Citizen Pirate

“Citizen Pirate” is a brief recap of how an individual takes it upon himself to try and destroy an “Independent” oil company trying to break into the lucrative Alaska oil exploration to exploitation business without regard for the environment; to be published on this site on March 17^th.

Seaton – HB131

Dear Representative Paul Seaton(Pub-Homer): 

Thank you for sponsoring HB131, which takes aim at Alaska’s abandoned ships! It appears that there exists today an eyesore and prime example of what your bill supposedly will fix, so please hurry this bill through the House. I am talking the abandonment of a particular vessel with “NO” active plans for utilization, now or in the future, derelict and already declared “unfit” and something we Alaskan do not want to get stuck with when its current owner “abandons the ship”. So thanks again, with coming up with a bill that takes care of the “M.V. Susitna”!

Meat for the Press

Boehner: “I don’t think anyone quite understands’ how sequestration gets resolved”. 

Americans: “We don’t think anyone quite understands’ how Congress gets resolved”

seCASTRATION?

Alaska Is...

Unique Characteristics of Alaska

Alaska is located 9.5 hours from 90% of the world, borders with Canada, and is 55 miles from Russia. Alaska has a larger coastline than that of the continental United States. Native Tribal islands are located on international borders. Alaska is a landing zone for international MEDEVACs, emergencies, diversions, and corporate aviation traveling to and from the Far East. As northern sea ice melts, Alaska’s shipping market has seen growing international cruise and cargo maritime activity.

Did Sarah get a new job?

Wow for Kerry!

John Forbes Kerry, newly nominated United States Secretary of State who during the Congressional hearings complained with a smile that he had some pretty “high” heels to fill, with reference to Hillary in this same position the last 4-years, Kerry has delivered a gift to the Syrian “Freedom Fighters”. Yes indeed, $60-million from the Heinz Ketchup and Forbes wealth – a gift from his inherited estate along with a gift from his wife's inherited estate. Kerry originates from the Forbes dynasty. His wife, from the Heinz dynasty – remember that the next time you eat a french-fry! So I am glad that Obama picked somebody with so much disposable wealth, and if we can't get our fair share of taxation from the wealthy - the 1% - then maybe by humanitarian giveaways we can recoup some of that loss. I guess Kerry wanted the United States to kick in some loot for the cause, but with growing deficits and sequestration about to kick in, there is not much to go around and what is available needs to stay put, right here in the Homeland. So thanks Mr. Secretary of Estate John Kerry, for realizing that you can't take it with you and helping out the “Freedom Fighters” in Syria. Buddy can you spare a dime rings true!

Disappointment?

Of course it is a disappointment that SHELL is calling it quits for awhile in its efforts to try an drill for oil where no reasonable Company Man has drilled before. Company Man? But this disappointment is the sentiment of two individuals only! Yes, Alaska Senator MoanaLisa MurCowpie and the state of Alaska Governor, Sean Parnell. SHELL is a multi-billion dollar global corporation that has the loot and the engineering knowhow to fix any problems it encountered last year. It enjoys this kind of challenge, wherein failure is not an option! And remember, it had two different drilling programs, one in the Chukchi and the other in the Beaufort. So to see such a halt in both programs points to something else in the excuse category, other then needing more time to get over the so far failures. Anybody with knowledge of what it takes to sink holes in the ocean floor, it's done all the time! In the short 2013 drilling period that was delayed for many reasons, SHELL was able to set anchors on “X” marks the spot and install ocean floor based conduits, per-requiste requirements for drilling, which is pretty monumental when one considers the environment and the short season before “Ice In”. Now all that is left is the setting of a drilling rig, signaling the rig into action and capturing a sample, maybe three-weeks worth of work. After that, entomb the “Tight Hole” with concrete and go home. Remember, this is all part of the “Exploration” program, to snatch a sample and perform a flow-test in efforts to delineate the prospect for future exploitation potential. And the sooner a company delineates a prospect and can calculate that fields potential, it makes the investors smile. There's oil there, no doubt about it. Getting it into production is an entirely different scenario, that is where the real regulations come into being. Bottom-line, to get a sample and flow-test, it is worth $millions$ to SHELL, even if it never tackles trying to get that oil out of the ground. By adding a “reserve” to the company's portfolio, it adds value to the stock, it is all that simple. So why is SHELL calling it quits? They are smart and realize that a drilling program plagued by equipment malfunctions could be plagued by legal problems by the time the 2013 drilling season erupts - later this year. Equipment malfunctions can be addressed, with loot and talent. But when it comes to the legal arena, it takes a whole lot of extra loot and talent comes from a legal team – the latter being a messy proposition, with lawyers and depositions, that sort of thing different. SHELL is an oil company, not a litigation company by choice! Not that SHELL did anything wrong, but there exists enough information that points a finger of guilt, possibly at the “Dis-appointees”. I am going to go out on a limb and make a prediction. A member of the Alaska delegation will be in a whole lot of “hot water” by this time next year, possibly in jail, unless she has found a ways and means to hide out this one! OK, immunity doesn't allow for time behind bars and even though Tom Delay was indicted and given “time”, he is still a free man! But the “hot water” is another issue! The evidence that I am talking about has been well documented in this blog. The reason that SHELL is sidelining its drilling program must be based in part to upcoming investigations. In December, when all was well on the surface, the Aiviq lost power and then lost the tow line that held secure the Kulluk drilling ship and grounded the rig, that episode allowed interference by the Coast Guard. Now the Coast Guard has turned over it findings to the United States Department of Justice? That means John Law is getting involved and this is far from normal! This is serious, as it appears that the CG Commander has found something that was “illegal”, some things lending itself to the possibility of “environmental crimes”! It's ugly, as the EPA has jurisdiction over issues in that category, so why has the CG sidetracked that entity's responsibility – to get involved? Why the CG has turned over information to the Obama administration without first turning to the EPA's “Enforcement & Compliance” division for help, it shows something rather peculiar. And here it is again in a nutshell. When SHELL sailed into Dutch Harbor last year to get a quick bite before sailing north to the Chukchi and Beaufort, before the EPA would christen the flotilla, the fuel samples had to be tested - as part of the “Air Quality” permit issued by the EPA. No big deal, as this was just a formality any like project would be confronted with. But when the samples arrived to a private testing facility in North Pole, as that was the only laboratory fit and certified to perform the fuel sample testing, the fuel was deemed “contaminated”. With that result, it means a fuel containing well over 15ppm of sulfur, and it was supposed to be fuel approved for diesel engines, with less then 15ppm so the boat engines could limit how much pollution was necessary to drill for the “Black Gold”. So maybe it was a glitch in the testing, just run a re-test. But when all the fuel tanks were sampled and tested again, same results of contamination and it was showing not one exception, all the samples still marked “Failed”. This was starting to cost SHELL costly delays, as to get additional samples from Dutch Harbor to Santa's Village, we are talking several days and this was at a time that the scouts were relaying back to base camp that the ice was starting to move in. More samples showed the same pathetic failure. Which meant that somewhere along the way SHELL had purchased fuel that was marked as “Low Sulfur Diesel” but in reality it was not. This should have started an investigation all on its own accord! After about a week, more samples, same damn thing, marked as “Failed”. Which meant SHELL was going nowhere but maybe back home. Then like a magic wand, everything was “OK”! Look, this occurred in Dutch Harbor. There was no way that the “rotten” fuel could have been flushed and replenished, as we are talking boatloads of fuel for the escort flotilla. When this occurred, because I was privy to the sampling failures, I did file a concern with the EPA and asked the EPA person in charge of the SHELL venture if the EPA had field people at site that were monitoring the sampling? I have been in these same circumstances before, and contractors like to be heroes – get my drift! I was told to visit the EPA website to educate myself on what the EPA does for a living. This was the typical cop out from an institution that has been under the gun by Congress, namely Lisa MurKowski on the attack. Somehow, the SHELL flotilla was allowed to sail north, with contaminated fuel. It was already an environmental crime in the making. It would mean a simple fine once the EPA collected the engine reports, but why in hell did the EPA let SHELL sail? That answer is not a hard one to figure out! Force majeure ring a bell? This occurred, and now we see the outcome, as it is in the hands of Eric Holder and Company. What they may find, it is anybody's guess. But I bet heads will roll, in the EPA when all the time they may have been trying to do their job, but interfered upon and told under no uncertain circumstances to continue to delay this venture and leave it all alone. So I ask, who in power doesn't like the EPA? Who in power gets campaign contributions from “Big Oil”? What state was to benefit from SHELL's venture into the Arctic Oceans? Who is all for drilling in inhospitable places? I'd be hiding too!

Call for Action

It may be a sad day in American history from sea to shining sea, before this days ending. If the United States Supreme Court's Chief Justice Gerry Mandering allows the Supreme Beings to challenge the “Right of the People”, we have found and entered Apocalypse Now. Call it the United States of America vs. the Misguided United States Supreme Court, and if this trial without a jury is allowed and the Court renders an opinion contrary to what was passed by the United States Congress, not once but on 4-different occasions wherein it was up for a re-vote the “Voting Rights Act” in its entirety as set out in this 1965 landmark legislation, then the Constitution has been been brutally attacked. When is it and how is it that the Supreme Beings can trump what was passed “By the People and For the People”, through the Congress with a unanimous vote of confidence then signed into “Public Law” by the United States President? This amounts to a mutiny, a coup, fostered by the neo-snotzi-conservative party wherein the Sardine puss should be deported off the bench! We vote for the Congress, as that body of government is supposed to look after the good of the nation. Congress is “OUR” only vote on issues of importance, no way around it unless Fascism has taken over democracy. In the “Voting Rights Act”, this is what may happen, the high Court rendering a decision that strikes down some of the wording in the “Act”, wording which has helped this country be a better neighbor when it comes to respecting the fact that every person of American citizenship must be able to exercise that right to vote. I don't want the Supreme Court to have the power to dismantle “Public Law” that has worked, the Constitution did not give them that right by any stretch of the imagination! “We the People” did not give them such authority and they know it but are poised to take advantage of the fact that Congress is wounded and weak. Treason seems very close this decision! This my friend is when we need the action committees to posse up and bare whatever we need to stop this “power creep”. If Congress fails to stop this action by this court, we must rally and stand our ground against the Supreme Court, to force a discontinuation this entity until such time that body understands its limit of power. If it is not clear as to what that power is, then something needs re-writing and it can be found in the Constitution. What you mean the existing Supreme Court questions the validity of the United States Constitution? What is happening to America? France, please take the Statue of Liberty back home, as America appears to be no longer a home for the tired, the poor and the huddled masses! This cannot be happening, NOT on our watch. It is unprecedented, that a faction so minute and without anything close to a majority role in government have such power, to tell the Congress they were wrong and challenge that body “Of the People” then change “Public Law” already in effect. If the Supreme Court has such power, then “No taxation without representation” finds new meaning! If the Supreme Court can get away with it, then they have more power then the “People”, and that is not what the Red, White and Blue stands for and it is borderline dangerous. Look, if Congress passes legislation that the “People” don't like, that is what the “vote” is all about, just as powerful. We have an out if they do something we don't like, it is called booting them out of office. We have not that freedom with the Supreme Court nominees for life, as they are not supposed to get involved like this as it is like a “cease and desist” order upon that vote and liberty. And when the “vote” finds itself abolished and under attack as is the case with the high Court getting involved in something that works but goes against the grain of the neo-conservative right wing fascist and this select group of individuals seem to think they have the power to change things that have already found its way through Congress and the Oval Office, we need action immediately. Sad it is! I'm packing as it is time to man the front-line! Attention....Wow, there's a bright light in the tower at North Church!