Coyote Gulch

Monday, July 9, 2007

Immigration
unbossed: "I want to state up front that I am not against the private sector. However, I am against fraud, corruption, misfeasance, and malfeasance. These we have had in abundance in recent years, and a prime source for these problems has been the use of private contractors. So here we go again. GAO's new report on the operation of alien detention facilities shows a system filled with improper conduct. This is a long report, full of details, but since I do not want this post to be the same length, I will concentrate on the situation with the private contractor."
"2008 pres"
7:19:30 PM

? for President?
Political Wire: "'In dozens of interviews across the country, voters said the presidential campaign had become much too intense, much too soon. It is not unusual for Americans to profess irritation at campaigns that they say start too soon,' the New York Times reports"
"2008 pres"
7:18:05 PM

Energy policy: Oil and gas development

Residents on the rainy side of Colorado have learned past lessons well. So when it comes to looking east (towards Denver or Washington D.C.), they're happy to join in any discussions where they can get an invitation. According to The Cortez Journal:

A week after a law reforming the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission took effect, the identity of the new commissioners remains unknown. The law was one of the biggest wins for Gov. Bill Ritter in his first year in office. It expanded the commission by two members, to nine, and added people with experience in agriculture, public health, wildlife, soil conservation, local government and royalty owner issues. Previously, five of the seven commissioners had to have experience in the energy industry. It's up to Ritter to appoint seven of the commissioners. His spokesman, Evan Dreyer, said the governor is working on the appointments, but he didn't say when they would be announced. The next commission meeting is in two weeks...

Several people from Southwest Colorado are in the running, including rancher Tom Compton and Oil and Gas Accountability Project attorney Bruce Baizel. Kimberlee Gerhardt, a Durango geologist, is already a member of the commission. Compton, former president of the Colorado Cattlemen's Association, said he threw his hat into the ring after talking with ranching families. "If possible, they'd sure like to have someone on that commission that represents their interests," he said. Compton applied for a seat reserved for a farmer or rancher who owns mineral royalties. At least one other person, Roy Savage, is seeking the same seat. Savage leads the Colorado chapter of the National Association of Royalty Owners. He has a ranch west of Rifle. Compton said his personal experience with gas companies, specifically BP, has been positive. "From a personal point of view, we've had very few problems with oil and gas development," he said, though he knows of instances where gas companies weren't as "congenial" in their dealings with landowners. Baizel, an attorney for Durango-based OGAP, helped write the law that increases the legal rights of surface owners. Ritter signed that law the same day he signed the commission reform bill...

Only two names are certain [~] Harris Sherman, director of the department of Natural Resources, and Jim Martin, director of the Department of Public Health and Environment. The directors of both of those departments were added to the commission by the new law.

Critics of the energy industry had long dreamed of revamping the COGCC. But gas companies are concerned the new commissioners will lack the expertise to regulate their industry, said Greg Schnacke, executive vice president of the Colorado Oil and Gas Association.
"colorado water"
6:46:23 PM

Iraq
Don Surber: "Gen. Colin Powell told the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado that he tried to talk President Bush out of going to war in 2003, the Times of London reported...But hey, people in Aspen are gullible. I hope the general received a nice fat fee for telling them what they wanted to hear."

Oliver Willis: "Like myself, [Colin Powell's] roots are in Jamaica, he had an accomplished military career and when the Bush team was awarded the White House, he was supposed to be the sane moderating influence on the cabal of jackals. Instead, he carried water for the war in Iraq. He never wavered from his support of the president's policy during the entire affair. He is now attempting to rewrite the historical record, but his supposed reluctance for war is nothing but cowardice."
"2008 pres"
6:58:53 AM