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stinkyboy

Plastic Santa
Jan 6, 2005
15,187
1
¡Phoenix!

Is that ONE big nostril?

Interior Secretary Gale Norton Resigns
By Edwin Chen and Tom Hamburger, Times Staff Writers
12:18 PM PST, March 10, 2006


WASHINGTON -- Gale Norton today announced her resignation as the nation's first female secretary of the Interior, ending a controversial five-year tenure at a time when the cloud of a burgeoning lobbying scandal in Washington is looming over her agency.

Her resignation is to take effect at the end of March.

Norton, 51, said she and her husband, who came here from Colorado, "hope to end up closer to the mountains we love in the West."

At the White House, President Bush in a statement hailed Norton as "a strong advocate for the wise use and protection of our nation's natural resources." (But he's a liar...)

But Norton's drive to open vast stretches of Western government lands to more energy exploration made her highly unpopular among preservationists and environmentalists. She also fervently pushed to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on Alaska's North Slope to such exploration.

Her fervor prompted some Interior Department career employees to refer to the western U.S. as "the OPEC states" because they felt pressured to approve oil and gas permits. While environmental groups today cheered her imminent departure, they hardly expected Bush to name a replacement whose views are more to their liking.

During Norton's first three years as secretary, Interior's Bureau of Land Management issued drilling permits at a record pace, increasing the number of permits by 70% since the Clinton administration.

In recent months, Norton has become linked to Washington's burgeoning lobbying scandals by her former chief deputy, Steven Griles, who was close to now-disgraced "super-lobbyist" Jack Abramoff.

A second former close Norton associate, Italia Federici, who worked with a nonprofit organization that promoted energy interests, also was linked to Abramoff. Federici helped him gain access to Griles in exchange for contributions from Indian tribes who had hired Abramoff as their lobbyist.

Abramoff has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an investigation of his connections to members of Congress and the Bush White House.

Before coming to Washington, Norton served as Colorado's attorney general.

In her letter to the president, she said Interior had "accomplished great work in the face of hurricanes, record-setting wildfires and droughts, acrimonious litigation, and expanded post 9-11 security responsibilities."

Norton also stated that the department had conserved millions of acres of public and private lands and steered the nation toward cooperative conservation by working with landowners and local groups. Under her watch, Norton said, more than 5 million acres and 10,000 miles of streams and shorelines have been restored or protected through voluntary initiatives.

Bush lauded Norton's "vision for cooperative conservation, protection and improvement of our national parks and public lands, and environmentally responsible energy development on public lands and waters."

As a result of her steward, the president said, "Americans will be able to better enjoy our great national parks and wildlife refuges for generations to come."

One leading environmental activist offered a sharply contrasting assessment.

"Gale Norton was an unpopular symbol of unpopular policies. Americans do not believe their public lands should be sold to the highest bidder, and they don't believe in privatizing their parks, forests, monuments. While the symbol of those unpopular policies may be leaving, we don't expect those unpopular policies to change," said Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club.

"Unless the Bush administration reverses direction, her replacement will merely be a different fox guarding the hen house.... It's hard to imagine that the next Interior secretary will be allowed to promote smart energy solutions that protect sensitive lands, waters and wildlife habitat," he said.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-031006norton_lat,0,2598823.story?coll=la-home-headlines
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Norton, 51, said she and her husband, who came here from Colorado, "hope to end up closer to the mountains we love in the West."

...

But Norton's drive to open vast stretches of Western government lands to more energy exploration made her highly unpopular among preservationists and environmentalists.
How do you love Colorado and want to see it destroyed?

kthxdie
 

ragin-sagin

Monkey
Oct 2, 2003
390
0
NZ
At the White House, President Bush in a statement hailed Norton as "a strong advocate for the wise use and protection of our nation's natural resources."
Read: "gladly forsakes all natural resources"
 

F.O.G

Monkey
Feb 8, 2005
196
0
Monterey, CA
I like your way of thinking. But I do think it would be great if we just cut off OPEC for a month or two, then tell them we will only pay $30 a barrel at a fixed rate. And what is up with that lady's nose????
 

valve bouncer

Master Dildoist
Feb 11, 2002
7,843
114
Japan
F.O.G said:
I like your way of thinking. But I do think it would be great if we just cut off OPEC for a month or two, then tell them we will only pay $30 a barrel at a fixed rate. And what is up with that lady's nose????
This is a great idea actually. I'm gonna try it at all the places I shop at. "Hey f*ck you , I'm only paying half for that beer, you should be glad I come here....just remember how much I rule":rolleyes:
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
F.O.G said:
I like your way of thinking. But I do think it would be great if we just cut off OPEC for a month or two, then tell them we will only pay $30 a barrel at a fixed rate.
And when they laugh and double the price to spite us, then what?
 

Changleen

Paranoid Member
Jan 9, 2004
14,335
2,448
Hypernormality
F.O.G said:
I like your way of thinking. But I do think it would be great if we just cut off OPEC for a month or two, then tell them we will only pay $30 a barrel at a fixed rate. And what is up with that lady's nose????
The trouble is you could only cut off OPEC for a month or two maximum, and they would probably just start selling more to China. You wouldn't hurt them at all, and they'd have no reason to offer you a lower price at all. In fact they'd probably put the price up for the inconvenience.
 

BurlyShirley

Rex Grossman Will Rise Again
Jul 4, 2002
19,180
17
TN
Changleen said:
The trouble is you could only cut off OPEC for a month or two maximum, and they would probably just start selling more to China. You wouldn't hurt them at all, and they'd have no reason to offer you a lower price at all. In fact they'd probably put the price up for the inconvenience.
But we should stop being oil slaves, Im sure you agree. The method is not as important as the result. Im interested to see where this corn fuel craze goes.
 

Changleen

Paranoid Member
Jan 9, 2004
14,335
2,448
Hypernormality
narlus said:
everyone ditch their sub 20mpg vehicle and lower the heat/AC in their house. we have any starters?
I don't have central heating or AC. Of course that means I have to burn wood in a stove during the winter.
 

ohio

The Fresno Kid
Nov 26, 2001
6,649
23
SF, CA
BurlyShirley said:
Im interested to see where this corn fuel craze goes.
Nowhere. It's the corn farmer lobby's PR campaign. Methanol takes more energy to refine than it produces. It wouldn't even make money for the farmers except the government then subsidizes them for being farmers.

Huge scam. Next time you hear someone tout it as the answer to our energy problems, punch them in the neck.
 

BurlyShirley

Rex Grossman Will Rise Again
Jul 4, 2002
19,180
17
TN
ohio said:
Nowhere. It's the corn farmer lobby's PR campaign. Methanol takes more energy to refine than it produces. It wouldn't even make money for the farmers except the government then subsidizes them for being farmers.

Huge scam. Next time you hear someone tout it as the answer to our energy problems, punch them in the neck.
Not that I dont believe you, but could you direct me to such information? I could google it, but I assume you have a good source.
 

Serial Midget

Al Bundy
Jun 25, 2002
13,053
1,896
Fort of Rio Grande
narlus said:
everyone ditch their sub 20mpg vehicle and lower the heat/AC in their house. we have any starters?
I bought a cheap Chevy Aveo for a commuter last April - it didn't take long for me to get used to 36MPG. I haven't driven my 14MPG truck once this year - I should sell it. Now I want one of those new little Hondas that get 50MPG without all that hybrid crap.
 

ohio

The Fresno Kid
Nov 26, 2001
6,649
23
SF, CA
BurlyShirley said:
Not that I dont believe you, but could you direct me to such information? I could google it, but I assume you have a good source.
Best source I have handy. It's actually quite hard to google, because there are so many artciles on methanol from the US gov and farm lobby it's difficult to find an actual scientific study or academic source. This is for ethanol... i'll see if I can dig up a methanol link. The processes described are virtually identical...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050329132436.htm

edit:
This is a later, and discusses 6 different analyses, including Patzek's (linked above, and which has been criticized): http://www.i-sis.org.uk/BFOA.php
 

BurlyShirley

Rex Grossman Will Rise Again
Jul 4, 2002
19,180
17
TN
ohio said:
Best source I have handy. It's actually quite hard to google, because there are so many artciles on methanol from the US gov and farm lobby it's difficult to find an actual scientific study or academic source. This is for ethanol... i'll see if I can dig up a methanol link. The processes described are virtually identical...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050329132436.htm

edit:
This is a later, and discusses 6 different analyses, including Patzek's (linked above, and which has been criticized): http://www.i-sis.org.uk/BFOA.php
Thanks. Hard to argue those...