tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post1481268772251290827..comments2023-10-27T03:41:13.171-07:00Comments on Warning Signs: The Greens HATE OilAlan Carubahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10901162110385985193noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-40383058402371503552008-07-12T15:06:00.000-07:002008-07-12T15:06:00.000-07:00I wonder what it would take to yank the automobile...I wonder what it would take to yank the automobile and gasoline perks our House and Senate members enjoy. <BR/>Come join the hoi poloi at the gas pumps you morons. It's way past time that salaries and perks come under public scrutiny and control. Automatic annual raises should be the first thing to go.<BR/>Most everybody else in this country is paid on merit!!<BR/><BR/>PC is Thought Control<BR/>LEELee Hazelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10927859573378763829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-85834155775378442008-07-11T07:04:00.000-07:002008-07-11T07:04:00.000-07:00http://www.examiner.com/a-1482584~Slots_won_t_wrec...http://www.examiner.com/a-1482584~Slots_won_t_wreck_Maryland_s_wilderness.html<BR/><BR/>Editorial<BR/>Slots won’t wreck Maryland's wilderness<BR/>The Baltimore Examiner Newspaper<BR/>2008-07-11 <BR/><BR/>Sometimes paving a tiny part of paradise is not a bad idea. Especially when the paradise in question is a perpetual 3,000-acre black hole like Rocky Gap State Park in western Maryland.<BR/><BR/>The park is one of the five potential sites for slots if the referendum to allow them passes in November. The Sierra Club opposes the referendum because “This park is a wonderful natural resource for all Marylanders and should not be developed into a casino location under any circumstances.”<BR/><BR/>First, from financial statements, very few Marylanders currently enjoy the park, a project of the Maryland Economic Development Corporation. It’s most recent audit shows that the project was more than $31 million in the hole in 2007, up from a deficit of $22 million in 2005. Slots hold the potential to bring many new visitors to the area, increasing hikers through the quasiwilderness -- and appreciation of the state’s natural surroundings. A few extra parking lots would not cause “massive increases in rainwater runoff” nor disrupt wildlife habitats. Besides, the site already holds an underused conference center, amphitheater and hotel rooms, so the overall new building footprint will be much smaller than building from scratch.<BR/><BR/>You’d think this type of development would appeal to those concerned about ripping up pristine wilderness since it would use space already constructed in an existing mixed recreation area.<BR/><BR/>Second, at what price environmentalism? Should no development be allowed because it could potentially intrude on a few plant or animal species? In its June newsletter, the Sierra Club provides no specifics as to how the park’s wilderness would be damaged nor which species hurt. It would behoove the organization to provide case studies from other states for its members, the public and state legislators before making apocalyptic claims. At a time of rising unemployment and falling tax revenue, the state needs every penny of extra revenue it can find. In this economic environment, opposing slots because they could potentially hurt the environment is not a good enough argument to stop them.<BR/><BR/>Third, the Sierra Club’s wish may come true without any lobbying on its part. Even if the referendum passes, there is no guarantee financing will be available to build slots facilities. Credit for the gaming industry is drying up just like it has for other commercial markets, including the housing industry. And because Maryland does not allow casino gambling, its less of a draw for developers designing destination resorts.<BR/><BR/>We do not live in an environmental vacuum. Instead of opposing slots outright, the Sierra Club would make itself more useful by working with developers to promote green construction and analyzing how to best turn visitors into stewards of the wilderness. Opposing slots -- at best a fringe issue to its core mission -- only makes the group seem as if it has nothing better to do than protest for protest’s sake.<BR/>ExaminerOrtizhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13645399112366378766noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-92062211605239146422008-07-11T05:47:00.000-07:002008-07-11T05:47:00.000-07:00I doubt environmentalist groups in general can be ...I doubt environmentalist groups in general can be sued because there are so many of them, but I think you make a good point insofar as they are responsible for the loss of jobs and other economic assets through their opposition to any new energy projects.Alan Carubahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10901162110385985193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-90849603478759100922008-07-10T23:06:00.000-07:002008-07-10T23:06:00.000-07:00Why isn't there a class action suit against the en...Why isn't there a class action suit against the environmental groups to recover all the money that the poor people have lost due to the loss of oil refining and drilling during the last thirty years?BranDexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08209469772575754653noreply@blogger.com