California Budget Crisis Caused By Refusal To Drill For Oil – With Video

February 19th, 2009 (16) Posted By .

offshore_oil_platforms.jpg

Right Mind:

Drilling for oil off the pristine California coast is a topic that generally polarizes people. One side argues for not even considering the minimal risk of an oil leak ruining – even temporarily – the coastline’s natural beauty and habitat. The other asks for a reasoned approach toward balancing the reality of a now dangerous dependence on foreign oil sources with an environmental risk – and the bold fact that California’s $40-billion deficit and cash crunch is reaching the tipping point.

The state’s legislators are like the Hatfields and the McCoys. They are deeply divided between the low-tax Republicans vs. the raise-tax Democrats. Maybe there is a balance that can be reached, but as of this writing, it is not happening.

I was just reading an interesting editorial from Investors Business Daily (www.ibdeditorials.com) – “Drill, Arnie, Drill.” Here are some of the highlights:

California’s revenues have weakened more than expected, thanks to a protracted housing slump and sinking retail sales. Rising unemployment is also adding to budget woes. Schwarzenegger wants to raise the state’s sales tax to help make up the shortfall.

But there’s a better way to drum up revenues, one that won’t cost California taxpayers a dime. The state could generate huge royalties by allowing offshore oil drilling.
The Interior Department estimates that those bicoastal waters contain at least 18 billion barrels of oil — more than half of it off the California coast.

Drilling in those waters could generate almost $1 trillion in new energy revenue, pumping potentially billions into California and other state coffers in the form of royalties and other income.

Drilling technologies and the industry’s track record in the Gulf of Mexico – 99.999 percent clean drilling since 1975 – show that offshore drilling for oil is safer than ever.

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  • Kurt(the infidel)

    renewable energy at this point is a pipe dream! im sick of these one sided envronmental whackos. the solution is to keep drilling while you search for new ways, you dont cut off the only proven method we have while we wait until who knows how long for a fix to the problem

  • DesignR

    My kids are 4th generation Californians, my grandmother was born here. When I was a kid, the majority of the San Gabriel Valley was an Orange Tree Grove.

    I do not recognize the majority of the inhabitants of this State any more. Tree Huggers and aging Hippies have destroyed this State. Our family is now surrounded by half-baked red-diaper doper-babies and we’ve, for the first time, discussed moving out.

    The ground under our feet is just oozing with oil. When they put in the subway system in LA they had incredible problems with methane gas from all the oil down there. The La Brea Tar Pits are just that, TAR PITS! Hollywood High School has ‘Grandfathered in’ OIL WELLS on the property. The ancient ‘Signal Hill’ area still pumps oil, everyday!

    At Pasadena City College I took Geology classes where they discussed how all of the earthquake faults create underground mud-dams along their contact zones, trapping oil, and we can’t touch any of it because of the enviro-weenies.

    Personally paying $10,000 more in taxes over the next few years, just because of non-existing environmental concerns, might just push me out. Time to retire.

  • Marc

    No drilling for oil is not the answer, we need more Unicorn ranches, & Pixie farms which will in turn generate an abundant supply of Unicorn Farts & Pixie Dust that will power our Joe Kennedy engineered HighBreeds!!!!

  • Never Lftbhndagn (God, Family & Country)

    If ANYONE that reads this, WAS employed by the State of California, or worked for any city in California, and you were fired/ laid off due to the budget defecate, I’m telling you now, SUE the state of California for NOT drilling. They (The State) has now only a NEED too drill, but a necessity to do so, to pay down the budget. It is the state of California’s self caused problem, that allows them NOT to take advantage of moneys they can and should earn, without federal government intervention.

  • Never Lftbhndagn (God, Family & Country)

    LMFAO – in my above post – that should say deficit. ALthough the word used, is fitting.

  • TO (twp)

    I consider Liberals as anti-Capitalist terrorists.

  • TO (twp)

    How arrogant these Leftist Liberals are. Capitalism has been a blessing to civilization. Pre-capitalism…. huge poverty and hunger on the planet. Capitalism equal huge improvement. These mentally ill Liberal think that since poverty and hunger have not been eliminated that Capitalism is a failure. This is intellectually dishonest and reveals Liberals actual lack of compassion and humanity.

  • FRANK-O

    they could slant-drill off the coast, wouldnt even have to build new oil platforms out there either. of course, its out of the question. wtf is the problem?! I dont understand what people dont get about this. extra money for the state without adding a significant amount of oil drilling infrastructure. it seems like a win-win to me. ive just about reached the boiling point with the idiots running the state of CA as well as the idiots running the country.

  • Annie S

    California has found a way out of their budget “crisis” – Pres. Obama will raise taxes on all Americans (Fed. Taxes) and “bailout” fiscally irresponsible states like California (and Illinois, and New York, and Kansas) – money, in the form of taxes from the good people of Oklahoma, Georgia, N. Carolina, Pennsylvania, S. Dakota, etc., will be given to pay the salaries of selfish state employees, their pet projects, their welfare constituants. Just read the fine print in the recently passed Porkulus(“stimulus”-ha, ha) Bill!! And don’t forget your hard-earned dollars taken from you (I make $10/hr. benefits included), and given to pay the salaries of Michigan Auto Union workers (making $70/hr. benefits included)!!!
    And if that don’t boil your teapot – our arrogant President has turned up His thermostat to 78* while rolling up his sleeves to work on more spending bills to bail out liberal unions and liberal states (who contributed to his campaign) with more of our money!!!!

  • steve m (yet Another Infidel!)

    heard an interesting stat today, outta bloombergs mouth. Of the 8,000,000 inhabitants of NYC, 40,000 account for half of the tax take in the city……think of it. If just 10,000 of them leave the whole place will fold up like a cheap card table. I wonder how those stats hold up in California…with more folks leaving, all it takes is for enough of the high earners to bolt for other states and viola!…bigger deficit’s….more taxes on those earning less….keep punishing the achievers you libtard loons….1970′s are coming back.

    Watch how Alaska’s energy policies get a closer look on a national level in the next few yrs…

  • mike3481

    It’s not about Environmentalism…

    It’s all about achieving their dream of a Socialist utopia and omnipotent Socialist government.

    Yup. :wink:

  • http://earthlink nomee1

    Yes mr tax payer bend over and grab your ankles, oh by the way no lube. cal is taxed the highest in the country or at least dam close :gun:

  • http://www.dirtydozensbunker.com Sanders

    Well, Bill Richardson (a Kalifornia transplant/carpetbagger) the governor of New Mexico, snuck in a new law last year that requires all oil and gas drill rigs to pay the state $140,000 before they start drilling any new wells.

    Needless to say, it is a lot cheaper to move that drill rig to Texas, Colorado, or Oklahoma than it is to start a new well in New Mexico. Our oil and gas industry has taken a nose dive since the first of the year, combined with the lower price of oil, they won’t rebound any time soon.

    New Mexico derives a significant portion of the state budget from oil and gas revenues. Or, they did.

  • American Woman (bitter clinger to my guns and religion)

    Oh they will drill in Kalifornia, but not until the liberals take over the government change our society into a 2 class system with them holding power.
    Once we are in full swing dictatorship and the country has been brought to its knees, the oil will be unleashed in the name of “emergency”
    Once in a fascist society the money has to come from somewhere because the people will be pushed into poverty.
    Venezuela is the model.

  • Indy

    DesignR

    My kids are 4th generation Californians, my grandmother was born here. When I was a kid, the majority of the San Gabriel Valley was an Orange Tree Grove.

    I do not recognize the majority of the inhabitants of this State any more. Tree Huggers and aging Hippies have destroyed this State. Our family is now surrounded by half-baked red-diaper doper-babies and we’ve, for the first time, discussed moving out.

    The ground under our feet is just oozing with oil. When they put in the subway system in LA they had incredible problems with methane gas from all the oil down there. The La Brea Tar Pits are just that, TAR PITS! Hollywood High School has ‘Grandfathered in’ OIL WELLS on the property. The ancient ‘Signal Hill’ area still pumps oil, everyday!

    At Pasadena City College I took Geology classes where they discussed how all of the earthquake faults create underground mud-dams along their contact zones, trapping oil, and we can’t touch any of it because of the enviro-weenies.

    Personally paying $10,000 more in taxes over the next few years, just because of non-existing environmental concerns, might just push me out. Time to retire.

    Born and raised in San Diego. I feel your pain. Santa Barbara’s beaches are awash in oil tar.Caverns once thought played out refilling. What’s the envirowhackos answers, block over 100 new clean coal electric plants.Losing millions of acres of forest to bark beetle infestation because forestry thinning projects are blocked.

  • 31Mike

    :arrow: Never Lftbhndagn (God, Family & Country)

    Budget defecate?

    Priceless!!! :beer: :beer: