Cap and Trade talk by Seldon Graham

Kiwanis Club talk on Cap & Trade
December 7, 2009
by
Seldon B. Graham, Jr.
World War II veteran


Today is the 68th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. I am giving you the Private George E. Elliott, Jr. Memorial Commemorative message.


Private Elliott was the Army radar operator on Opana Mountain near Kahuku Point, the northern point of the island of Oahu on the morning of December 7, 1941. Private Elliott saw on radar a large group of aircraft rapidly approaching Oahu from the north 137 miles away at 7:02 a.m., 53 minutes before the first bomb fell on Pearl Harbor. He reported these facts to his headquarters at Fort Shafter.


His superior officers ignored Private Elliott’s facts. The reply from Fort Shafter was, “Don’t worry about it.” Had the military acted upon Private Elliott’s facts, there would have been plenty of time to have fighter aircraft in the air and all guns manned before the Japanese planes reached Pearl Harbor.


Disasters are caused by ignoring facts. Witness the recent massacre at Fort Hood. This morning, I am going to give you facts on energy. Please do not ignore facts which endanger our Country.


The word “Country” is one of the words in the three-word motto engraved on my ring which I have worn every day for nearly six decades. These three words are Duty, Honor, Country. Honor is for an honor code which requires me not to lie, cheat or steal, nor tolerate those who do. Duty requires me to defend my Country from lies. I do not tolerate those who lie. Nothing makes me angrier than those who lie to me, particularly those lies which hurt my Country.


I would like to offer 5 quotations which are particularly relevant to energy. Sophocles, over 2400 years ago, said, “What people believe prevails over the truth.” Mark Twain said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble; it’s the things you know for sure that just ain’t so.” Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s Propaganda Minister, said, “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” Bernard Baruch said, “Every man has a right to be wrong in his opinions; but, no man has a right to be wrong in his facts.” To paraphrase Marilyn vos Savant: “Don’t argue; just provide facts to those having a different opinion from yours.” I do not intend to give an argument. I intend to provide facts.


The following are seven lies about energy. I don’t use the word “lies” lightly. A lie is a false statement made with the intent to deceive. If there is no intent to deceive, there is no lie. There are many more lies about energy than the ones I list, but these are seven critical lies causing billions of dollars in wasted federal taxpayer funds.


Lie No. 1. Carbon dioxide is a hazard to the health and welfare of Americans.


The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared this on April 17, 2009. It is a lie. The sad part is that it is an official government lie which is so obviously a lie.


The truth is that carbon dioxide is absolutely essential to the health and welfare of Americans. Without carbon dioxide, sunlight and chlorophyll, there would be no photosynthesis to bring us the trees, plants and carbohydrates we need to live.


Ocean warming and solar activity make up about 97% of the carbon dioxide in the earth’s atmosphere and are clearly the big producers of carbon dioxide. The other 3% of the carbon dioxide in the air is from human and animal breath, carbonated beverages, yeast, dry ice, and burning fuel in fireplaces, barbecue grills, campfires, California wildfires, power plants and vehicles. Carbon dioxide from fossil fuel is only a tiny fraction in this 3% percent. According to the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center which only tracks this tiny fraction of this 3%, only 19% of that is from within the United States. That is an extremely small amount of fossil fuel emissions to cost two trillion dollars in the cap and trade scheme.


The sole purpose of this blatant lie about carbon dioxide by our government is to make the carbon dioxide emissions of “fossil fuel” and only “fossil fuel” a hazard to the health and welfare of Americans.


Lie No. 2. Fossil fuel is not radioactive, so that’s how we can tell fossil fuel is the cause of climate change.


John Holdren, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (“Science Czar”) said this, paraphrased for clarity, at “The American Response to Climate Change,” Tupper Lake, New York, on June 25, 2008. It is a lie.


Carbon 14 is the rare radioactive isotope of carbon found in trace amounts in almost everything. Carbon 14 is one part per trillion of the carbon in the atmosphere. Cosmic particles, mainly protons, striking the upper atmosphere convert nitrogen into carbon 14 which quickly combines with oxygen to form radioactive carbon dioxide. It is this carbon 14 in radioactive carbon dioxide which is being measured in carbon dating.


The truth is that petroleum is a Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM). The Railroad Commission of Texas has a website, , which gives notice to the public that petroleum is a a NORM. Petroleum is a Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material and is not the cause of climate change.


All that you have to do to prove conclusively that the Science Czar is wrong is to check your natural gas meter with a Geiger counter.


Lie No. 3. The USA can "clean" the air by reducing carbon dioxide.


This is a lie for many reasons, the main one being that carbon dioxide is neither unclean nor unhealthy nor hazardous.


Lie No. 4. Alternative renewable biofuel is “clean” and therefore emits no carbon dioxide.


This is the position of the millions of so-called environmentalists who will financially benefit from alternative renewable biofuel. It is a lie.


The truth is that alternative renewable ethanol emits about a pound more of carbon dioxide into the air than a gallon of gasoline.


No matter what ethanol is made of, it only contains 76,000 British Thermal Units (BTUs) of energy which is only 61% of the energy in a gallon of gasoline. Therefore, alternative renewable ethanol gets such poor mileage that it takes 1.64 gallons of ethanol to do the same amount of work as a gallon of gasoline. This amount of alternative renewable ethanol emits about a pound more of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than a gallon of gasoline. Using alternative renewable biofuels emits more, not less, carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Alternative renewable biofuels are not “clean” where “clean” infers no carbon dioxide.


This is the insanity of carbon credits (which have already made Al Gore 700 million dollars). The public should get carbon credits for using gasoline insteady of high-carbon biofuel.


Lie No. 5. Alternative renewable fuels can replace oil.


This is said by millions of politicians and so-called environmentalists who want to eliminate oil. It is a lie.


The truth is that corn ethanol will require 12 more years of increased production in order to be able to produce only 15% of our current oil demand. Clearly, corn ethanol cannot replace oil.


The US simply does not have the crop land to produce enough alternative renewable fuel to replace oil. The corn crop land in the US is about the size of New Mexico, our 5th largest state. Using the size of New Mexico as a measurement, poplar tree chips would require an annual poplar forest twice the size of New Mexico to replace our current oil demand. Switchgrass would require 2.6 times, sugar cane would require 3.8 times, and palm oil 4.6 times the size of New Mexico. We do not have that much land for biofuel crops.


Algae would require a controlled chemical tank 1.5 times the size of New Mexico.


Lie No. 6. Compressed Natural Gas vehicles are safe.


This is said by those who benefit from the sale of CNG vehicles. It is a lie.


The truth is that natural gas is a highly explosive “fossil fuel” at about 3,000 pounds per square inch in CNG vehicles. CNG vehicles are Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) waiting for a terrorist to ignite the explosion.


Lie No. 7. Hydrogen vehicles are the answer to the energy problem.


This is said by those who benefit from the sale of hydrogen vehicles. It is a lie.


The truth is that hydrogen energy is always less than the energy required to manufacture hydrogen. Therefore, hydrogen vehicles waste energy.


In summary, remember the Private Elliott Memorial Commemorative warning message. Carbon dioxide is essential to your health and welfare. It is not a poisonous gas as the federal government would have you believe. Fossil fuel is not the cause of climate change. However, Mother Nature is a suspect and a “person of interest.” There is nothing dirty, unhealthy or hazardous about carbon dioxide. Air is not “cleaned” by reducing carbon dioxide. Alternative renewable biofuel emits more carbon dioxide into the air than gasoline and should not be called “clean.” The words “clean” and “green” should not be used together. Alternative renewable biofuel cannot replace oil. There is not enough crop land in the United States for biofuel to replace oil. CNG cars are IEDs. Hydrogen cars waste energy.


I have discussed only some of the lies which special interests spread to the great detriment of our Country and its citizens. It is ironic that the Copenhagen Climate Conference — to spread these energy lies globally — starts today, the same day as Pearl Harbor Day. Don’t forget Private Elliott’s warning. Disasters can be caused by ignoring facts.