Understandable Anger

From one high to a record low.

I had been out taking care of business that I have been neglecting during the election season. I decided to day to start at the top of the list of emails that are always waiting for me when I come back in from running about and Pat Jack's "California Sends Pickens Packing - Prop 10 Loses" was the first on the list. Man, what a bummer, but not because Jack is in any error.

Sometime ago (years, honestly) I came to the conclusion that when I got bad or negative news, it was for a purpose. I also decided that I had a God given right to be angry when I recognized that someone was trying to abuse my trust or take advantage of me for their personal gain at the expense of my dignity or integrity. It isn't a whole lot that one can do in a positive vein when this occurs, but I discovered that the one thing that can and will make a difference every time this happens to them is to limit the amount of time spent being angry.

That's right . . . you have a right to get angry but none to stay that way. It is far better to let that emotion ride and give the same amount of energy it takes to stay angry to thought in how to resolve your circumstance and adjust your relationship to the offending party(s).

With that thought in mind, I asked myself, what is our relationship to T. Boone in this effort that he invited us to be engaged in? I am sure that many of us are convinced that he has made stooges of us. He has not. Some may feel that we have been played and toyed with like innocent children lured by a pedophile's inticements. This kind of consideration brings to light an insight. This self appeasing activity isn’t against any law and there isn’t any morality standard stringent enough to restrain such aberrant behavior. It is abhorrent, isn’t it? Asking others to unify to serve and support a cause that one apparently doesn't believe in themselves.

With that out of my system, I can move forward and examine the evidence of the act that excites such negative passion. Proposition 10 was placed on the California Ballot for a reason. I won’t imply that I know the reason, but I will say that my instincts tell me that there is a clue in that fact that is fundamental to the future actions of Pickens and Honda Motor Company in the deals such as Fuelmaker.

The tune that we have been handed by Pickens & Company has lyrics of patriotism and overtones w\regards to the security of the nation, the people, your families, your future. The music is crude and irritating. It seems to be designed to be superficially pleasing but disturbingly empty in the long run. Pat Jack's questions deserve to be answered. I, for one have a very suspicious perception of kamikazes and suicide missions, so its hard for me to beleive that Prop 10 was all smoke and mirrors designed to hide a rear action move that we won't learn about till its too late.

Here are the truths;
 The nation needs to convert from fossil fuels to sustainable energy conversion technology (SECT) if it is going to kick the foreign oil addiction.
 Natural gas is the most abundant relatively clean (to petro-based) bridging fuel that can be employed in a reasonable time.
 Proposition 10 pointed up the fact that the investigation of the bridging fuels issues need to be closely examined on a state by state basis
 Past approaches to incentivizing adoption of both bridging and SECTs (solar, wave, biomass, geothermal, etc…) are going to need very close inspection before they are written into law.
 The people of California should be lauded for their quick and perceptive action to reject the bomb wrapped in swaddling cloth better known as Prop 10

Now that we know the truth, we need to determine the ramifications.

1. Pickens’s credibility is damaged, ill-reparably. What damage does this cause those of us who believe that he has sold the Plan on false pretenses?
2. Many people joined this movement based on the premises that he has a right to earn money, but how many were not aware of the Fuelmaker Deal with the overtones of foreign (Canadian & Japanese) involvements that in the past have served only the interest of corporate stakeholders?
3. If Pickens’ Plan is shut down, what happens to the 1.5MM voices that spoke up for a national energy plan?

Now is not the time for introspection, now is the time for questions that pierce the corporate veil and seek the truth of the privileges of wealth and the rights of people to share in the affluence created from the sweat of their labors. No one can tell T. Boone what to do with his money, but if he is going to do this kind of thing, he should pay a price greater than failure to succeed.

Boone owes us an apology. No, that wouldn't necessarily sooth all the anger that I see welling up over this kind of manipulation, but I for one knew that this is the way the game is played, so I am not suprised as much as I am appalled at the brazen attempt to exercise a monopoly in one of the top population states in the nations.

We won't accept monopoly anymore, Mr. Pickens. You will need to exercise a better plan to do business in the future. One that recognizes that the aspirations of more ordinary people with less flamboyant dreams are just as valid as your mega business schemes.

The people that you employ, the students that you support and the participants who attempted to establish a national debate on energy independence by signing the petition you presented to our elected offices all deserve to here you admit that the action was self-serving and not in the best interest of the general public of the nation. We need this to consider why we should continue to support your objective if it isn't going to produce a return acceptable to our sensibilities.

This is how one American feels, and I won't feel better until I here from T. Boone Pickens.

Tags: 10, apology, failure, fools, proposition

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Comment by Lou De Frog on November 8, 2008 at 5:18pm: You can not expect people to change. They don't. Things change - and no body knows that things have changed until 'the world stops'. It hasn't stopped yet for you. You still get angry because humans are humans, but Mickey - this web site did not get unplugged. Are those terrible people are still helping you - or are they just using you to entertain the troops? Come on Mickey "Pity the Fool".

Comment by ML Hayes on November 6, 2008 at 6:18pm: The politics of business isn't profit, its market share. Even if the business of politics is money, there is not even a little sympathy in me for anyone caught exercising monopolistic actions. Even in the absence of laws to prohibit a small minority from controlling such a vital national resource, the objective I ascribe to isn't to trade in one set of masters for another.

The Prop 10 effort as reported, was a power grab. It failed, enough said about that. That fact, however points to an important concept of business that has escaped perception. Private profits SHOULD BE theoretically unlimited, but in-reality regulated by the some form of governing mechanism that inhibits a return to monarchial domination. Prop 10 was one form of such control, unfortunately it was reactionary, (not proactive). My assertion is that, in America such private wealth of this kind and magnitude becomes insane when bridges are collapsing for lack of repair or replacement and people are dieing of curable ailments from lack of universal health care.

I am angry because we need a form of the effort that went into Prop 10, but not the one placed on the ballot. The same guys that dreamed up the angles to such lopsided profits for so little value and attached the same to the aspirations of over a million people; are the same guys that know the conditions of the roads and cost of health care for indigents in every precinct of every county in the nation. I hoped that was understandable.

Absolute energy independence isn't a reality that the globe can afford no matter what nation accomplishes it including and especially the United States). A totally independent state would be viewed as a threat to the rest of this planet. You can't negotiate or bargain with a nation that doesn't need anything you have to offer.

Those politics aside, the anger stems for the real and present danger to Americans by Americans in America. We won't, can't and shall not get to any form of recovery from the current economic difficulties if we are constantly saddled with ineffective securities that don't produce tangible results in terms of ecological improvements to the climate and economical occupations for our growing numbers of unemployed people. The use of securities such as those proposed in the Prop 10 are part and parcel of the mentality on Wall Street that gave us sub-prime mortgages. Just how many times do we have to go through the speculation binge before we say to those who have the where-with-all to play that game, the game is illegal in our country?

I don't see why you aren't angry. The national elections shows the degree to which so many Americans are becoming desperate. Not the individual psychosis kind of desperation but the group dementia sort that accompanies economic depression. The only know cure for the problem that has been effective in the Western world is a commitment of the government to hire and spend. This has to be conducted in collaboration with the private business community. The role of the Main Street guys like Pickens is to lead the charge on innovation and implementation of these new technologies, but not like this. If your answer is that there are no alternatives, then we are truly a sick people and in need of help. A really good incentive program produces more not less participation; and to be honest, he blew a big opportunity to bring huge numbers of supporters for the Green Energy cause by making it appear that the same old business as usual will predominate the new industry mentality.

If this continues, we'll be lucky to get anything effective done in the next two to three years and by then we will have to do the political thing all over again. That necessary chore then becomes a hopeless distraction from the search for a solution to the more important crisis, climate change.

You can't do angelic good with the left hand while committing felonious acts with the right then expect absolution based on your ability to pay for the marketing plan. That's is typically considered play God in my old neighborhood and its not very kindly looked upon. Every deed must stand on its own. Common and universal knowledge say, that no good deed shall go unpunished, so we expect some very bad deeds to slip through the cracks. This was very bad, not illegal mind you but bad form, poor taste and pathetic leadership from people who knew better but rolled the dice with our reputations.

I'd guess that the bottom line is a question that ask 'can these guys be forgiven?' I put that question behind the question of should they be allowed to continue this effort because, they are too wealthy to stop. Leadership is important to humans, why can't we find any in this country that wants to improve something for someone other than their constituency?

M.L. "Mickey" Hayes
Pickens' Plan Ambassador

Comment by Dr. Hans J. Kugler, PhD on November 5, 2008 at 9:55pm: ML:
I don't see why you are so angry! Prop. 10 was not the PICKENS PLAN; it was just a proposition that could have been written better.
The PICKENS PLAN - - even if just for the construction of the large numbers of windmills - - is still the best single plan. Building wind turbines to make 22% of US electricity - - - which frees the natural gas so that (mostly) trucks can run on it, REDUCING OIL IMPORTS IN THE AMOUNT OF 300 BILLION - - reducing our trade deficit by $ 300 billion/year (- - and also, if put into action as proposed, reducing the CO2 burden on the environment by 3 billion pounds of CO2 PER DAY.
For calculations and details, click on ElToroEXPOSED.com.