Gallons of oil leaked into the Gulf by BP: A real-time tracker

Via PBS and MyDD:

Hypnotic, isn't it?

The unforgiving minute

Organizers are hoping that 1 billion people in 81 countries will participate in Earth Hour next Saturday tonight at 8.30pm local time, turning off their lights, smartphones, and PCs for one hour to "vote Earth."

Interestingly, the Earth Hour website encourages people to live blog during the event.

Some things just satirize themselves.

Minute's up.

John McCain: The Dr. Phil of energy policy

Because when it comes to the price of oil, McCain knows it's all in you feel about it, not what it means to your household budget, the viability of your suburban community, the national economy, or our national security.

John McCain, June 2008:

Yesterday, McCain admitted that his offshore drilling proposal would probably have mostly "psychological" benefits, NBC/NJ’s Adam Aigner-Treworgy reports. At a town hall in Fresno that primarily focused on energy issues, McCain was asked a question about the price of gas and the viability of various short-term solutions.

John McCain, April 2008

"I'm very concerned about [the price of oil and gas]…. And obviously the way it's been going up is just terrible," claimed the Arizona senator.

"But I think psychologically - and a lot of our problems today, as you know, are psychological - the confidence, trust, the uncertainty about our economic future, ability to keep our own home," he added.

McCain explained that his proposal to eliminate the federal gas tax for three months would provide Americans the necessary 'psychological boost' to deal with their economic problems.

Remember that: When it comes to the problem of record oil and gas prices, John McCain thinks it's all in your head.

The unforgiving minute

(Meant to get this out Wednesday, but one thing led to another.)

Not a big Tom Friedman fan myself, but he does get off two memorable observations in his most recent column. Regarding the McCain (and, disgracefully, Clinton) proposal to cut the federal gasoline tax this summer:

This is not an energy policy. This is money laundering.

And this:

The McCain-Clinton gas holiday proposal is a perfect example of what energy expert Peter Schwartz of Global Business Network describes as the true American energy policy today: "Maximize demand, minimize supply and buy the rest from the people who hate us the most."

Minute's up.


[Want to share/recommend this post to others? Click the Digg button below.]

Why is this man smiling?

Here's a hint:

Oil Hits $100 a Barrel for the First Time

Oil prices reached the symbolic level of $100 a barrel for the first time on Wednesday, a long-awaited milestone in an era of rapidly escalating energy demand.

Crude oil futures for February delivery hit $100 on the New York Mercantile Exchange shortly after noon New York time, before falling back slightly. Oil prices, which had fallen to a low of $50 a barrel at the beginning of 2007, have quadrupled since 2003.[…]

Oil is now within reach of its historic inflation-adjusted high reached in April 1980 in the aftermath of the Iranian revolution when oil prices jumped to the equivalent of $102.81 a barrel in today’s money.

"Quadrupled since 2003." Wow. Who could have seen that coming?

(Image via Dedicated Doorknob.)

On the west coast being ahead of the curve

Fascinating graph and rib-elbowing commentary at Coeruleus, regarding energy consumption on red states versus blue states.