By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  November 12th at 06:35 PM  | 

From the Times-Picayune: Acting with unusual speed, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals today refused Rep. William Jefferson’s request to throw out most of the 16 corruption charges setting the stage for a trial in 2009. Jefferson can appeal the ruling by the Richmond, Va. based court to the U.S. Supreme Court, which could prevent a trial early next year. … Jefferson, who is | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  November 10th at 09:55 PM  | 

H/T Ellie Belle In a Nov. 9 Guest Editorial in the august New York Times, Nobel laureate and erstwhile VP Albert Gore offers a sort of a Unified Filed Theory of Big Government Solutions to All of Life’s Problems. [emphasis mine throughout] The inspiring and transformative choice by the American people to elect Barack Obama as our 44th president lays the foundation for another fateful | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  November 5th at 03:51 PM  | 

Not much time, just a couple of notes… Of course, Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA02){IN HIS FREEZER!} will proudly reclaim his seat as the Dean of Louisiana’s congressional delegation. He defeated a newcomer, 30 year old former news anchor Helena Moreno in the Democratic Primary 57 to 43%; the formality of the General Election will take place December 4. About the time his bribery trial resumes, | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 29th at 05:32 PM  | 

This showed up in this afternoon’s email. Below the fold I give you the full email in all its glory, but if you read nothing else, here’s the red meat: You see, Mr. Obama, I’m the guy you intend to raise taxes on. I’m the guy who has spent 25 years toiling and sweating, fretting and fighting, stressing and risking, to build a business and | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 23rd at 06:47 PM  | 

Scott McClellan, eternal symbol of George W. Bush’s principal character flaw (excessive patience with incompetent underlings), has endorsed Senator Barack Obama for the Presidency. From the Washington Post: Former Bush Press Secretary Backs Obama

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 23rd at 05:11 PM  | 

H/T Drudge, who links to Czech physicist Luboš Motl’s blog. Dear Members of the Harvard Community, Although today’s weather will hardly remind us of the serious problem that is global warming, today’s event – the Harvard Sustainability Celebration, with a keynote address by former Vice President Al Gore – will go on, as scheduled, … Starting at 3 p.m., we will be serving hot cider | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 15th at 01:50 PM  | 

Obama’s website http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/newenergy outlines the detail of his energy plan. It reeks of Central Planning and is committed to the core Democratic value of Solving A Problem By Throwing Dumptrucks Full Of Money At It. The centerpieces of the Obama-Biden New Energy Plan are: a Windfall Profits Tax/Middle Class Tax Credit that will never happen; $150 billion/10 year/5 million job make-work plan that is woefully | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 14th at 05:19 PM  | 

Bill Jefferson and Sister Betty have been named unindicted co conspirators in the money-laundering scheme between erstwhile State Senator Derrick Shepherd and bond dealer/nutcase Gwendolyn Moyo. With Moyo insisting on representing herself, the trial promises to take on a circus-like atmosphere. Bill Jefferson faces a runoff for the Democratic nomination for the Second Congressional District on Nov. 4. Times-Picayune: Federal fraud trial for bond broker | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 5th at 04:48 PM  | 

AP Investigation: Hurricane Ike’s environmental damage apparent as pipelines, oil rigs hit Ike’s toll on wildlife is still unfolding. Only a few pelicans and osprey turned up oiled, but the storm upended nature. Winds blew more than 1,000 baby squirrels from their nests. The storm’s surge pushed saltwater into freshwater marshes and bayous, killing grasses where cattle graze and displacing alligators. Flooding also stranded cows. | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  October 4th at 08:51 PM  | 

The Congressional Primaries were originally scheduled for September 6, but were postponed due to Hurricane Gustav. The polls closed at 8 pm CDT. The highest profile elections will be in District 2, where a slate of six challenge The Freezer King for the Democratic nomination (and, effectively, the Congressional seat). There is a contested primary for each party is District 4 (Shreveport), the seat of | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 27th at 10:59 AM  | 

During last night’s debate, Candidate Barack Obama perpetuated one of the most pernicious memes of the current energy debate, one that lets the candidate of “Yes, We Can!” wrongly declare “No, We Can’t!” when it comes to energy policy. The meme: The U.S. consumes 25% of the world’s petroleum, but contains only 3% of the world’s reserves. Therefore, there is no point in trying to | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 20th at 04:13 PM  | 

Vladimir, the RedState blogger, was born on a Saturday afternoon four short years ago. What a long, strange trip it’s been. My pet issues are Louisiana politics, Energy and the Environment, in no particular order. But what got me started blogging here was the Rathergate scandal — it’s hard to believe that was only four years ago. My passion for politics stems from the deeply | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 19th at 01:57 PM  | 

Courtesy our friends at Fugro/Chance (a surveying firm), and hosted by the Offshore Operators’ Committee: A .pdf file showing the tracks of Hurricanes Gustav & Ike. There’s a ton of detail in this map. You’ll need to look at it at close to 100% to make any sense of it. The purpose of this map is to show the structures (red squares) that experienced hurricane-force | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 17th at 08:12 AM  | 

The plot so far: Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) awaits trial on bribery and corruption charges. Meanwhile, the primary election in his quest to be re-elected has been rescheduled to Oct. 4 on account of the disruption caused by Hurricane Gustav. (I predict he’s going to be reelected, BTW.) Brother Mose and Sister Betty Jefferson await their own trial on charges of looting some $627,000 from | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 16th at 06:36 PM  | 

The reactions the press and the commodities markets to the impact Hurricanes Ike and Gustav on our energy infrastructure seem to be “So what?” and “Ho-Hum”, respectively. My company has spent the last three days trying to assess the impact of Ike on our operations and on oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico in general. A picture is just now starting to | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 16th at 01:39 PM  | 

Ann Silverberg Williamson, Louisiana’s Secretary of Social Services has “resigned”, as they say, to pursue other ventures. From the Baton Rouge Advocate: Social Services Chief Resigns Ladies and gentlemen, a new wind is blowing in Louisiana, and it ain’t a tropical storm.

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 12th at 09:17 AM  | 

The National Data Buoy Center of NOAA maintains a system of buoys and weather observation stations throughout the world. You can call up recent and historical weather observations on the internet. Here is the link to weather buoy stations in the Western Gulf of Mexico, in the projected path of Hurricane Ike. Click on a station number to see recent weather observations.

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 11th at 08:39 PM  | 

From Energy Current: A report released by the Department of the Interior Office of the Inspector General has revealed ethical violations by employees of the Royalty In Kind (RIK) program. The report alleges “unbridled unethical conduct” by employees, including illicit sexual relations with both RIK employees and members of the oil and gas industry, illegal drug use, and acceptance of numerous gifts and gratuities from | Read More »

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 8th at 01:26 PM  | 

Gov. Bobby Jindal is showing how it should be done. A week after Hurricane Gustav’s landfall on the central Louisiana coast, the metro areas of Houma and Baton Rouge remain largely without power. Hurricane Ike threatens to strike later this week; the governor has already requested a state of emergency be declared in anticipation. From the Baton Rouge Advocate:

By: Steve Maley (Diary)  |  September 7th at 06:39 PM  | 

Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) is chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, which takes responsibility for writing the nation’s tax code. Seems that Charlie has neglected to claim some $75,000 in rental income from a condo he owns in the Dominican Republic. Ooops. From the Gray Lady herself: Mr. Davis said the congressman did not realize he had to declare the money as income, | Read More »