Texas T. and Me
- Rob Perks
- Director, Center for Advocacy Campaigns, Washington, D.C.
- Blog | About
- Posted August 18, 2008 in Moving Beyond Oil
He came on like a Texas tornado, after first approaching as quietly as a ninja wearing those soft-soled shoes, to take center stage as boldly as a tophat-and-tails circus ringmaster, letting his ideas gush forth like a newly tapped oil well and blowing people away with his vision for wind farms as far as the eye could see.
I didn't even know who T. Boone Pickens was, and now he's all over the place, like spaghetti on a toddler's face or a blind drunk in a demolition derby.
So many now adore this man, almost as much as the Italians once loved Mussolini for ensuring reliable train service.
Never mind, it seems, that he also espouses an English muffin oil drilling philosophy - every nook and cranny - and offers a nuke plant in every neighborhood if that's what it takes to meet our nation's energy needs.
Yes indeed, this blustery yet charming old cowboy from the dusty plains is America's newest J.R. Ewing - love him or hate him, by golly he's fun to watch. Everyone's tuning in to see what he does next.
I just want to know what the 'T.' stands for.
I also wonder whether winning this silly contest is worth the risk of ticking off a billionaire oil tycoon with a Texas-sized temper and time on his hands.
I didn't even know who T. Boone Pickens was, and now he's all over the place, like spaghetti on a toddler's face or a blind drunk in a demolition derby.
So many now adore this man, almost as much as the Italians once loved Mussolini for ensuring reliable train service.
Never mind, it seems, that he also espouses an English muffin oil drilling philosophy - every nook and cranny - and offers a nuke plant in every neighborhood if that's what it takes to meet our nation's energy needs.
Yes indeed, this blustery yet charming old cowboy from the dusty plains is America's newest J.R. Ewing - love him or hate him, by golly he's fun to watch. Everyone's tuning in to see what he does next.
I just want to know what the 'T.' stands for.
I also wonder whether winning this silly contest is worth the risk of ticking off a billionaire oil tycoon with a Texas-sized temper and time on his hands.
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Comments
Dan Troutman — Aug 18 2008 08:01 PM
I figured it would just be a matter of time before the "elitist city-slickers" would be poking fun at Mr. Pickens.
Although you can make fun of him all you wish, how many millions of dollars have you spent on wind turbines? He's serious about installing $300 million worth out here in west Texas.
He readily admits his plan isn't perfect, but who else is actually DOING something on a massive scale? Not the government, not the environmental groups, and certainly not Mr. Al Gore.
In your haste to poke fun at someone who is actually putting his money where his mouth is, you make the NRDC look silly. (Gee, what's funny with your name?)
As a old billionaire, Mr. Pickens has every right to be eccentric. How about cutting the guy some slack?
Does this mean that NRDC does NOT back his plan?
Dan Troutman — Aug 18 2008 08:15 PM
Although I may have gotten carried away in my earlier post, I'm extremely disappointed that an NRDC leader would act like a fifth grader and make fun of someone's name (even if it is in good fun.) Who cares what's in a name?
BTW, it may not stand for anything, a lot of "old-times" just picked letters because the sounded good. :)
How about an unemotional evaluation of Mr. Pickens' plan and an announcement whether NRDC supports or opposes it?
Lead, follow or get out of the way. :)
Rob Perks — Aug 18 2008 10:19 PM
Ah, you got me. I am guilty at poking fun at Mr. Pickens, but only because I'm partaking in a colleague's challenge to write the worst blog post on Switchboard. Seriously. I even referenced the contest in my post: http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/jwalke/what_explains_the_bush_adminis.html. You see, we thought this might be a fun way to inject some levity into the typical August doldrums in D.C. I meant no offense to Mr. Pickens. And as for his plan, I must say that I'm all for anyone who puts forward an ambitious renewable energy initiative. But I must admit that I strongly disagree that we should drill everywhere or ramp up nuclear power in the process.
Dan Troutman — Aug 19 2008 05:14 PM
Sorry, my apologies.
I wish you all would preface your titles with a :) so we know that it's a contest "entry."
:)
Rob Perks — Aug 26 2008 02:05 PM
In response to Dan's questions about where NRDC stands on the Pickens Plan, I can say that soon we will be publicly releasing our analysis of his proposal.
Meantime, I can say that we agree with Mr. Pickens that reducing our dependency and cutting global warming pollution are critical goals for this country to achieve.
We see renewable electricity, including wind and solar, as critical elements to that plan. And while Mr. Pickens is right on the money that natural gas, the cleanest burning fossil fuel, is a vital bridging fuel, we believe that it must be used in the most efficient and effective way possible since it is a finite natural resource.
An alternative approach to the Pickens Plan that uses natural gas in plug in hybrids and to displace coal power plants, rather than just directly in vehicles, would yield almost three times greater global warming pollution while saving the same amount of oil.
Ultimately, what is needed is a truly transformative goal of freeing our transportation system from petroleum and eliminating global warming pollution will require a more comprehensive effort.
The NRDC plan shows the way forward by maximizing oil savings and global warming pollution reductions through better vehicles, better fuels, and better growth patterns. Addressing all three of these areas allows us to simultaneously solve global warming pollution and move America beyond oil.