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Storm Impedes Salvage of Shell Drilling Ship Grounded in Alaska

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska – High seas and strong winds prevented crews from boarding an oil drilling ship to check for any damage after the large vessel went aground off an uninhabited island in the Gulf of Alaska.

A Coast Guard plane and a helicopter flew over the Kulluk on Tuesday, but severe weather did not permit putting marine experts on board the drilling rig, which had grounded on a sand and gravel beach in stormy seas.

Federal on-scene response coordinator Capt. Paul Mehler said the Royal Dutch Shell drilling rig is carrying about 143,000 gallons of diesel and about 12,000 gallons of lube oil and hydraulic fluid, and appeared stable.

“There is no sign of a release of any product,” Mehler said during a news conference.

A team of company, Coast Guard and local officials said they were mobilizing spill response equipment and preparing a plan in the event of a spill in the Partition Cove and Ocean Bay areas of the island. The area is home to at least two endangered species, as well as harbor seals, salmon, and sea lions.

Read more from this story HERE.

Obama’s Orwellian Double-Speak: I’ve Made the US ‘Safer, Stronger and More Respected in the World’

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At yesterday’s nomination of Senator John Kerry as the United States’ next Secretary of State, Obama made the ridiculous statement that he’d made the US “safer, stronger and more respected in the world.”

How any American could possibly believe this crazy talk is beyond me.

Anyone who spends more than a minute or two each day reviewing the news can see that Obama’s entire Middle East policy has completely unraveled, leaving the world deeply destabilized.

Obama thinks things are safer? How about Iran’s ever-advancing nuclear program, with its weapons manufacturing now buried so deep underground that it’s immune from our bombs. Iran has been so emboldened by Obama that, according to Hillary Clinton, the Persians are now spreading terrorism to our next door neighbor, Mexico, and creating new alliances with drug cartels.

And respect? Is that how our ambassador in Benghazi was treated?

Things aren’t much better in Iraq. There, fatwas have issued, encouraging the killing of Christians. Much of the vibrant Christian Iraqi community has fled the country. Similarly, in Syria, US-backed rebels are suspected of using the cover of civil war to murder minority Christians. Minority religious groups are literally under the gun in Egypt now, too.

Obama’s fingerprints are all over this growing Egyptian problem, where we exchanged one pro-American dictator for an anti-American, anti-Semitic dictator. According to an Egyptian opposition leader with whom I spoke with this week, the Obama administration actually pressured the Egyptian military to “fix” the vote to ensure that the Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate, Mohammed Morsi, won.

Now that Obama helped this radical into office, President Morsi has attempted to seize broad, unconstitutional powers. His supporters have used torture, rape and sexual assault to stifle dissent. And the media refuses to provide fair coverage.

The globalist Henry Kissinger seems to recognize where Obama is headed with these pro-Muslim Brotherhood policies, suggesting that Israel will cease to exist in ten years.

It can’t help that Syria has likely gained ballistic missiles as a result of our meddling there.

How about China, thumbing its nose at the US and threatening our Japanese ally over its long held control of several remote islands in the Pacific Ocean? And this is not the only place in the Pacific where the Chinese are flexing their muscle and threatening massive global disorder.

There’s no doubt that Obama’s full-body embrace with the Muslim Brotherhood has been one of the most catastrophic foreign policy blunders of recent history. That, combined with Obama’s coddling of Chavez, refusal to stand up to China, passivity to Russian aggression (submarines off the US coast, bombers near Alaska airspace), social experimentation in the US military, and other apparent missteps, make it clear that Obama has not given us a safer world. His actions have encouraged derision, instability, and a far more insecure future.

Untold Story of 2012 Election: GOP Thrives Outside Beltway

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Once again, the collective wisdom among the talking heads on TV, editorial boards across the country and the consultant class on both the right and the left is that the Republican Party is on the ropes and basically needs to become more like the Democratic Party if it wants to survive. One hears this “helpful advice” with some skepticism, as it is a verbatim repeat of the voices of 1964, 1974, 1982, 1986, 1992 and more recently 2008. That history and more importantly, a look at the hard numbers tell a different story.

Republicans made historic gains at the state level in 2010, hitting their historical high watermark with a gain of more than 700 seats and securing control of 61 legislative chambers. A look at what happened last Tuesday shows that while Democrats had a good day at the federal level, Americans just reaffirmed the decision they made two years ago to put a majority of state legislative chambers in Republican control. And despite outrage from folks like Rachel Maddow over the reforms enacted by GOP-controlled legislatures over the past two years, in the same election that Americans reelected Barack Obama, they also issued a vote of confidence in what Republicans have done to put state fiscal houses in order.

Standing in stark contrast to the outcome of the presidential and U.S. Senate races, Republicans strengthened their control of state capitols on Nov. 6. The GOP went into 2012 with unified control of the governor’s mansions and legislatures in 24 states and will come out with full political control of 25 states. Democrats will head into 2013 with a disadvantage at the state level, having total control of just 13 states.

This is significant. While we may expect more of the gridlock in Washington that we’ve have seen over the past two years – evidenced by President Barack Obama’s continued insistence on tax hikes on small businesses and a GOP House majority returning to Capitol Hill with a fresh mandate to continue opposing them — the states, over three-quarters of which are completely controlled by Republicans or Democrats, are unobstructed from moving in whichever direction the party in power chooses.

In these single party states, we will get to see each party test its product and observe the results. Californians just voted for a $7 billion annual tax hike and awarded Democrats a supermajority of the Legislature, giving them free reign to pass further tax increases on energy, soda, plastic bags and a host of other new levies that they have long wanted to impose but couldn’t. The fact that California has a two-thirds vote requirement to raise taxes and that the GOP had over a third of the seats in that Legislature was the only thing preventing the tax floodgates from opening in Sacramento. That check is no longer there.

Read more from this article HERE.

Russia declares “ownership” of Arctic Ocean Region Adjacent to Alaska by Russian Orthodox Consecration

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Photo credit: NASA Goddard

Russia has taken a bizarre step to declare its “ownership” of the Arctic Ocean region by having a Russian Orthodox bishop “consecrate” the North Pole on behalf of the church.

According to the Daily Telegraph, a bishop named Iakov of the northern Naryan-Mar (which lies north of the Arctic Circle) placed a “holy memorial capsule” into the icy sea while aboard the Rossiya, a nuclear-powered icebreaker during a polar expedition arranged by Russia’s Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute.

The capsule featured an inscription that read: “With the blessing of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the consecration of the North Pole marks 1,150 years of Russian Statehood.”

Moscow is keen to assert its domination of the Arctic, given the huge reserves of untapped oil and gas believed to reside in the region, and has also accelerated its remilitarization there. Reportedly, the Russian military’s MiG-31 supersonic interceptor aircraft will be deployed in the Arctic region by the end of this year.

According to Bishop Iakov, the consecration is important to both the Orthodox Church and the Russian people for it “symbolizes the efforts of the state to recover the positions of Russia and confirmation of its achievements in the Arctic.”

Read more from this story HERE.

EPA’s Alaska Power-Grab Will Hurt the Nation

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Photo credit: NPCA Photos

That’s because the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is about to lock some of America’s poorest communities into a permanent economic depression as a favor to national environmental groups. If the EPA succeeds, what happens in Alaska won’t stay in Alaska – there will be huge economic and employment consequences for the rest of the country.

The Pebble Project is a proposed copper mine about 15 miles from my hometown of Iliamna in southwestern Alaska. The Pebble deposit contains one of the world’s largest discoveries of copper, and if the proposed mine secures more than 60 different regulatory approvals from about a dozen state and federal agencies, the project would create about 2,000 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent positions. For permitting, the developers will have to prove to regulators the project will not harm the surrounding environment, including Bristol Bay’s sockeye salmon population.

The Pebble Partnership has invested $120 million so far on environmental and socioeconomic studies that will be used to develop a formal permit application, which regulators will spend three to five years reviewing. But that’s not good enough for the national environmental groups who oppose the Pebble mine. Instead, they want the EPA to take the unprecedented and probably unlawful step of using Section 404 of the Clean Water Act to preemptively veto the project before any permit applications can be filed. The EPA appears to be following those marching orders, because in May the agency issued a draft report stating that a copper mine in the Bristol Bay Watershed would likely harm salmon populations. If the draft report is finalized, the EPA could then veto all mining activity in the region.

The State of Alaska is deeply troubled by this potential EPA power grab, as the Pebble site is located on state-owned land that’s been set aside for mineral development. The EPA’s draft report is essentially a literature review that contains no new or on-the-ground scientific research conducted as part of the assessment. Without a permit application, the EPA made up its own mine plan, assuming environmentally harmful technologies and practices “from the late 1800 and early 1900s” – historic examples that do not apply directly to a modern mine under current regulations , according to Alaska’s Department of Natural Resources. The draft report presents a “biased picture of only adverse impacts of a hypothetical mine,” and key sections “start with conclusions, and then subsequently follow with facts that support the conclusion,” which is “inappropriate for a scientific document developed by a regulatory agency.” But of all the State of Alaska’s criticisms, this was perhaps the most revealing: “No reference to, or consideration of, winter freezing or permafrost is provided in the risk assessment.” That’s right – the EPA wrote a report about Alaska and forgot the part about winter.

Read more from this story HERE.

Alaska Pursuing Shale Oil to Fill Pipeline

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Canada may have its Albertan oil sands, and North Dakota has its Bakken oil formation. But don’t count Alaska out when it comes to producing unconventional oil.

Alaska, which has fallen behind North Dakota in oil output and whose Prudhoe Bay oil fields are waning, is exploring the possibility of extracting oil from the source rock on the state’s North Slope. The state has leased more than half a million acres of its land to exploration companies, and even some environmentalists believe that the shale oil development could be the best way to increase output with relatively modest damage to the environment.

As in shale developments in Texas, North Dakota and elsewhere in the lower 48 states, the key to unlocking Alaska’s shale oil is a combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, a method of injecting a mix of water, sand and chemicals at high pressure to free up captured oil and gas.

As in Canada and North Dakota, a pipeline is playing a key role in the public debate over this new technological frontier. But whereas a new pipeline — the Keystone XL extension — is needed to get oil to markets in the lower 48, the quandary in Alaska is how to fill the existing Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. That pipeline is operating at less than one-third of its total capacity, as the Prudhoe Bay fields decline.

For the moment, it remains unclear whether Alaska can replicate the shale oil boom that is reshaping North Dakota and parts of Texas. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) issued its first assessment of the North Slope’s shale rock resources in February, estimating that the region contained between zero and 2 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil, along with between zero and 80 trillion cubic feet of gas.

Read more from this story HERE.

Remote Alaska to Stockpile Food, Just in Case

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Photo credit: Christie 13

Alaska is known for pioneering, self-reliant residents who are accustomed to remote locations and harsh weather. Despite that, Gov. Sean Parnell worries a major earthquake or volcanic eruption could leave the state’s 720,000 residents stranded and cut off from food and supply lines. His answer: Build giant warehouses full of emergency food and supplies, just in case.

For some in the lower 48, it may seem like an extreme step. But Parnell says this is just Alaska.

In many ways, the state is no different than the rest of America. Most people buy their groceries at stores, and rely on a central grid for power and heat. But, unlike the rest of the lower 48, help isn’t a few miles away. When a fall storm cut off Nome from its final fuel supply last winter, a Russian tanker spent weeks breaking through thick ice to reach the remote town.

Weather isn’t the only thing that can wreak havoc in Alaska, where small planes are a preferred mode of transportation and the drive from Seattle to Juneau requires a ferry ride and 38 hours in a car. The state’s worst natural disaster was in 1964, when a magnitude-9.2 earthquake and resulting tsunami killed 131 people and disrupted electrical systems, water mains and communication lines in Anchorage and other cities.

“We have a different motivation to do this, because help is a long ways away,” said John Madden, Alaska’s emergency management director.

Read more from this story HERE.

Alaska’s primary election: One of the most important in the history of our state, page 4

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Photo credit: roger4336

The other primary race that is of interest in the Valley is the three-way Republican Primary between Ralph Seekins, Click Bishop and a Valley political newbie, David Eastman. Seekins and Bishop are both well know in the Fairbanks area and Eastman is known more in the Valley. What is unknown is how Bishop will play with the Democrats in the Senate. Bishop is known for his very strong union ties. Eastman, a strong pro-life conservative, is new to the field with little apparent backing but he says he has “lots of volunteers.” Seekins is well known around the state and is considered a conservative. Of the three, Eastman and Seekins are considered to be the most conservative. As a Republican, it is hoped Bishop will publically commit to NOT organize with the Democrats before informed voters support him. He has not made such a promise yet. I hope the voters ask the tough questions about who he will support for the Senate leadership.

The other general (November) race of interest in the Fairbanks area is the Coghill-Thomas race. Both names are well known and respected in the Fairbanks area. That race presents a clear choice: Thomas is a Democrat and will roll with the Dems, while Coghill is a proven conservative with a long family political history in Alaska.

I hope this analysis helps voters make wise choices for the future of Alaska. I ask each and every one of you to make a difference and call your friends, relatives and co-workers and encourage then to vote on Aug 28th. This is one election where every vote will count and have great impact on the very existence of the Alaskan lifestyle as we know it and your family’s investments in Alaska.

Bottom line: Research the candidates in your area and make an informed vote in the Republican Primary August 28th.

Alaska’s primary election: One of the most important in the history of our state

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Photo credit: roger4336

Alaska’s primary election is one of the most important in the history of our state. Alaska is at a watershed moment when a very small percentage of voters will literally chart the course of the future of our State. This primary will decide if the current gang of Democrats and their minority of Republican enablers will continue to dominate the State Senate and thus further bankrupt Alaska’s future with more government, bigger spending and virtually killing any conservative pro-business legislation. It is imperative to take back the Senate and require all Republicans to meet in the same room to not allow the skillful democrat leaders to divide and conquer the Republicans. Republican voters must insist that their elected representatives and senators pledge to caucus with Republicans first. Your primary vote during this primary election is more critical than ever before. With the low turnout of a typical primary, your vote will count more than usual.

Also on the ballot is Prop 2, a reconstitution of the Coastal Zone Management (CZM) program. The unanimously passed House version of the Coastal Zone Management program died last year when Senate Majority Democrats foisted their demand that the only version of the CZM that would pass would give literal local veto power over projects. At risk is any offshore development off the NW Arctic Coast. With local control, the only development that would possibly happen would be at the whim of a local Coastal Zone Management Board. This is bad state and national policy as it undermines the authority of both. This latest version was written by environmental attorneys and will create more layers of government and strangle responsible development. With the TAPS pipeline in dire need of feedstock, now is not the time to add unreasonable layers of regulatory burden to its possible demise.

The balance of power in the Senate is literally hanging on a few votes. There are a number of key races that will determine whether the Democratic senate coalition survives or not. For my Valley neighbors, there are several races of interest. I will attempt to give an overview of these races for the readers.

The most high profile Valley race is the race between Linda Menard and Mike Dunleavy. Linda is the incumbent from a well-know Valley family and for the most part is very personable. Linda, however, has a dismal legislative track record, having supported the Democratic leadership of the Senate, after promising in writing that she would not. This is not surprising, as many years ago, her husband Kurt Menard, switched from a Republican to a Democrat minutes before the filing deadline for a senate seat, which ended up giving control of the Senate to the Democrats.

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Alaska’s primary election: One of the most important in the history of our state, page 2

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Photo credit: roger4336

Menard has passed only two insignificant bills, the Marmot Day bill, and a bill creating a vanity license plate. She did however passionately fight (but failed) to add a verse to the Alaska State Song. Her own majority member, Senate Finance Chairman Bert Steadman (R) Sitka, said to the Daily News that her presentation on the KUBATA (Point Mac-Anch bridge) to the Senate Finance Committee was the worst presentation he had ever seen (or words to that effect). The Daily News reported that she was joyfully skipping down the halls of the Capitol singing “hallelujah” when the special session on the Governor’s oil tax bill was ended, saying that her stomach could not take the stress of more time in special session. She threw a very pro-hunting Fairbanks nominee to the Game Board under the bus by voting “no” for his confirmation. Additionally, while recently touting she is the “Valley Conservative” she is, in fact, heavily supported by Labor, with NEA union lobbyists purportedly going door to door for her. While she was President of the Mat Su School Board, she was sanctioned by the School Board for improperly influencing a school principle in a personnel matter involving a family member.

Menard’s challenger is Mike Dunleavy. Dunleavy is a strong contrast to Menard. The headline “head and shoulders above the rest” is a great description of Mike Dunleavy, being not only tall in stature but also in conservative thought and principled action. Dunleavy started as a teacher in the North West Arctic School District, and worked his way up to being the Superintendant. He was the Chair of Governor Parnell’s education transition team. He is the current Mat Su District School Board President and is an advocate for competition in education, including home schools and private schools. Dunleavy has also owned and operated a private consulting business. He has successfully managed large organizations and large budgets. Dunleavy has provided conservative leadership to the School Board and has honorably served.

Dunleavy is unapologetically conservative and will bring conservative leadership to the Senate. He will not support democratic control of the Senate. Dunleavy is recognized for his thoughtful approach to solving problems and knows that Alaska needs more oil in the pipeline to avoid a mid 1980’s or worst crash. Dunleavy has a plan to restore fish to Valley streams, and is an avid hunter and outdoorsman. He has a small ranch North of Wasilla in the foothills of the Talkeetna Range and owns mules and a horse. Mike has the endorsement of Alaska Right to Life because his strong pro-life views. Menard, while personally pro-life, supported the Democratic Senate Leadership (Senator Hollis French) that kills any and all pro-life legislation. Dunleavy also enjoys the endorsement of the Valley’s Conservative Patriots Group and the Outdoor Council for his pro-hunting advocacy. Mike Dunleavy is the genuine article when it comes to being a true conservative Republican.

Another interesting race is between Rep. Wes Keller and former Houston Mayor Roger Purcell. Wes Keller is a proven solid conservative and carried a strong conservative agenda in the House. He has endorsement of many conservative groups, including Outdoor Council, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife Legislator of the Year, National Federation of Independent Businessmen-Legislator of the Year, Right to Life, the NRA and the Conservative Patriots Group.

Keller is an unassuming public servant, and prefers to work quietly without bringing attention to himself. He effectively serves as the Health and Social Services Chairman, a committee that oversees the state agency with the biggest budget. This committee is very, very important but rarely gets attention of the press. Keller also serves as the Chair of the Citizens Advisory Commission on Federal Areas, an official watchdog group that holds the federal land managers accountable. He also serves on the Alaska Healthcare Commission. Keller is recognized as a thoughtful, intelligent and committed conservative in the House.

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