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applesandlavender's comments:
on College For Profit?
My husband's daughter is now buried in debt she accrued through the University of Phoenix. She had a two-year degree in nursing, and she wanted to get a better job by having a four-year degree. She finished, but she's buried in debt, and she has no better job because many hospitals in her state seem to consider for-profit degrees to be second-rate. She's very bitter about her experience. Once she was in too far to get out, they changed classes and employed practices that made her accrue more debt than she would at a private or state-run university. They were always there with easy access to student loans. She recently told us that she fears that she will be paying on her student loan for the rest of her life. Caveat emptor.
posted 2 years, 6 months ago
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on The Viability of LNG
It's hard for me to listen to Chuck Deister and not "laugh out loud"; therefore, allow me to "think out loud." Chuck Deister is a former state employee (former communications director for Karen Minnis) turned lobbyist and then paid spokesperson for the LNG industry. Deister could be seen regularly sitting in offices of politicians in Salem.
The politicians and lobbyists are all crying crocodile tears about the demise of Northern when, in fact, they are crying about the loss of campaign contributions and other moneys that were regularly being handed around Salem and the coast.
posted 3 years ago
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on Controlling LNG
Well said, Ms. MacKenzie. Well said.
posted 3 years, 2 months ago
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on Controlling LNG
Who gets to decide what is best for Oregon; for Oregon’s future; for Oregon’s citizens? Should it be rich Texans financed by large hedge fund operators such as MatlinPatterson Global get to decide? Leucadia National (Oregon LNG backer), a company that profits from mining and drilling, banking, and real estate speculation? Washington agencies that continue to approve LNG projects based upon limited scientific assessment? the state politicians that receive ongoing donations from LNG lobbyists? the media, including public broadcasting, that receive huge amounts of money from natural gas advertising? the unions, which have lobbied hard for temporary construction jobs? the permanent farm, vineyard, timber, and nursery workers whose jobs will be suspended and lost to LNG profits?
Perhaps Senators Wyden and Merkley understand that Oregon’s interests can best be decided by those who understand that what fits elsewhere doesn’t work in Oregon; because they realize that Oregon has independent scientists who have studied Oregon’s unique ecology, seismology, fluvial science, and topography and that these scientists are better equipped to decide what works for this state than are federal regulators who live 3,000 miles away.
Perhaps the senators are protecting my farm, which provides fruits and vegetables, the salmon spawning in my stream every November, the ancient trees on my land, my valuable workers whose jobs are as important to them as any other’s jobs are, and my grandson who attends school within yards of two proposed pipelines. Perhaps they see that LNG companies rejected by California and Mexico shouldn’t use Oregon to line their corporate pockets. Perhaps they know that Oregonians should chart our own energy future. Perhaps they represent those of us who can’t afford advertising or lobbyists and who need a voice.
posted 3 years, 2 months ago
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on Controlling LNG
Jeff, there's a huge difference between natural gas and liquefied natural gas. Recent studies have shown that the US doesn't need to import natural gas of any form. LNG is a highly pressurized, supercooled, highly volatile liquid form for natural gas. It takes extra energy to supercool the gas, and emissions from the re-gassification process have a high carbon footprint. The pipelines needed to transport are not the average diameter of 8" to 16"; they are 36" and 42" inches. They leave a pathway of 120 ft. which cannot be traversed with any type of equipment, and deep rooted crops cannot be grown on the pipelines. In addition, there is a 1500' blast zone around the blast zone. The proposed pipelines would eat up over 40,000 acres of prime agricultural, timber, winery, and nursery lands.
If you Google the LNG industry's own reports, you will learn that because of the economic downturn, the US has a glut of natural gas, and many LNG terminals that have been built are not receiving shipments. The LNG industry is down worldwide. Oregon doesn't NEED LNG.
posted 3 years, 2 months ago
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