Yesterday I participated in a blogger conference call with the American Petroleum Institute. The topic was Industry Earnings and Recent Oil Prices, and the audio and transcript may be found here.
My question was a political question regarding the seemingly permanent hostile relationship between oil companies and Democrats. My question, and comments that followed:
24:15 MR. RAPIER: […]

Reuters: Civil rights activist Van Jones for years has fought to keep poor kids in Oakland, California, off the streets and out of jail. Now, he’s got a solution he ripped off straight from the West Coast elite — urging the nation’s toughest neighbourhoods to think green. In his book, "The Green Collar […]

Reuters: Britain says it wants to guarantee a price premium for small producers of renewable power, for example from the wind and sun, from 2010. The government included the proposals in amendments tabled on Wednesday to an energy bill being debated and due to pass into law by December this year. The plan […]

Reuters: Australia’s plans to introduce carbon trading from July 2010 would cut the country’s average gross national product growth by 0.1 percent, the Treasury department said on Thursday. "Average annual GNP growth will be only one tenth of 1 percent less than it would be in a world without action to tackle climate change," […]

Reuters: The Australian government sought to ease fears about the impact of its carbon trade scheme on Thursday, saying the coming regime would have a minimal impact on economic growth and exporters amid financial turmoil. Treasurer Wayne Swan and Climate Change Minister Penny Wong released Treasury modelling which found carbon trading would cut average […]

ScienceDaily: A "living fossil" tree species is helping a University of Michigan researcher understand how tropical forests responded to past climate change and how they may react to global warming in the future. The research appears in the November issue of the journal Evolution. Symphonia globulifera is a widespread tropical tree with a […]

Independent: Changes to the climate due to human activity can now be detected on every continent, following a study showing that temperature rises in the Antarctic as well as the Arctic are the result of man-made emissions of greenhouse gases. It is the first time scientists have been able to prove the link between […]

AAP: Climate Change Minister Penny Wong has hit out at federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull for failing to stand up to the "climate change deniers" within his party. Comprehensive economic modelling released by Treasury on Thursday painted a rosy picture of how emissions trading will affect the economy and Australians, forecasting that the average […]

West Australian: Farmers will have to seek independent advice confirming their business can be viable in the long term before being considered for drought assistance under a radical plan being considered by the Rudd Government. Under the scheme, Federal Government aid to farms worth more than $3 million could be cut, while farmers eligible […]

Australian: THE Rudd Government has moved to ease fears about the impact of its emissions trading scheme, releasing Treasury modelling showing the scheme is affordable, with households paying up to $7 a week more for electricity and gas, and no industries forced offshore. Long-awaited Treasury modelling released yesterday assumes a modest cut in Australian […]

Asia Pulse: Bougainville expects the first 40 families of Carterets Island to move into their new mainland location by March next year, Administrator Raymond Masono said yesterday., reports Post Courier. They are still negotiating with landowners of Baniu Plantation for the piece of land which they would resettle on as their permanent home under […]

Canberra Times: Climate Change Minister Penny Wong has hit out at federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull for failing to stand up to the "climate change deniers" within his party. Comprehensive economic modelling released by Treasury yesterday painted a rosy picture of how emissions trading will affect the economy and Australians, forecasting that the average […]

Radio Australia: Australia’s prime minister, Kevin Rudd, has warned that if Australia does not move quickly enough to introduce a carbon reduction scheme then other nations are likely to impose big tariffs as a penalty. The federal opposition says Australia should not introduce a carbon trading scheme in 2010 as the Government intends. […]

Reuters: A growing "carbon army" of environmentalists and bankers have seized on political support to boost flagging economies to press for more spending on climate-friendly projects. In times of downturn, spending on infrastructure can prime demand, provide work and avert depression, a lesson learned from US President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal in the 1930s. […]

Business Green: The world’s energy needs could be met entirely from renewable sources by 2090, according to a major new study from Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC). The 210-page report, entitled "Energy [R]evolution: A Sustainable World Energy Outlook," argues that improvements in energy efficiency could slash energy requirements in half compared […]