the light of public scrutiny. Imagine to your surprise, if in your kitchen, one roach stood up to you and said……”Aw, don’t mind us, ma’am………We were just checking your room over to insure it was immaculately clean. We are here to help you.”

If you were a columnist and worked for the News Journal, you just might believe that little bugger. But most discerning minds would remain skeptical. As equally skeptical as if they heard this from a representative ordering the controller to get his marching orders from him……..

“”We ought to let private investors compete against one another to get us the best price point and price stability. I think the marketplace would do that better than some regulatory regime,” Copeland said. He said he wants to make sure low-income residents can afford wind power.”

Copeland doesn’t know what he is talking about. Notice how his statements of fact always begin with the phrase “I think”? Well, I hate to break to you Charlie, but we really do not care WHAT YOU THINK. We care what the evidence supports. Every criminal says he is innocent. But if the preponderance of the evidence is against him, than twelve impartial jurors pronounce him guilty…..

Let us examine evidence that supports his following statement.

“I think the marketplace would do that better than some regulatory regime,”

Let’s go personal…I won’t answer this one;….it is for you the reader to decide…..Do you prefer the Charlie Copeland’s vision of deregulated, marketplace driven rates we pay today, or the regulated rates that existed before May 2006? Be honest now…

Secondly, lets see what deregulation has done next door in Maryland. Remember “deregulation” is Copeland’s mantra. For those of you who do not know, Maryland pulled a Delaware on June 1st, 2007 and their rates jumped 50%. (Can anyone tell me why, since we buy off the same grid, that Delmarva passed on to us a 60% increase, and Maryland only pays 50%? Who is pocketing the extra 10%? …….Charlie???) Here is a nice page provided by the Baltimore Sun with 37 links that give one a good overview of how Copeland’s type of deregulation is faring in actual practice. Don’t take my word for it, here are a few examples. I dare you to find anyone over there right now who echoes, “”I think the marketplace would do that better than some regulatory regime.”

“Gov. Martin O’Malley asked the Public Service Commission yesterday to investigate whether the wholesale rates for electricity in Maryland exceed federal standards for reasonableness, echoing an action in Illinois that helped lead to a $1 billion rate rebate for customers there”

Why did Copeland not write this type of a letter if he were truly concerned about poor persons affording electricity, especially since it was pointed out last May that Delmarva was charging far more than surrounding states? Instead he attacks the one hope that Delaware’s citizens have, to return energy prices back to normalcy? Hmmm. Is he really concerned about Delaware’s citizens?

Here is another one, this one affecting Pepco, the holding company of Delmarva Power.

“Gov. Martin O’Malley said yesterday that eliminating the link between power companies’ profits and the amount of energy they distribute – a plan recently approved for Pepco, the Washington-area utility – could be one of the most effective strategies for reducing electricity bills across Maryland”

It becomes obvious that Delmarva, due precisely to the weak regulatory power of this state, is the profit cash cow for the entire Pepco holding company, who is being severly regulated elsewhere to charge less then excessive rates to our neighbors. We pay higher rates then most, solely to increase Pepco’s profit margins, and help pay for executives bonuses.

Another commentary:

Gov. Martin O’Malley, questioning whether the relationship between BGE and its corporate parent has unfairly contributed to higher electric rates, has asked the Public Service Commission to hold expedited hearings on whether the company should be broken up and whether the utility’s 1.1 million customers should receive rebates.

I am really beginning to like this guy. I know Minner has no balls, but someone in this state could step up, don’t you think? Thank heavens we have John Kowolko.

Finally, in the argument between which is better, a regulated utility or one operating independently to maximize its profit, comes this nugget:

“As a public utility, Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. is obligated to get the lowest price possible for customers. By contrast, its corporate owner, Constellation Energy Group, has a duty to stockholders to sell the power it produces for as much as it can get.”

This is the battle we face. 94 percent of Delaware wants to go forward with wind to get the lowest price possible for customers, especially if health, environmental, and insurance costs are factored in to the equation. Charlie Copeland wants to scuttle the Blue Water Wind proposal so that his client, Delmarva, can sell the power it produces for AS MUCH AS IT CAN.

So there you have it. In Charlie’s own words, he thinks “I think the marketplace would do that better than some regulatory regime.”

Right Charlie, you still don’t get it. We are concerned with OUR interests, not Delmarva’s. Duh.

Say It Isn’t So?

Charlie Copeland’s and Harris McDowells famous antiwind letter was written on September 12.

On September 30th, GM announce they had no plans for production at the Boxwood plant.

Connection?

No, but energy costs are a clear cost of business.  If the Blue Water Wind package dies on the birthing table, then all electric rate for businesses wanting to move into Delaware, will be higher than those in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia.  So why would a business move here?

However, if the Blue Water Wind deal goes through with no constraints, then our elecricity costs become one of the lowest in the nation.  Why would a business not want to move here?

Delaware needs to position itself competitively against all other locations.  We have market location to our advantage.  We have real estate costs to our advantage.  We have educational resources,  University of Delaware, to our advantage.  We have quality of life, Rehoboth Beach, to our advantage.  What we do not have currently, is cheap energy.  Delmarva buys the same energy off the grid like every other state, and charges us way too much for it.

Here is why Chrysler is leaving.  Here is why GM is leaving……..You can’t make money in Delaware.

Were Delaware to have the nation’s first giant windfarm,  pumping kilowatts at a low 2.3 cents cost,  those dynamics could change.  Just bringing the wind farm to Delaware would pump a much needed 1.5 billion into our local economy.   Consistently providing cheap energy, would provide another.

It is against this backdrop that one must shake ones head at Copeland & Other’s attempt to stop Blue Water Wind from going through.  Why would any elected official, want so badly to screw Delaware over?

If Delaware’s economy collapses, it will stem solely from this group of legislators who have one loyalty and one loyalty only.  Delmarva.

Fortunately they are a small group.  They can be overruled, voted out, and rendered quite insignificant.

What is significant, is whether we can get Blue Water Wind on line in time to keep GM and Chrysler from leaving for good.

The PSC should again give the public an opportunity to voice their opinion……and just like the last hearings in spring 07, thousands of the public will do so!  After that, who gives a damn what Copeland & Co.  thinks……..

We need to move fast before Copeland, McDowell, Hocker, Lavelle, Plant, Venables, and Valihura, cause another large business to pull up stakes and leave………………

GET OFF THE ROAD, …….QUICK!!!

Ring wraiths have invaded Delaware. They were seen trying to stop the benefits from Blue Water’s Wind farm from ever reaching the hard working citizens of Delaware.

They came to kill the windfarm, which will drop and keep Delaware’s price for electricity at roughly 10 cents a killowatt hour for the next twenty five years, instead of the 18 to 28 cents that our neighbors will have to fork out……..They rode in to do so because their client, Delmarva Power, the same entity you now pay 60% more for your services, will stand to take exponentially much more from your checkbook if they charge you their markup on a fluctuating 28 cents, instead of the cooly negotiated 10 cents…..That’s it.

If you do not know what a ring wraith is, research it. I am under the assumption that they are common folklore. Also should you see any of ring wraiths approaching you, follow the advice of Frodo Baggins, and get off the road! Now!.

Following in the footsteps of the FBI, a Most Wanted Identification List is in order. To assist in rapid identification, here is what you need to look for……Do not allow them near your money….they are extremely dangerous………

Harris McDowell III

Charlie Copeland

Gregory Lavelle                           Gerald Hocker

Rep. Hazel Plant

Should you see any of these on the street. Warn others to hide immediately. Hint: You only get four seconds warning with a distortion of space and time before they appear through the portal.

They are not human. They are bound by oath to their master. They care not one iota whether you can pay these high prices or not. They are controlled by Delmarva. Fear these few….They stop at nothing to keep you from paying much less for your electricity.

Remember their faces…..They want to triple (28 cents) your electric bills!

To fight them effectively, go here.
Everything you need is there……..Don’t keep this to yourself, tell your neighbors…….

Poised to Destroy Delaware

Delaware’s number one lobbyist, Charlie Copeland, does not believe in Global Warming. To him it is just some mumbo jumbo pattering designed to steal profits from his number one client, Delmarva Power. Since Charlie believes it, it must be so. Since when has a Dupont ever been wrong in Delaware?

Let us look at what little we know of Global warming. Let us see if those liberal detractors of Delmarva Power have any evidence supporting their lovely wind farm?

Today there are 8 billion metric tons of carbon spewed into our atmosphere per year. That means nothing to me. What’s a metric ton? How much is too much? It would be relevant to note, that in Ike’s years, 1957, the world put out 2 billion metric tons of carbon. Ok….so we are producing carbon at a rate four times more per year, just 50 years later? What does that mean in terms I can understand?

Good question. Let’s go small.

Throughout most of the history of man, carbon in the air, hung at 280 parts per million. When we started burning coal, gas, and oil for our energy it started to rise. In 1957 it hung around the 315 level. It is now at 380 and is increasing by 2ppm annually. Now if you think of a million then an additional 65 ppm doesn’t sound like much…….. but it turns out that the watt of heat that that subtle change traps per square meter of the earth’s surface, times the immense number of square meters covering the planet, creates a big number…… enough to raise the temperature 1 degree already.

One degree! Is that all? With all that liberal talk and Gore(y) movies of rising oceans, you would have thought the world was ending…..One degree, There is no way I am changing my energy habits for one measly degree, no way, no how……..

But that one degree over fifty years so far has set everything frozen to start melting. It has changed seasons, and growing patterns, it has set the sea to rising…… all that from one degree?

Alas, the genie is out of the bag. No matter what we do, global warming will increase for now. The question is how much, by our actions, will it increase before it levels off and starts to drop? Apparently our task is rather boring; it is to contain the damage and keep thing from getting out of control. But exactly where, at what point, does it suddenly go out of control? Until recently we had no way of guessing where global warming would reach a critical point.

The standard consensus is that around 450 ppm is where things heat up real quick. That is 70 more ppm and is a goal we are estimated to hit around thirty years from now……. At 450 ppm, Greenland and Antarctica’s icecaps melt and seas swell catastrophically. So we got some time left…..so what do we do with it?

So far only the Europeans and Japanese have tried to trim their carbon emissions and it looks like that they will not even meet their own modest targets. The genie is definitely out of the bottle. So dependent on Carbon are we, that weaning ourselves from its mixture, seems now only a remote possibility. The US, China, and India, will all be producing much more carbon in ten years, than they currently do today……….

The one answer, the only way for the oceans to stay level, is for the technologically superior nations to cut back drastically, then transfer their technology to developing countries as soon as possible. But are they even capable of such sacrifices?

Every clarion call rolls out a new technology. Hydrogen is the savior; no it is nuclear; no it is ethanol; no it is solar; no it wind………In essence not one of these technologies can single handedly make the dents in carbon usage we need……

Three years ago a Princeton team, just up the road, consisting of Stephan Pacala and Robert Socolow published in Science a paper that gave us 15 wedges which we could choose to minimize carbon warming. Sort of a smörgåsbord of ideas from which we could mix and match and reach partial, if not all reduction to our global warming. Here they are:

1) Improve fuel economy in all cars on the road to 60 mph.

2) Reduce miles traveled by car per year from 10,000 to 5,000.

3) Increase electrical effieicncy in heating, cooling, lighting, appliances by 25% .

4) Raise coal power plant efficiency to 80% up from 40 %.

5) Sequester carbon from coal fired and gas fired power plants.

6) Use capture systems at coal power plants to capture hydrogen to be used in electric fuel cells cars.

7) Use capture systems at coal plants to make diesel fuel from coal residue.

8. Replace 1400 coal fired power plants with natural gas fired ones.

9) Displace coal by increasing nuclear power generation to three times its current rate.

10) Increase wind power to 25 times its current capacity.

11) Increase solar power to 700 times current capacity.

12) Increase wind power to 50 times its current capacity to generate hydrogen for fuel celled cars.

13) Increase ethanol production 50 times its current capacity, requiring 1/6 of the worlds cropland.

14) Stop all deforestation

15) Expand conservation tillage to all cropland. Normal plowing releases carbon by speeding decomposition of organic matter.

We are currently at 380 ppm. Hell begins to be real at 450 ppm. We have fifteen options before us….What do we do?

Obviously we have three pursuits. We can do nothing and let ppm climb. We can employ Draconian measures and try to hold the line steady at 8 metric tons a year, or we can use worse than Draconian measures and try reducing the the amount of carbon we are exhaling.

If we do nothing, then by 2057 we will stand at 800 ppm and witness a global temperature 9 degree F higher than what we experience now. If we implement 8 of the wedges mentioned above, and we hold emissions at todays rate, then over the next fifty years we will sit at 525 ppm and have a temperature increase of a quaint 5.4 degrees F. But if we chose to reduce emissions by half over the next 50 years and cutting 4 more wedges, then in 50 years we will sit at the 450 ppm threshold with only a 3.6 degree increase in global temperature. Remember, we said the 450 level was the edge where the big “things” started to happen.

So here is the scary truth. Even if we cut our emissions in half during the next 50 years, and produce only 4 billion metric tons of carbon a year by 2057, instead of today’s 8, we will still sit on the 450 ppm threshold and be sweating under climatic changes of 3.5 degrees F. Remember all the changes we have experienced so far, have come from a measly one degree increase of global temperature.

So our children will never see the snows of Kilimanjaro. They will wonder how Glacier National Park ever got its name…….But if we try absolutely everything possibly to stem the rise of carbon into the air, it is just possible that our children may still get to know Rehoboth Beach, which without our help, is due to submerge under 20 feet of seawater.

Therefore it stands that anyone who stands in the way of moving Delaware forwards to a less carbon energy diet, is putting our state’s physical geography in danger. The sooner Blue Water Wind goes on line, the less carbon our electrical usage puts into the air. We apparently do not have time to lose.

If the delaying tactics of Gary Stockbridge and his chief lobbyist Charlie Copeland, set back Blue Water Wind of one or two years, than the whole planet hangs in balance…..literally.

Perhaps it is time for a new personification of evil in this post modern world………… If we do, then it is a good bet that anyone who blocks wind power from coming to Delaware, would certainly be a good candidate for taking that position on………….

And as future waves come crashing through Mike Castle’s Rehoboth residence, one can almost hear his ghostly murmur, in that special tone of his……………….”Thanks Charlie…….”

Ok, So What’s This New Deal About Wind?

Last February, as the wind movement was picking up steam, Charlie Copeland made a strange statement supporting Delmarva power. Due to the public outcry at the time, he pulled back into his shell, and has been curled up there until now.

Sensing that it again was safe to stick his head out, he and a group of fellow legislators often seen with ring-in-nose tied to Delmarva’s Gary Stockbridge, have again tried to disrupt Delaware’s quest for energy independence. In a letter to Russel Larson, who serves as comptroller general, Copeland tries to intimidate with the following words. Pay attention to the tone:

that before you cast a final vote binding the GENERAL ASSEMBLY, you are obligated to return to the GENERAL ASSEMBLY for instructions as to how the GENERAL ASSEMBLY wishes to vote on the matter in question.

Sounds reasonable, so let is see what the law says, you know, House Bill No. 6, that I believe has Harris McDowell’s name on the sponsor list…..Fancy that.

So what exactly did the General Assembly pass into law that fateful day when they voted for House Bill No. 6 and started us down the hopeful path to a Blue Water Wind Farm off Rehoboth Beach?

Here is a copy for those purists who enjoy following along.

In my search I found absolutely no explicit instructions resembling those mentioned in the letter. In fact, the letter itself may be illegal because in itself, it violates the spirit of the law that was passed by a majority of the General Assembly. I certainly do not expect bumbling legislators to be held accountable for trying various options, (that is often what we ask them to do), but should they continue to attempt work against letter of the law, there is excellent ground for those forces supporting Blue Water Wind, to file a lawsuit restraining those perpetrators from doing so.

The law is clear. All power was given to the Public Service Commission to make the necessary actions. The General Assembly, almost acted as if it did not trust its own various elements of its own body, once the process was begun. The General Assembly passed the bill, and then washed its hands right afterwards. From the language of the Bill, it is quite clear that there was to be no wiggle room for lobbyists, at some future date, to change at whim this bill, once it had passed both houses and been signed into law by the governor…..

In Section 6, we see this:

(b) Subject to the approval of the Commission, the Standard Offer Service Provider to meet its electric supply requirements shall have the ability to:

“(1) enter into short- and long-term contracts for the procurement of power necessary to serve its customers; (2) own and operate facilities for the generation of electric power; (3) build generation and transmission facilities (subject to any other requirements in any other section of the Delaware Code regarding siting, etc.) (4) make investments in Demand-Side resources, and (5) take any other Commission-approved action to diversify their retail load. “

Obviously the same power that the commission holds over Delmarva in controlling its rates, also was intended to apply in the search for alternative sources of electrical generation.

Here is how one aspect of rate determination will be handled by the Public Service Commission:

“the Commission shall hold an evidentiary hearing on DP&L’s request and shall approve the request if the Commission finds that such action is in the public interest. If the Commission approves such a request, the Commission shall review all reasonable incurred costs of the contracts, facilities or programs in accordance with Chapter 1, Subchapter 3 of this Title. Costs from these projects which have been approved by the Commission shall be included in Standard Offer Service rates.”

So sets up this next statement. Obviously the crafters of the House Bill 6 and all those that enacted it into law, intended the Public Service Commission to independently search, find, explore, publicize, vet, and decide what was best for the citizens of Delaware. Here is the proof:

“3. The Commission shall have the authority to promulgate any rules and regulations it deems necessary to accomplish the development of IRPs by DP&L.

There is no mention anywhere that anyone is:

“obligated to return to the GENERAL ASSEMBLY for instructions as to how the GENERAL ASSEMBLY wishes to vote on the matter in question. ”

As we have seen, the above statement is in direct violation of the law passed in 2006. But if one probes hard and deep enough, he comes across this one line which mentions any reporting back to any government agency other than the Public Service Commission:

“Commencing in 2009, DP&L shall submit a report to the Commission, the Governor and the General Assembly detailing their progress in implementing their IRPs.”

There you have it. The only fingerhold within this bill that Copeland and Co. have a chance to disrupt the windfarm from going forward, says specifically, “IN 2009″ and ” D,P & L” (Delmarva) shall submit a report, letting them know how they are progressing, not Russell Larson.

The Delmarva posse has been exposed by the words of House Bill 6 itself. It is now clear to all that there is no legitimacy in the blatant attempt by a disfranchised minority leader to disrupt the natural trend of events, already set in motion by “the Commission“, which was, and still is solely responsible for finding, abetting, and approving Delaware’s future energy supply.

It would certainly be fitting if Delaware’s voters would remember in 2008 exactly who tried to set up Delmarva to rape them again a second time. If “politicians” are going to act “stupid”, they should be accountable to the price, right?

For the record:

Harris B. McDowell, III
State Senate, 1st District
Robert L. Venables
State Senate, 21st District
Charles L. Copeland
State Senate, 4th District
Gregory F. Lavelle
State Representative, 11th District
Gerald W. Hocker
State Representative, 38th District
Hazel D. Plant
State Representative, 2nd District

Obviously Delaware can do better.