A commercial has been on the air over the last few years and only seems to play late at night. It starts with an image of President GW Bush on a stage surrounded by listeners. One audience member, a young woman, asks a question about if the Bush family ate together around the dinner table, hinting at values surrounding families who spend time together. Bush jokingly says something along the lines of only eating at the dinner table so as long as his mom wasn't the one cooking.
Then Barbara Bush comes on the screen, obviously not laughing. She talks about how families who eat around the dinner table together have children who are less likely to smoke, use drugs, or drink alcohol.
What? Are you kidding? Who are you talking about again?
A lot of good those dinner table values did for those two screw ups. They picked the wrong family to serve as an example. GW was an alcoholic and rumored to have used cocaine. Jeb is also no saint.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Natural Gas Leases, Shreveport
Companies are looking to lease from landowners in Northwest Louisiana for natural gas rights. When the subject of mineral rights enters my mind, stories of lost homes, stripped ground, and ruined lives soon follow. Why? Part of my family comes from Southern Indiana where coal companies have thrived. Some of my family members have actually worked in the coal mines. One lesson they learned was to buy the mineral rights when buying a new home and never to sell their mineral rights. My grandfather told stories of how the coal company would come in and people would lose their homes. The coal companies did not care for the little man, which is also largely why the UMWA exists. Those were indeed, sad stories. I am afraid the people of Northwest Louisiana might be in for something they aren't fully ready for.
While various contracts exist and lawyers specialized in mineral rights laws should be consulted, I see no guarantee that companies will treat landowners with the respect they deserve. The way I see it, selling your mineral rights or even natural gas rights is like selling your soul. The promise of extravagant amounts of money has lured many Louisiana citizens into signing leases. I would never sell my mineral rights for any amount of money. If any of our nearby neighbors sign a lease, we will likely put our home up for sale and leave Shreveport. We don't want a situation where a neighbor has signed away natural gas rights and the company requests legal right of way through our property to access the natural gas. Yes, that happens. Like it or not, these companies are quite skilled at manipulating the public. More people are asking questions about money than about what they are risking with regard to their property. It might even end up lowering property values in your area. It's a dirty business. To give you another perspective on just how dirty they can play, if you don't sell and everyone else around you did, they'll just drill horizontally underneath and take what they want regardless. In addition, the promise of money makes neighbors do and say very bad things to each other. If enough people sign leases in any given neighborhood, it forces everyone else to sign in too. Not very neighborly.
We will also see an increase in work related injuries. Those who work for the companies setting up rigs and drilling will undoubtedly expose themselves to dangerous situations. While field employees understand the risk, what you must understand as a member of the community is that safety is not all that important to a gas company or a mining company. Coal miners are all too familiar with this way of life. The world of natural gas is no different. Expect to hear about safety violations, environmental contamination, explosions, fires, injuries, and unfortunately, deaths.
I am ashamed to have voted for Cedric Glover who has brought these companies into our communities and hope that the people of Shreveport and the surrounding area are smart enough to resist the dangling carrot on a stick. I am ashamed that a Democrat of all people would succumb to the will of a company over the well being of their constituents. These realities will become more apparent as more individuals sign into lease agreements. With the struggling economy, the promise of money is awfully tempting. Times are tough. Imagine how tough it will be when your property is at stake. Heed my warning and think of your future. Remember what I've said here when the company is ruining the way of life in your community. I highly doubt you like the notion of contaminated water flowing from your tap. I can only say I told you so.
I hope this post is not too late and that people in this area are doing their research.
While various contracts exist and lawyers specialized in mineral rights laws should be consulted, I see no guarantee that companies will treat landowners with the respect they deserve. The way I see it, selling your mineral rights or even natural gas rights is like selling your soul. The promise of extravagant amounts of money has lured many Louisiana citizens into signing leases. I would never sell my mineral rights for any amount of money. If any of our nearby neighbors sign a lease, we will likely put our home up for sale and leave Shreveport. We don't want a situation where a neighbor has signed away natural gas rights and the company requests legal right of way through our property to access the natural gas. Yes, that happens. Like it or not, these companies are quite skilled at manipulating the public. More people are asking questions about money than about what they are risking with regard to their property. It might even end up lowering property values in your area. It's a dirty business. To give you another perspective on just how dirty they can play, if you don't sell and everyone else around you did, they'll just drill horizontally underneath and take what they want regardless. In addition, the promise of money makes neighbors do and say very bad things to each other. If enough people sign leases in any given neighborhood, it forces everyone else to sign in too. Not very neighborly.
We will also see an increase in work related injuries. Those who work for the companies setting up rigs and drilling will undoubtedly expose themselves to dangerous situations. While field employees understand the risk, what you must understand as a member of the community is that safety is not all that important to a gas company or a mining company. Coal miners are all too familiar with this way of life. The world of natural gas is no different. Expect to hear about safety violations, environmental contamination, explosions, fires, injuries, and unfortunately, deaths.
I am ashamed to have voted for Cedric Glover who has brought these companies into our communities and hope that the people of Shreveport and the surrounding area are smart enough to resist the dangling carrot on a stick. I am ashamed that a Democrat of all people would succumb to the will of a company over the well being of their constituents. These realities will become more apparent as more individuals sign into lease agreements. With the struggling economy, the promise of money is awfully tempting. Times are tough. Imagine how tough it will be when your property is at stake. Heed my warning and think of your future. Remember what I've said here when the company is ruining the way of life in your community. I highly doubt you like the notion of contaminated water flowing from your tap. I can only say I told you so.
I hope this post is not too late and that people in this area are doing their research.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Macbook or Macbook Pro?
There was a podcast a while back that Leo Laporte participates in that discussed purchasing a Macbook with a caller. Here's the gist of the recommendation and I agree with it for the most part.
So should one get a Macbook or a MBP?
Generally speaking, get a Macbook. Here's why. You can buy one and cram 4GB of RAM in it as well as a 250GB HD and have a machine that is just as functional and powerful as a MBP. Plus it comes in a more durable case. The MBP has a metallic case that may scratch, dent, and ding easier than the Macbook enclosure. Now, there are a few points in favor of the MBP. The screen size is considerably larger. The Macbook has about a 13 inch screen and the MBP comes in 15 and 17, so you get more real estate. The MBP also has a better graphics card. The MBP also has a 300GB HD as an option. There are some other differences with regards to ports availble on each, but the overall picture for the average user is the same.
Like any computer, it all depends on what you want to do with it.
So should one get a Macbook or a MBP?
Generally speaking, get a Macbook. Here's why. You can buy one and cram 4GB of RAM in it as well as a 250GB HD and have a machine that is just as functional and powerful as a MBP. Plus it comes in a more durable case. The MBP has a metallic case that may scratch, dent, and ding easier than the Macbook enclosure. Now, there are a few points in favor of the MBP. The screen size is considerably larger. The Macbook has about a 13 inch screen and the MBP comes in 15 and 17, so you get more real estate. The MBP also has a better graphics card. The MBP also has a 300GB HD as an option. There are some other differences with regards to ports availble on each, but the overall picture for the average user is the same.
Like any computer, it all depends on what you want to do with it.
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