The mainstream press delights in exposing conservative Republicans who have conflicts of interest or are hypocritical in any way. And granted, there have been a number of them, most notably former Congressman Duke Cunningham of California, who now resides in the big house for taking bribes from defense contractors. Former Vice President Dick Cheney, not in Cunningham's corrupt league, was always a liberal pinata due to his former employment with Halliburton, a major contractor in Iraq. (He divested himself of Halliburton stock upon taking office in 2001, but retained stock options).
Forgive me, then, for doing what the lamestream press won't do: point out the duplicity from the likes of greenhouse gasbag Al Gore, wind generator king T. Boone Pickens, and President Obama himself.
Al Gore, the Chicken Little of global warming, is a media darling, and adored by European leftists. But his act has really grown old in the minds of many people. To use Gore’s own phraseology, perhaps we’re at a “political tipping point” with regard to his hot air.
Recently a talk show caller made a funny observation: For a couple of years after the disputed 2000 election, Gore maintained a low profile and kept his mouth shut. But suddenly, a few years into G.W. Bush’s first term, Gore burst onto the scene, heavier, with a beard, and doing little to conceal his anger. The caller compared the newly unleashed, snarling Gore to an uncaged animal that had been cooped up for far too long and could now growl and howl with impunity. Gore’s rage at Bush, conservatives, and anyone else who didn’t buy his snake oil, was palpable.
Despite the growing skepticism about human-caused global warming, and the fading chances of the massive kneecap & tax bill that passed the House a few weeks ago, Gore continues to beat the drum for carbon offsets. No wonder. Gore and David Blood co-founded Generation Investment Management, nicknamed "Blood & Gore," which owns 10 percent of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCE), through which Gore stands to benefit financially if carbon offsets are bought and sold. (CCE, in turn, owns half of the European Climate Exchange.)
Hmm, I wonder if Gore's anger is more because of the money he'll miss out on if his Chicken Little warnings fall on deaf ears, than because of the real damage he believes will be done to the earth?
Turning now to wind power, a year ago, when gasoline was about $4 per gallon, it was hard to watch a few minutes of TV without seeing a commercial for T. Boone Pickens, the Texas billionaire, touting wind turbines for generation of electricity. As this article points out, Pickens was planning on investing heavily in the industry. Anyone who thought his interest was reducing our oil consumption and halting our crude oil purchases from the likes of Venezuela and Saudi Arabia was bound to be disappointed. (Pickens has since pulled back from his bold plans, perhaps because of declining oil prices and the recession.)
And then there's President Obama, who tried mightily to portray himself as above it all during last year's campaign. Well, it just so happens that one of the companies to benefit tremendously from the Wall Street bailout was Goldman Sachs — one of Obama's biggest campaign contributors.
Despite the tough economy, Goldman Sachs just reported record quarterly profits between April and June, and is preparing to hand out huge bonuses to its employees. The company received about $10 billion in federal aid last fall.
Quid pro quo? YES WE CAN!
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