GASOLINE CARS GREENER THAN ELECTRIC!!!

It has been said before, but I will repeat it again:

GASOLINE CARS GREENER THAN ELECTRIC!!!

and let me restate it again, just in case any ekonutsies don't get it:

GASOLINE CARS ARE  (and will continue to  be...) GREENER THAN ELECTRIC!!!

After a 2 year study the German Öko Institute has concluded that gasoline powered vehicles are cleaner than Electric powered vehicles. The implementation of electric cars will have NO IMPACT on the reduction of CO2 until 2020!  (let's ignore the fact that the whole CO2 meme is dubious...)

Instead, the study recommends further improvements in fuel efficiency of gasoline powered vehicles.

While the EU continues to stumble head over heels, foisting all sorts of ineffective Green initiatives upon its citizens, is it any wonder the economy of Europe is going down...and staying there?

NORTHERN USA SNOW RECORDS BROKEN

AP:

In Boston, for example, 49.6 inches of snow has fallen this winter, or 19.3 inches more than normal.

In Madison, Wis., where it never had snowed more than 76.6 inches, the city already had seen 77 inches by Feb. 12.

Last week, Grand Rapids, Mich., shattered its December-February snowfall record of 85.1 inches set in 1951-52. As of Tuesday afternoon, 90.4 inches had fallen.

And though the month doesn't end until Friday, the city has a new February record of 37.1 inches, surpassing 1990's 35.5 inches. ...

In Chicago, more than 50 inches has fallen since the beginning of December, which is about 15 inches above normal and makes this the first winter since 1978-79 the area has seen more than 50 inches of snow, said Amy Seeley, a weather service meteorologist.

• THIS IS HARDLY THE STUFF OF ANY MAN-MADE, CO2 GLOBAL WARMING CATASTROPHE.
• AL GORE: STFU.

MORE ON THE RECORD-BREAKING WINTER HERE. AND HERE.

IOWA: ONE OF THE SNOWIEST WINTERS IN DECADES

DES MOINES REGISTER:

So far - and don't those two words give one pause - Iowa has received an average of 36.7 inches of snow this winter.

That's a foot more than what is normal for this time of year and 4 inches more than the state usually receives for the entire winter season, which begins in November and ends - well, when it ends.

This month, Iowa has received an average of 13.2 inches of snow.

Normal: 6.3 inches.

It's the highest February total since 1994 and the most for any month since December 2000, said Harry Hillaker, the state climatologist.

• THAT'S HARDLY THE STUFF GLOBAL-WARMING IS MADE OF...

ER UM... I MEAN... IF MAN-MADE CO2 CAUSES GLOBAL-WARMING, (AND SINCE MAN-MADE CO2 HAS BEEN STEADILY AND CONSTANTLY INCREASING SINCE 1994), THEN HOW COULD THIS WINTER BE THE COLDEST AND SNOWIEST IN DECADES - ALL OVER THE WORLD, IN BOTH THE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN HEMISPHERES!?!?

• IT' DISPROVES THE AGW HYPOTHESIS. PERIOD.

• AL GORE: PLEASE STFU.

FOR A NEARLY COMPLETE LISTING OF THIS WINTER'S SEVERITY ALL OVER THE GLOBE GO TO GATEWAY, BRRRRR!

OIL CLOSES ABOVE $100/BARREL FOR FIRST TIME - and what we can do about it!

*******UPDATE - 2/20/08: AS I WROTE BELOW (YESTERDAY!) IT'S ALL ABOUT SUPPLY AND DEMAND - NYTIMES:

Supply Fears Push Oil to Triple Digits
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS

HOUSTON — Crude oil closed above $100 a barrel for the first time Tuesday, vaulting through a longstanding psychological barrier amid persistent concern about whether production can keep up with rising global demand.

The day’s price rise of more than 4 percent capped a week-long run-up that began when President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela threatened to cut off oil exports to the United States over a legal struggle with Exxon Mobil. Crude oil fell from a record $100.10 a barrel in New York on speculation that a U.S. Energy Department report will show stockpiles rose for a sixth week, according to Reuters. Crude oil for March delivery dropped as much as 90 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $99.11 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

... World supplies have been trimmed by substantial cutbacks in production in Iraq and Nigeria in recent weeks. Nigeria alone has lost about 10 percent of its daily production since guerrillas stepped up their sabotage and kidnapping of oil workers in the Niger Delta at the end of last year. Some analysts fear that OPEC could cut production further when it meets next month to counter the prospect that a softening world economy may eventually weaken demand and push prices down.

Oil is expensive.

Expensive oil drives up costs, increases inflation, and decreases the discretionary income people have to spend - and so increases the threat of recession, too.

And a recession in the USA causes the entire world to go into a recession - because the entire world depends on US consumption.

ON ALL COUNTS IT IS BAD.

There is an easy solution: INCREASE SUPPLIES.

This can be dome easily: just let the oil companies drill for more oil in places they think there is a great chance of finding a lot; (their belief is what will incentivize them to invest billions - and it won't cost the taxpayer a single penny!).

All that is necessary to have this happen is for Congress to OPEN UP ANWR, and demand that FLA and CA open up the waters off their coasts for drilling.

THERE IS NO RISK TO THE ENVIRONMENT:

• Canada safely and cleanly drills for oil right next door the ANWR.
• Louisiana allows drilling in the Gulf - off its coast. NOT ONE OF THESE OFF-SHORE RIGS LEAKED DURING KATRINA - THE WORST HURRICANE IN THE GULF'S HISTORY.
• And the waters off of California are easier to drill in than the North Sea - where Norway and the UK have safely drilled FOR DECADES!

People who claim that burning oil creates too much CO2 and that CO2 is causing global warming are WRONG:

• there is no "man-made" global warming;
• the world is actually cooling; this winter (2007-8) is one of the coldest and snowiest in DECADES - for both hemispheres.
• And the prior warming trend was NOT outside historical norms/cycles.
• AND CO2 IS A LAGGING INDICATOR OR PRIOR WARMING PERIODS AND NOT A CAUSE.

Therefore, there is simply no excuse for NOT ALLOWING the energy companies risk their own capital and drill as much as they want.

The moratorium on drilling in ANWR and off the coasts of FLA and CA are a MUCH GRAVER RISK than global warming or leaks or any other risk of "damage" to the local environment.

Continuing the moratorium is IRRATIONAL, and SELF-DESTRUCTIVE.

It puts at risk the entire world's economy.

OVERLY EXPENSIVE OIL is one of the two or three MOST important issues facing the entire world.

The USA must lead on this issue and IMMEDIATELY take the necessary steps in Congress to increase supplies.

I PREDICT, THE DAY THE CONGRESS ACTS THE PRICE OF OIL WILL DROP 25%.

That would help the entire world's economy IMMEDIATELY.

And it would also mean the USA would NOT be sending as much money to the Middle East, not per barrel, and not as many barrels, either.

IT'S A WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN!

$117 BILLION WASTED ON "CLEAN" ENERGY IN 2007

ACHRNews:

The global investment in clean energy grew 41 percent in 2007, reaching $117.2 billion, according to analysts at New Energy Finance Ltd. Wind power drew the greatest amount of investments, followed by solar energy and energy efficiency,

Since climate change is NATURAL and not caused by man-made CO2, ALL of this $117 BILLION is wasted. WE MIGHT AS WELL BE BURNING IT! Heck, it would be better if we burned it, at least then we'd get something out of it: across MOST of the world, IT'S THE COLDEST WINTER IN 100 YEARS!

Add to this all the money wasted on carbon-credits and caps and swaps etc, and well IT'S A MIND-BOGGLING GLOBAL BOONDOGGLE - an elaborate scam, a hoax invented to hurt industry, capitalism, the freemarket, trade AND make buddies of the pol's rich.

EVEN MORE PROOF AGW IS BS: EARTH'S ELLIPTICAL ORBIT, VOLCANISM AND WARMING OCEANS

SCIENCE DAILY:

The Earth's orbital behaviors are responsible for more than just presenting us with a leap year every four years. According to Michael E. Wysession, Ph.D., associate professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, parameters such as planetary gravitational attractions, the Earth's elliptical orbit around the sun and the degree of tilt of our planet's axis with respect to its path around the sun, have implications for climate change and the advent of ice ages.

People often think of orbits as circular, but they're not that smooth and simple. They are often a less-than-perfect eccentric circle.

"All planets travel in an ellipse around the sun, but the shape of that ellipse oscillates," he explains. "When the Earth's orbit is more elliptical, the planet spends more time farther away from the sun, and the Earth gets less sunlight over the course of the year.

These periods of more-elliptical orbits are separated by about 100,000 years.

Ice ages occur about every 100,000 years, and they line up exactly with this change in the Earth's elliptical shape."

Er um... how does curbing our carbon-"footprint" change our orbit? IT DOESN'T!

REUTERS:

Rises in the sea level around Antarctica in the past decade are almost entirely due a warming ocean, not ice melting, an Australian scientist leading a major international research program said.

The 15-year study of temperature and salinity changes in the Southern Ocean found average temperatures warmed by about three-tenths of a degree Celsius.

Satellites also measured a rise of about 2 centimeters (about an inch) in seas in the southern polar region over an area half the size of Australia, Rintoul told Reuters.

"The biggest contribution so far has been from warming of the oceans through expansion," said Steve Rintoul, Australian leader of an Australian-French-U.S. scientific program.

Melting sea ice or Antarctic ice shelves jutting into the ocean do not directly add to sea level rises.

Er um... why is the water down there getting warmer!? VOLCANISM:

A volcano beneath Antarctica’s icy surface has been detected for the first time.

Under the frozen continent's western-most ice sheet, the volcano erupted about 2,300 years ago yet remains active, according to a study published Sunday in an online issue of the journal Nature Geosciences.

"We believe this was the biggest eruption in Antarctica during the last 10,000 years," said study co-author Hugh Corr, a glaciologist for the British Antarctic Survey (BAS). "It blew a substantial hole in the ice sheet, and generated a plume of ash and gas that rose around 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) into [the] air."

Brooding giant

Although ice buried the unnamed volcano, molten rock is still churning below. David Vaughan, a glaciologist with the BAS and a co-author of the new study, said the discovery might explain the speeding up of historically slow-moving glaciers in the region.

SOMEONE TELL AL GORE TO STFU. PLEASE.

BOTTOM-LINE: climate change is natural.

RECORD BREAKING COLD IN THE MIDWESTERN USA

CNN/AP: Nation's 'Icebox' hits record 40 below zero

The temperature in International Falls, Minnesota, fell to a record 40 below zero Monday, just a few days after the northern Minnesota town won a federal trademark making it officially the "Icebox of the Nation."

It was so cold that resident Nick McDougall couldn't even get his car trunk lid to close after he got out his charger to kick-start his dead battery. By late morning, the temperature had risen all the way to 18 -- below zero.

"This is about as cold as it gets, this is bad. There's no wind -- it's just cold," said McDougall, 48, a worker at The Fisherman, a convenience store and gas station in the town on the Canadian border. "People just don't go out, unless you have to go to work."

Residents of the area use electric engine block heaters to keep their cars from freezing.

"You plug in your car, for sure, and you put the car in the garage if you can," McDougall said. His garage is full of other things, so he had to park outside -- a "big mistake."

The previous record low in International Falls was 37 below, set in 1967, said meteorologist Mike Stewart at the weather service in Duluth. The cold was expected, he said: "When the winds finally died off and the skies cleared off, it just dropped."

The temperature also fell to 40 below in Embarrass, 80 miles southeast of International Falls. That's just one degree above the all-time record in Minneapolis, 250 miles to the south, that was set in January 1888, the weather service said.

LET'S GET THAT STRAIGHT: (a) - The temperature in International Falls, Minnesota, fell to a record 40 below zero Monday... The previous record low in International Falls was 37 below, set in 1967 ;(b) - That's just one degree above the all-time record in Minneapolis, 250 miles to the south, that was set in January 1888, the weather service said.

Er um... it's COLDER than EVER breaking ALL-TIME records set five decades ago. Five decades during which time the atmosphere has had TONS AND AND TONS AND TONS MORE CO2 put in it. YET IT'S COLDER. Colder than EVER in the Midwest USA, in China, all over Central Asia - and they're having records snows in Europe.

This is not the stuff global warming catastrophes are made of. WHAT COULD THIS MEAN!? Simple:

• AGW = BS.
• AL GORE: STFU.

DON'T BE HOODWINKED INTO SUPPORTING HIGHER TAXES OR MORE REGULATIONS TO REDUCE CO2 OR SLOW "MAN-MADE GLOBAL WARMING" - BECAUSE THERE IS NONE.

IOW: DON'T VOTE DEMOCRAT.

BALI STAKED OUT BY HEDGE FUNDS AND CARBON-TRADERS

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BENJAMINS - JUST FOLLOW THE BENJAMINS:

REUTERS:

NUSA DUA, Indonesia – Traders are already betting on a new global climate deal to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, as talks in Bali on Friday inched towards a two-year negotiating agenda for an expanded global climate pact.

Financiers are buying rights to emit planet-warming greenhouses gases after present Kyoto commitments expire in 2012, hoping that countries will agree new, tougher emissions limits – and drive demand for such permits.

“It's a great bet,” said one trader attending the talks on the tropical Indonesian island. The new, more speculative offsets came at a substantial discount, the trader, who declined to be named, added.

The Kyoto Protocol allows 36 rich countries to meet limits from 2008-12 on their production of greenhouse gases by buying emissions rights from developing nations.

About 190 countries attending the Dec. 3-14 meeting in Bali are edging towards launching negotiations on a successor deal to Kyoto, which is deemed too weak to win the battle against climate change.

Delegates were expected to draft on Saturday the first details of a negotiating agenda.

“You're seeing the hedge funds come in and say this is a great gamble,” said Odin Knudsen, managing director of environmental products at JPMorgan Chase and former head of the World Bank's carbon finance unit, which pioneered carbon trading under Kyoto.

• AGW CAUSED BY CO2 IS A HOAX PERPETUATED BY MISGUIDED LEFTISTS AND UNSCRUPULOUS HEDGE-FUND MANAGERS AND CARBON TRADERS.

DON'T FALL FOR IT.

"CLIMATE CHANGE" WEATHER REPORT: BALI IS WARM; EUROPE AND USA SNOWY

While the UN eco-nutsies are in balmy Bali soaking up the Sun and the HEAT, the rest of us - us oil-guzzling, CO2 emitting, climate-ruining idiots are freezing our butts off.

NEED PROOF?! Here are the current weather reports.

BALI:

Detailed Local Forecast

* Today: Isolated thunderstorms this morning, becoming sunny during the afternoon hours. High 87F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
* Tonight: Cloudy intervals. Low 79F. Winds light and variable.
* Tomorrow: A few clouds from time to time. High 87F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
* Tomorrow night: Partly cloudy. Low 79F. Winds light and variable.
* Monday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 80s and lows in the upper 70s.
* Tuesday: A few clouds. Highs in the upper 80s and lows in the upper 70s.
* Wednesday: Sunny. Highs in the upper 80s and lows in the upper 70s.

USA: More ice and snow coming

An upper level low moving southward along the California coast tonight takes up residence over the Southwest into early next week. This pattern keeps moisture flowing northward through the Southwest, the Rocky Mountains and into the Plains and Midwest. At the same time bitter cold arctic air will keep oozing southward from Canada. The combination of the arctic air and moisture produces a wide swath of wintry precipitation into early next week from the Rockies to the Northeast.

Initially the snow, sleet and ice should be on the light side Saturday and Saturday night from Kansas and Nebraska eastward to the Ohio Valley. Snow accumulations should run 1 to 4 inches across Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa and southern Minnesota Saturday. A second, stronger wave of moisture invades the Plains and Midwest Sunday with heavier ice accumulations.

At this time it appears the ice should fall from the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles through southern Kansas, central and northern Missouri, central and northern Illinois, northern Indiana and northern Ohio. A narrow band of light snow and sleet is expected along the northern edge of the precipitation shield from Nebraska through Michigan. South of the wintry precipitation a band of moderate rain falls along the Ohio Valley and southern Missouri.

The second wave should end Monday morning with a third wave anticipated for Monday night and Tuesday. Skiers get an early season lift with several feet of snow expected through Monday across the Rockies from Wyoming south to Arizona and New Mexico. Accumulating snow should fall in Salt Lake City and Denver through the weekend as well. Salt Lake City will have some enhancement from the lake with amounts ranging from 4 to 8 inches by Saturday afternoon. Moisture from the western storm flies into the Northeast Sunday.

Light sleet, freezing rain and rain streaks into western Pennsylvania and western New York by midday Sunday and races to the New England coast by midnight Sunday night. There could be significant ice accumulation across southern New York state and interior New England by Monday morning. A chilly rain should fall south of the icy area for New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.

EUROPE: All white now as snow arrives

The latest snow reports

Heavy snowfall across Europe this week has helped ease concerns that a third of Europe's ski resorts may not exist by 2050.

The lack of snow in the Alps last season led to numerous British skiers opting for the better conditions of North America. Many European chalets, hotels and restaurants are relying on a good winter this year to remain in operation.
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Last year's poor snow cover, along with reports of glaciers melting this summer, prompted the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to predict that the 670 top ski resorts in Europe now would have reduced to 400 by 2050, a result of low-lying slopes succumbing to a rising snow line and warmer temperatures.

But holidaymakers have been buoyed by heavy snowfall across the Alps this week. Val Thorens and Sestriere are the pick of the resorts, with 70-80cm (28-31in) of snow on the lower runs. St Moritz and Obergurgl are already enjoying around 1.5m (5ft) of snow on their upper slopes, while Zermatt has 2m (6ft 6in) on its higher runs, after 40cm (16in) of fresh snow this week.

MORE EUROPE:

The Internet site snow-forecast.com notes that "Austria in particular has got off to a good start this season" and it predicts that the effects of tropical storm Noel will be responsible for more snowfall in Scandinavia and the Alps.

There was a cooler than normal summer and snow fell early, helping maintain the Alpine permafrost. Kitzbuehel had a record early opening, Nov. 2, six weeks ahead of schedule. Schladming's ski runs opened a full month early.

• AGW IS BS.

• A HOAX THE LEFT IS TRYING TO EXPLOIT TOP PASS THEIR LONG HELD POLICIES OF HIGHER TAXES AND MORE REGULATIONS.

DON'T FALL FOR IT.

YOU WANT CLIMATE CHANGE? THEN GET ON A JET IN THE USA OR EUROPE AND FLY TO BALI.

AS ECO-NUTSIES (WHO CLAIM THEY WILL SAVE THE WORLD FROM MAN-MADE GLOBAL WARMING) SUNBATHE IN TROPICAL BALI, WE GET RECORD-BREAKING SNOWS

KXMB/AP (VIA DRUDGE):

Snow sets more records in Grand Forks, Fargo

More snowfall records in eastern North Dakota.

The National Weather Service says the Grand Forks airport had 8.1 inches of snow yesterday, setting a record for the date. And Fargo set a record with 5.9 inches.

The previous mark in both cities was set back in 1926.

THAT WOULDN'T BE THE SAME 1926 THAT CAME DECADES BEFORE WE HUMANS REALLY STARTED PRODUCING RECORD AMOUNTS OF CO2, WOULD IT? AND WE GOT MORE SNOW NOW - WITH ALL THE MAN-MADE CO2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE - THAN THEN.

GO FIGURE. BUT THERE'S MORE...

MAINE TODAY (VIA DRUDGE):

Portland ties 1890 snow record

The first major winter storm to sweep across Maine this season was farther out to sea than expected, reducing snowfall totals, but there was still plenty of the white stuff to clean up on Tuesday, officials said.

Portland tied the record for the date set in 1890 with 8.5 inches of snow on Monday, according to Bob Marine of the National Weather Service.

Elsewhere, Marshfield in Washington County had 18 inches of snow, Lakeville in Penobscot County 17 inches, Island Falls in Aroostook County 16, Brassau Lake near Moosehead 15.7, Farmington 14.7 inches and Andover 13, the weather service said.

The storm was blamed for a crash that claimed a life in Saco, and it was bad enough for Gov. John Baldacci to send state workers home.

The storm may have produced even more snow if it hadn't tracked farther out to sea that originally forecast, Marine said.

• THAT YEAR - 1890 - IS THAT THE SAME 1890 THAT CAME 107 YEARS AGO? WOULDM'T THAT MEANS IT CAME WELL BEFORE WE WERE PRODUCING ANY APPRECIABLE AMOUNTS OF CO2?

• AND YET, WE'RE GETTING MORE SNOW NOW THAN THEN?

• HOW COULD THIS BE IF CO2 MAKES THE ENTIRE GLOBE WARMER?

• ALSO: I SEEM TO RECALL THAT 5 OF THE TOP TEN WARMEST YEARS ON RECORD WERE IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE LAST CENTURY - MEANING IT WAS REALLY REALLY WARM BEFORE WE PUT AS MUCH CO2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE AS WE DO NOW.

HUH. WARMER THEN -WITH LESS CO2, AND COLDER AND SNOWIER NOW WITH MORE!?!?!?!?!?

IT'S JUST FURTHER PROOF THAT AGW IS PURE BS.

AND THOSE TRANSNATIONAL BUREAUCRATS AT THE UN ECO-JUNKET IN BALI ARE WASTING THEIR TIME. UNLESS ALL THEY REALLY WANTED WAS TO GET A TAN.

CO2 RECORDS PROVE AL GORE WRONG

SHOW THIS SHORT VIDEO TO YOUR FRIENDS WHO STILL BELIEVE AL GORE.

(VIA SUGIERO.)]

ANTHROPOGENIC GLOBAL WARMING IS MADNESS

TELEGRAPH:

We are set on a course of 'planet saving' madness

The scare over global warming, and our politicians' response to it, is becoming ever more bizarre. On the one hand we have the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change coming up with yet another of its notoriously politicised reports, hyping up the scare by claiming that world surface temperatures have been higher in 11 of the past 12 years (1995-2006) than ever previously recorded.

This carefully ignores the latest US satellite figures showing temperatures having fallen since 1998, declining in 2007 to a 1983 level - not to mention the newly revised figures for US surface temperatures showing that the 1930s had four of the 10 warmest years of the past century, with the hottest year of all being not 1998, as was previously claimed, but 1934.

THE LEFT IS IN-FREAKIN-SANE:

• THEY STILL THINK GORE WON FLORIDA IN 2000.
• THEY STILL THINK THE TURKEY WAS PLASTIC.
• AND THEY STILL THINK THAT MAN-MADE GREENHOUSE GASES ARE CAUSING THE ENTIRE PLANET TO GET WARM.

THEY'RE FREAKIN' IDIOTS.

(OKAY: NOT EVERY ONE IS AN IDIOT; A LOT OF IT IS DUE TO THEIR WILLFUL SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF - BECAUSE THE DELUSION REINFORCES THEIR POLITICAL IDEOLOGY.)

STILL: DON'T FALL FOR ANY OF THEIR CRAP.

DESPITE CO2, AGW, AL GORE AND MSM HYSTERIA: EUROPE HAS LOTS OF SNOW

SKY NEWS:

Europe's ski resorts are celebrating record snow falls for November, which have helped soothe industry fears over global warming.

Last year, much of the continent saw a virtually snowless season, with some low-lying areas hatching plans to become winter hiking destinations.

But this year has had a promising start with some resorts enjoying early dumps of the white stuff.

Travel companies are also reporting strong demand from skiers eager to get a head-start to the season.

People in the Swiss resort of Verbier say they have had the best opening day they can remember. And Austria's Kitzbuhel - which last year suffered the warmest November on record - has opened six weeks earlier than planned.

AGW IS BS.

DON'T FALL FOR IT.

*******UPDATE: LONDON TIMES:

Something strange is happening at Europe’s ski resorts. It’s snowing

In Verbier, Kitzbühel and Klosters, global warming is, like, so last year. After suffering a delayed and, in some cases, virtually snowless season in 2006-07, European resorts are enjoying record November snowfalls.

Switzerland and Austria have had the best of the early snow, with even lowlying resorts that had been drawing up plans to become “winter hiking” destinations cranking up the chairlifts.

France is expecting significant snowfalls this weekend, as are parts of Germany; some Italian resorts are already open and Sweden and Norway are also hoping to join the party.

Zurich has had its heaviest snowfall since 1955 and the white stuff is settling all the way down to the beaches.

Travel companies are reporting a rush from winter sports enthusiasts keen to bag an Alp before Christmas as more and more destinations open up, if only for the weekend, much earlier than they dared hope. “Verbier has had 40cm [16in] in town and up on the slopes it is 60cm,” said James Cove, of the Ski Club of Great Britain, after visiting the Swiss resort.

“It opened in mid-November and locals who have been coming for years say it was the best opening day they have ever known,” he said. “Of course, snow in November does not mean snow in December but it is not a bad start.” It was not like this last year, or the year before.

Kitzbühel, in Austria, which has opened six weeks earlier than planned, suffered last year from the warmest November on record and had to cancel the celebrated Hahnenkamn World Cup downhill race in January.

Last winter in St Anton, Austria, the snow cannon in which it invested £12 million to provide artificial playgrounds for skiers and snowboarders were rendered useless by the wet ground that refused to freeze. This year it has already got a covering of natural snow and is due to open on November 30.

The climate change doomsayers said that we had better get used to shorter, later ski seasons in Europe but a couple of heavy snowfalls and forecasts of more to come seem to have turned back the clock all the way to the last century.

AGW IS BS.

ANTARCTICA IS DANGEROUSLY ICY AND COLD

ICEBERG ATTACKS SHIP.

DESPITE GLOBAL WARMING.

OF COURSE THIS IS NOT REALLY SURPRISING: THE ANTARCTIC HAS MOE ICE NOW THAN EVER.

BRITAIN HAD A VERY COLD SUMMER THIS YEAR... AND "BLUE TITS WERE HARDEST HIT"

THE BLUE TIT IS A SPECIES OF BIRD:

SCOTSMAN: Cold summer gives birds worst breeding season

A COLD and rainy summer has given seven bird species their worst-ever breeding season, with ornithologists warning they are finding it difficult to adapt to the effects of climate change.

Last night, experts said some of Britain's commonest birds could soon find themselves on the red list of those which are a real cause for concern.

According to the British Trust for Ornithology, blue tits were one of the worst-hit species this year, with volunteer ringers catching just over half the young birds they would expect.

Mark Grantham, who runs the trust's Constant Effort Scheme, which monitors bird numbers, said: "The cold, wet weather over the early summer will have made life incredibly tough for adults that still had hungry youngsters in boxes.

"Each blue tit chick will need around 100 caterpillars every day, and finding enough caterpillars in the poor weather we've seen is no mean feat."

Overall, there were 48 per cent fewer chicks than expected. The other six species for which 2007 was their worst breeding season were: great tit (33 per cent below normal level), reed warbler (27 per cent), whitethroat (25 per cent), willow warbler (19 per cent), treecreeper (55 per cent) and willow tit (63 per cent).

WHERE IS GLOBAL WARMING WHEN YOU NEED IT!

MAYBE THE UK SHOULD ORDER SOME OF THESE (HAT TIP TIM BLAIR):

CO2 Generator

Carbon dioxide is one of the essential ingredients in green plant growth, and is a primary environmental factor in greenhouses. CO2 enrichment at 2, 3 or 4 times natural concentration will cause plants to grow faster and improve plant quality.

Modern growers are becoming increasingly aware of the value of CO2. Particularly now that most greenhouses are purposely shutting out CO2 to conserve energy.

The Johnson CO2 Generator automatically provides the carbon dioxide to meet maximum growing potentials - and operates for only pennies a day. The Johnson Generator can easily be installed in any greenhouse. No expensive ductwork is necessary and CO2 is diffused evenly without supplemental fans.

Join with modern growers everywhere - use Johnson CO2 Generators - the low cost way to produce CO2 - the nutrient of the new millennium.

Why you get more rapid and efficient growth and better plant quality with Johnson CO2.

Plants must absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) in combination with water, soil nutrients and sunlight to produce the sugars vital for growth. A shortage of any of these requirements will retard the growing process. Normally there are approximately 300 parts per million of CO2 in the atmosphere; when this level is increased to over 1 ,000 ppm, results are higher production and better plant quality. The Johnson Generator provides up to 1,500 ppm per unit in an average 24' x 200' greenhouse or an equivalent 50,000 cu. ft. volume based on one air change per hour.

Nighttime levels in a greenhouse range from 400 to 500 ppm due to plant respiration. Shortly after sunrise this level will drop to normal atmosphere (300 ppm) due to the plant using the early light to start photosynthesis. After 3 to 4 hours of early morning sunlight the CO2 level can drop to around l00 to 150 ppm, then growth is practically stopped. Supplemental CO2 added during this period can substantially increase your plant and flower production. By adding CO2, during winter months when greenhouse ventilators are closed and when low CO2 concentration becomes a limiting factor in growth, users are obtaining yield and bloom quality which is normally associated with spring and summer.

CO2 More Important Than Ever

The Johnson CO2 Generator is more important than ever because greenhouse growers, trying to conserve energy, are shutting out CO2. Rising fuel costs have forced many growers to use doubled-layered glass, etc., to conserve energy - as a result much less CO2 is entering the greenhouse.

How to use the Johnson CO2 Generator

When there is sunlight and the vents are closed, CO2 should be added continuously to your greenhouse. If the vents are opened because of heat build up the generator should continue to operate for about 2 hours and then be shut off. Approximately 1 Lb. of CO2 per hour per 1,000 sq. ft. yields 1,000 ppm's of CO2. A 4,000 sq. ft. house requires at least 4 Lbs. of CO2 per hour. If CO21evel drops off from 1,000 ppm's to 500 ppm's on a clear sunny day, you can easily adjust to a higher burning rate to make up for the more rapid absorption of CO2 by plants. Most growers use their Johnson Generator daily in winter from approximately 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Easy and inexpensive to install

You can install the Johnson CO2 Generator easily in any greenhouse. In fact, most growers do it themselves. No expensive duct work necessary. The CO2 is diffused evenly throughout the greenhouse without supplemental fans.

Automatic ...fully adjustable

Completely automatic, the Johnson unit comes complete with a gas pressure gauge. Simply set the gauge to the gas pressure desired for your greenhouse area and the Johnson Generator will automatically provide the correct amount of CO2. Just as you adjust the amount of water and fertilizer to meet the changing needs of your plants, you also set the Johnson Generator to produce the desired amount of CO2 for your greenhouse. The Johnson unit includes a 24V. gas valve. This can be activated by a timer or a combination timer thermostat, which automatically turns the units on in the morning and off in the evening as desired. (Optional).

Safe ...requires no floor space ...rugged construction

In case of flame failure, gas supply shuts off automatically and the Johnson unit saves you valuable floor space. It hangs from the rafters ...completely out of the way. It's only 18" in diameter and 20" high, it weighs 21 Lbs. and is easy to move.

MAYBE WE SHOULD ALL BUY ONE? IF IT KEEPS US WARMER THEN WE'LL BURN LESS HEATING FUEL IN THE WINTER. AND THAT'S GOOD FOR THE ECOLOGY. HEH.

AND IT WILL SAVE THOSE BLUE TITS!

LATEST IPCC REPORT IS MERELY FEAR-MONGERING - SCIENCE FICTION WRITTEN TO SCARE YOU INTO APPROVING OLD LEFTIST POLICIES

UK INDEPENDENT (VIA DRUDGE): "A world dying, but can we unite to save it?"

Humanity is rapidly turning the seas acid through the same pollution that causes global warming, the world's governments and top scientists agreed yesterday. The process – thought to be the most profound change in the chemistry of the oceans for 20 million years – is expected both to disrupt the entire web of life of the oceans and to make climate change worse.

The warning is just one of a whole series of alarming conclusions in a new report published by the official Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which last month shared the Nobel Peace Prize with former US vice president Al Gore.

Drawn up by more than 2,500 of the world's top scientists and their governments, and agreed last week by representatives of all its national governments, the report also predicts that nearly a third of the world's species could be driven to extinction as the world warms up, and that harvests will be cut dramatically across the world.

THESE LEFTIST ECO-NUTSIES ARE TRYING TO SCARE THE PUBLIC INTO RATIFYING POLICIES WHICH ARE NOTHING MORE THAN LONG-HELD ANTI-FREE MARKET/ANTI-INDUSTRIAL LEFTIST POLICIES.

THE RECENT REPORT HAS NO NEW DATA.

REPEAT: IT HAS NO NEW DATA. THIS REPORT IS JUST A REHASHING OF PREVIOUS DATA - JUST REHASHED WITH EVEN MORE HYPERBOLIC SCARE-MONGERING.

SAMPLE (SAME SOURCE):

Arctic

Greenland ice sheet will virtually completely disappear, raising sea levels by over 30 feet, submerging coastal cities, entire island nations and vast areas of low-lying countries like Bangladesh

[BULLSH*T: THE SNOW-COVER IN GREENLAND'S MIDLAND'S IS GROWING, AND EVEN IF ITS GLACIERS WERE TO MELT, THEY'D FORM LAKES AND WOULDN'T FLOOD INTO THE OCEAN.

Latin America

The Amazon rainforest will become dry savannah as rising temperatures and falling water levels kill the trees, stoke forest fires and kill off wildlife

[BULLSH*T: AS A MATTER OF FACT, SOUTH AMERICA JUST HAD ONE OF THE COLDEST WINTERS ON RECORD!]

North America

California and the grain-producing Midwest will dry out as snows in the Rockies decrease, depriving these areas of summer water.

[BULLSH*T: THE WEATHER IN THE USA IN BETTER NOW THAN DURING THE DUST BOWL, AND THAT ECO-DISASTER WAS NOT MAN-MADE AND HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH AGW OR CO2! IT WAS CAUSED BY A COOL PACIFIC OCEAN - ACCORDING TO NASA. BOTTOM-LINE: DROUGHTS ARE NATURAL AND CYCLICAL - JUST LIKE GLOBAL CLIMATE.]

Australia

The Great Barrier Reef will die. Species loss will occur by 2020 as corals fail to adapt to warmer waters. On land, drought will reduce harvests

[BULLSH*T: THE REEF IS NOT DYING AND AUSTRALIA'S DROUGHT MAY BE OVER. COLD LOCAL WATERS HAS MORE TO WITH THE AUSTRALIAN DROUGHT THAN GLOBAL WARMTH.]

Europe

Winter sports suffer as less snow falls in the Alps and other mountains; up to three-fifths of wildlife dies out. Drought in Mediterranean area hits tourism

[BULLSH*T: THERE'S ALREADY MORE SNOW THERE THIS YEAR AS COMPARED TO LAST YEAR.

WHAT IS MORE, THERE IS MORE NOW NOW THAN DURING THE ERA OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE - WHEN HUMANITY PRODUCED NO APPRECIABLE CO2, AND THEY DISAPPEARED COMPLETELY 7000 YEARS AGO.

THERE IS NO KNOWN NATURAL, SUPERNATURAL, OR MAN-MADE LAW THAT SNOWFALL MUST BE THE SAME EVERY YEAR. GORE AND THE IPCC CANNOT MAKE IT SO.

HERE'S TODAY'S EUROPEAN SNOW REPORT:

• It has been an amazing week for snowfall across Europe.

• Austria has received the most but the snow has started to move across into the more western countries of Europe.

• Val Thorens and Alpe d'Huez in France have received enough snow to enable them to open earlier than expected on this coming Saturday.

DON'T BELIEVE THE LEFTIST ECO-NUTSIE/SCAREMONGERS' PHONY SNOW REPORTS!]

Africa

Harvests could be cut by up to half in some countries by 2020, greatly increasing the threat of famine. Between 75 million and 250 million people are expected to be short of water within the next 30 years.

[BULLSH*T: AS BJORN LOMBORG HAS REPEATEDLY POINTED OUT, WE CAN IMPROVE AFRICA'S WATER SITUATION WITHOUT TRYING TO CHANGE THE GLOBAL CLIMATE - AND MORE QUICKLY AND MORE CHEAPLY AND WITHOUT ANY LEFTIST TAXES OR REDISTRIBUTION SCHEMES.

THE WATER PROBLEMS ARE SOLVABLE WITHOUT RESORTING TO GLOBAL LEFTIST SCHEMES. LOMBORG:

the most important human problem with water today is not scarcity but that too many people have no access to clean water and sanitation. That is a different assessment of the problem since the issue is a political one, not the result of an ecological catastrophe.

LOMBORG'S KEY POINT: THE LEFTIST ECON-NUTSIE PROPOSALS WILL DIVERT RESOURCES FROM REAL SOLUTIONS FOR THE REAL PROBLEMS HUMANITY FACES.]

REMEMBER THESE INDISPUTABLE FACTS:

• CO2 IS NON-TOXIC.

• CO2 IS A POOR CONDUCTOR.

• CO2 IS A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF THE ATMOSPHERE.

• CO2 IS A LAGGING INDICATOR OF PAST CLIMATE SHIFTS AND NOT A CAUSE.

• WATER VAPOR IS A BETTER CONDUCTOR AND MUCH MORE PREVALENT IN THE ATMOSPHERE.

• CLIMATE CHANGE IS NATURAL AND HAS OCCURRED MANY TIMES BEFORE HUMANITY PRODUCED ANY APPRECIABLE ATMOSPHERIC CO2.

DON'T BE FOOLED BY THE ECO-NUTSIE DEMAGOGUES: THE SKY AIN'T FALLING.

MORE TRUTHFUL LINKS HERE - AT ONE HAND CLAPPING.

WARNING: IF WE ELECT A DEMOCRAT OUR NATION WILL BE RULED BY THE UN'S IPCC

HYSTERICAL PROPAGANDA FROM THE TRANSNATIONAL LEFTIES:

AP: Panel: Earth Is Rapidly Getting Warmer

The Earth is hurtling toward a warmer climate at a quickening pace, a Nobel-winning U.N. scientific panel said in a landmark report released Saturday, warning of inevitable human suffering and the threat of extinction for some species.

After five days of sometimes tense negotiations, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change adopted its fourth and final report this year, along with a summary, on the science of climate change and the effects of human-produced greenhouse gases.

It lays out blueprints for avoiding the worst catastrophes - and various possible outcomes, depending on how quickly and decisively action is taken.

The document says recent research has heightened concern that the poor and the elderly will suffer most from climate change; that hunger and disease will be more common; that droughts, floods and heat waves will afflict the world's poorest regions; and that more animal and plant species will vanish.

Welcoming the report, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said climate change imperils "the most precious treasures of our planet."

The potential impact of global warming is "so severe and so sweeping that only urgent, global action will do," Ban told the IPCC after it issued the report.

The Summary for Policymakers, and a longer version called the synthesis report, distill thousands of pages of data and computer models resulting from six years of research compiled by the IPCC.

It will be a how-to guide for policy makers meeting in Bali, Indonesia, next month to discuss an agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. [KYOTO: A TREATY WHICH SET CONSITIONS WHICH NO COUNTRY MET!]

The report is important because it is adopted by consensus, meaning countries accept the underlying science and cannot disavow its conclusions. While it does not commit governments to a specific course of action, it provides a common scientific baseline for the political talks.

U.N. experts say a new global plan must be in place by 2009 to ensure a smooth transition after the expiration of the Kyoto terms, which require 36 industrial countries to radically reduce their carbon emissions by 2012.

"There are real and affordable ways to deal with climate change," Ban said. He said a new agreement should provide funding to help poor countries adopt clean energy and to adapt to changing climates.

Opening with a sweeping statement directed at climate change skeptics, the summary declares that climate systems have already begun to change.

Unless action is taken, human activity could lead to "abrupt and irreversible changes" that would make the planet unrecognizable.

Advocacy groups hailed the report as indispensable for the 10,000 delegates expected at Bali [FLYING TO THE CONFERENCE - IN CO2 EMITTING JETS, AND THEN STAYING IN A LUXURY RESORT FOR 20 DAYS AND MIGHTS].

Yet differences remain stark on how to control carbon emissions.

While the European Union has taken the lead in enforcing the carbon emission targets outlined in Kyoto [BUT FAILED TO MEET THE FOALS SET OUT IN THE TREATY!], the United States opted out of the 1997 accord.

IF THE USA ELECTS A DEMOCRAT, THEIR ADMINISTRATION WILL SURELY FOLLOW THE DICTATES OF THE TRANSNATIONAL ECO-NUTSIES.

• TAXES WILL RISE; UNEMPLOYMENT WILL RISE; ENERGY COSTS WILL RISE - AND S WILL "MAN-MADE" CO2, IF THE EU'S RESULTS SO FAR ARE ANY INDICATION!

• THIS WHOLE ENTIRE SCARE-EFFORT BY THE ECO-NUTSIES IS BEING ENGINEERED BY THE LEFT IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH THEIR LONG-HELD LONG-TERM GOALS: RAISING TAXES ON INDUSTRY AND THE FREE-MARKET AND REDISTRIBUTING THE REVENUES TO THEIR PET CAUSES.

DON'T FALL FOR IT! AGW IS BS. TOTAL UNADULTERATED BULLSHIT:

• CLIMATE CHANGE IS NATURAL. THE DEGREE OF CHANGE NOW IS TOTALLY WITHIN RANGE OF CHANGES OF THE PAST - BEFORE THERE WAS ANY MAN-MADE CO2.

• CO2 MAKES UP LESS THAN 1% OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND IS A POOR CONDUCTOR WHICH IS NON-TOXIC.

• CO2 INCREASES ARE A LAGGING INDICATOR AND NOT A CAUSE OF GLOBAL WARMING.

• WATER VAPOR MAKES UP A MUCH HIGHER PERCENTAGE OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND WATER IS A MUCH MORE EFFICIENT CONDUCTOR.

THE ANTI-CO2 EFFORT IS A COMPLETE HOAX.

IT CANNOT CHANGE THE CLIMATE. IT IS A WASTE OF TIME - EXCEPT FOR TRANSNATIONAL LEFTISTS SEEKING POWER OVER YOUR LIFE.

MORE ECO-NUTSIE HYSTERIA HERE.

AND HERE.

"A WHOLE NEW ERA OF JUDICIAL REVIEW": THE ECO-SOCIALIST NIGHTMARE HAS ARRIVED: "ECO-JUDGES"

NYTIMES:

Patrick A. Parenteau, an environmental law professor at Vermont Law School. ..“Climate change has ushered in a whole new era of judicial review.”

THE LEFT IS HAPPY ABOUT THIS.

MORE:

A federal appeals court here rejected the Bush administration’s year-old fuel-economy standards for light trucks and sport utility vehicles on Thursday, saying that they were not tough enough because regulators had failed to thoroughly assess the economic impact of tailpipe emissions that contribute to climate change.

A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, in San Francisco, voided the new regulations for 2008-2011 model year vehicles and told the Transportation Department to produce new rules taking into account the value of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The court, siding with 4 environmental groups and 13 states and cities, also asked the government to explain why it still treated light trucks — which include pickups, sport utility vehicles and minivans — more mildly than passenger cars.

Under the rejected rule, the average fuel economy of light trucks was to rise to 23.5 miles a gallon in 2010, up from the current standard of 22.5 m.p.g., but still well below the current standard for passenger cars of 27.5 m.p.g.

The ruling, which is likely to be appealed to the United States Supreme Court, represents a major setback for both the auto industry and the White House at a time of growing public concern over the rising price of gasoline and the issue of climate change.

... It was the third federal court ruling in seven months pressing regulators to take the risk of climate change into consideration as they set standards for industries that emit carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases produced when oil, coal and natural gas are burned to produce energy.

• LEFTISTS LOVE IT WHEN JUDGES MAKE POLICY.

• IT'S NOTHING MORE THAN JUDICIAL TYRANNY.

• OUR ELECTED LEADERS SHOULD MAKE LAW, NOT JUDGES.

• THIS PARTICULARLY SICKENING BECAUSE CO2 HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH CLIMATE CHANGE OR GLOBAL WARMING.

• THE LEFT HAS PROPAGANDIZED THE CONNECTION PRECISELY TO GET THIS KIND OF RESULT.

• IT'S THE BEGINNINGS OF A SOCIALIST TYRANNY.

AGW SKEPTICS AGREE WITH JONI MITCHELL

Scientists dispute anthropogenic global warming. Why?

Turns out... THEM AGW FOLKS REALLY DON'T KNOW CLOUDS, AT ALL.



1970 - ACOUSTIC SOLO VERSION:

COAL IS NOW 1/5 THE PRICE OF OIL

It's time to use the coal we got - and the USA has more than just about anybody.

The only thing holding us back is the CO2/AGW MYTH - and the Left!

If we MERELY ANNOUNCED that we were going to start building more coal-burning power-plants, and nuclear plants and begin oil drilling off the coast of CA and FL then oil would IMMEDIATELY drop in price.

REPEAT: The only thing holding us back the Left and the Dems.

I BLAME GORE!

BLOOMBERG NEWS:

Gore Nightmare Wins as Europe Pays to Ship U.S. Coal (Update1)
By Christopher Martin

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Now that the price of coal is at a historic low relative to oil, there's no stopping consumers and producers alike from embracing Al Gore's nightmare.

A ton of U.S. coal is so cheap at about $47 that European utilities will pay $50 to ship it across the Atlantic, according to Galbraith's Ltd., a 263-year-old London shipbroker. While oil and coal cost the same as recently as 1998, West Texas Intermediate crude is five times more expensive after climbing to a record $96.24 on Nov. 1.

Peabody Energy Corp., Consol Energy Inc. and Arch Coal Inc., the three biggest U.S. coal companies, forecast the largest increase in exports in 20 years, degrading the call for a moratorium on coal plants by former U.S. Vice President and this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore. Coal use worldwide has grown 27 percent since 2002, three times faster than crude, said BP Plc. U.S. East Coast coal has risen 71 percent, while oil tripled on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

"Coal is by far the cheapest fuel because there's no price on how much damage it causes,'' said John Holdren, a Harvard University professor of environmental science and director of the Woods Hole Research Center in Falmouth, Massachusetts. ``Unless you get policies to put a price on carbon dioxide and other emissions, no other plants can compete.''

U.S. coal prices are equal to $1.98 for each million British thermal units of energy, compared with $12.51 for fuel oil and $6.91 for natural gas, data compiled by Bloomberg show. A million British thermal units is the equivalent of eight gallons of gasoline.

Coal Companies

"There is a huge advantage with coal, and this will continue indefinitely,'' said Gianfilippo Mancini, the head of fuel purchasing for Enel SpA, Italy's largest power company, which is spending 4 billion euros ($5.8 billion) to convert oil-fed plants to run on coal.

Gore, 59, said five months ago the U.S. should adopt a ``complete moratorium'' on new coal-fed power plants unless all of the carbon dioxide from them can be buried underground. Government efforts to subsidize coal as an alternative to oil would be a ``serious mistake,'' he said in a June 1 interview on ``Conversations with Judy Woodruff'' on Bloomberg Television.

U.S. coal exports to Europe for the first nine months of this year were 11.4 million tons, up 15 percent from the same period in 2006, according to the U.S. Energy Department. Coal generates 41 percent of the world's man-made carbon dioxide emissions, blamed for the warming of the Earth's climate, Gulf of Mexico hurricanes and rising sea levels.

Stock Forecasts

The increased demand for coal boosted Peabody, Arch and Consol 36 percent from Aug. 3 to Nov. 2 in New York trading, according to Bloomberg's U.S. coal index. Among Wall Street analysts, 76 percent recommend buying shares of Peabody and 62 percent recommend Consol, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Consol shares may gain 41 percent to $78, forecasts David M. Khani, the head of research at Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. whose call on the stock last year provided 50 percent returns for investors, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. He expects Peabody to increase 25 percent to $64 and Arch Coal by 48 percent to $58. "Consol is in a great position to take a big share of the new demand from Europe,'' said Bill Wolf, an analyst at John T. Boyd & Co. in Pittsburgh, which advises coal buyers and mining companies.

Consol operates a port in Baltimore that can handle more than twice the 6.3 million tons it shipped last year.

Pittsburgh-based Consol will open its largest metallurgical coal mine by Jan. 1, with as much as 5 million tons of annual production available to overseas buyers.

Climate Changes

More than 1,000 coal-fed power plants will be built in the next five years, mostly in China and India, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. China, the world's biggest coal producer, became a net importer for the first time this year, taking supplies from Indonesia, Australia and South Africa and reducing the amount available for Europe

"If those 1,000 plants get built without any controls on carbon emissions, we will careen into unmanageable changes in our climate,'' the 63-year-old Holdren said in an interview. ``We need to motivate carbon capture and storage through policy. We will still be using coal, but in much smarter ways. It doesn't have to be an economy buster."

India needs to add 40,000 megawatts a year, or 30 percent of current capacity, to maintain its 8 percent economic growth, said Jayarama Chalasani, director at Mumbai-based Reliance Energy Ltd., India's second-biggest utility.

"Growth Is There"

"What we're seeing right now is just great,'' said Sipho Nkosi, chief executive officer of Exxaro Resources Ltd., the South African coal and zinc producer. The rally in prices ``will continue because if you look at the projections in China, the growth there is just phenomenal. Whether you're talking America, Europe, Africa, Australia, Asia, all economies are doing well. The growth is there."

To be sure, proposed U.S. coal plants may not be completed because of regulatory and environmental opposition. Kansas regulators last month rejected a permit for a coal-fueled plant because its carbon emissions were deemed a health hazard.

New cleaner-burning technologies for coal, such as one that converts the fuel to a synthetic gas, have been delayed or rejected as too costly. Financing new coal plants may also become more difficult as environmental groups step up efforts against lenders including Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. Coal producers in the U.S. say sales in emerging markets are rising.

U.S. Exports

"I didn't know how to get coal to Romania a month ago but I do now,'' said Michael McQuillen, chief executive officer of Alpha Natural Resources Inc., the coal miner in Virginia formed by First Reserve Corp., the largest private equity firm focused on energy assets. Russia, Ukraine and Romania are all looking to buy from the U.S., he said.

U.S. coal exports have increased 37 percent this year and will continue to climb because of record global demand and a weaker dollar, analysts and executives say

Port operator Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP, a U.S. pipeline operator, plans to expand its capacity to handle more coal as China, the world's largest producer, becomes a net importer and Australian exports are delayed.

"We see increased interest in coal exports at all of our locations,'' said Emily Thompson, a spokeswoman for Houston-based Kinder Morgan.

Reliapundit: I couldn't have said it better myself! I'd only add this:

I think that expanding domestic energy exploitation and and ending illegal immigration should be the two biggest issues for the GOP.

Bush and the GOP in Congress should start making good proposals on these two issues and not relent until next fall.

If they do they will win. That's because most Americans want us to stop buying oil from overseas, and stop the illegals from flooding in.

The GOP can and should make proposals on both and force the Dems to vote against them. This will alienate the public from the Dems.