Okay, armchair quarterbacks, what do you think Obama should do?

[XemaSab]

I, for one, think he should get up and give a rousing "Never Again" speech, and declare here and now that in 20 years we will have cut our fossil fuel consumption by 90%. I think he should draw a line in the sand, and use this opportunity to inspire people to dream big.

What are some other ideas?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

1. I think 90% in 20 years is unrealistic.

I like Obama's current plan to increase renewables.

[mzteris]

8. Madison, WI is one of the most "bike friendly" cities

in the country.

Imagine my surprise to find out that "approximately 3% of commute trips are by bicycle." compared to some European cities where it's more 25-35%.


There's a group initiative here called 20 by 2020 (20% commuter bikers by 2020). http://20-by-2020.com/

It was kinda discouraging, really. We have a LONG way to go as a country and not much time to get there.

[XemaSab]

17. How do you think it's unrealistic?

If we spent the money we currently spend subsidizing fossil fuels, plus we whacked them with a 90% tax on profits, some of the money could be kicked over into R&D for cars and power plants, some could be kicked into building new clean power generation with existing technology, and the rest could be spent on making existing homes and cars more efficient and into putting solar on public buildings.

I'd rather see a thousand bucks thrown at insulating the house next door than a thousand bucks thrown at some fatcat oil CEO.

Think of it this way: in 10 years we went from being in a great depression to beating Germany and Japan to settling down and raising kids in an expansion of the middle class that has lasted to this day. If we put the kind of energy we put into those projects into developing clean energy, I think 90% in 20 years is more than doable.

[Incitatus]

31. Some people said the same thing about putting a man on the moon in less than 10 years.

I believe it is technologically possible. It is politically possible, maybe. That's what we need strong leaders for. This catastrophic event could be the catalyst we need for the big push.

[ixion]

2. That's a great idea. It would be even better if after the speech

he followed through on his promise.

[AndyA]

10. That seems to be a pattern with Obama.

Talk big, then hope no one expects you to actually *DO* what you talked about. :eyes:

OK, he has kept some of his promises. But there are some BIG ONES that he hasn't kept.

- Equality for all, regardless of sexual preference

- Transparency in government

- Health care with public option

And, he needs to direct Holder to investigate Bushco, and Bushco must be prosecuted for their crimes. If not, Obama is complicit in those crimes. (The coverup is worse than the crime.)

[taterguy]

3. Set an example by biking to work

The fact that his office is in his house is a mere technicality.

[XemaSab]

7. .

:D

[taterguy]

25. Well, he could give raises to all federal employees that bike to work

But that would piss off all the suburban voters.

[Chan790]

45. He could do that and make the suburbanites (in metro DC at-least) happy...

with three additional lines of text that ties future federal funding for WMATA (Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority) to three initiatives. One that ends the prohibition on bikes on the Metro during peak hours; one requiring some % of funds are dedicated to fare decreases(the latest proposed fare-increase is 15% and follows a 4% increase in January and 5% last year) and systemic upgrades (the first one would require going to all 8-car trains and possibly 10-car for space reasons); and one that mandates an offering of a flat-rate fare-pass (like NYC MTA's $89 monthly pass. the idea is simple and mean...in NYC it lowered the cost of transit for commuters by leveraging high single-ride and pay-as-you-go fares; those fares are borne mostly by tourists.).

I'd gladly ride my bike to the Metro station (and from the station on the other end to work) and take the Metro (or even the bus!) into work if I could get there in less than 1 hour, reliably count on the transit system to get me to work on-time (my metro commute varies from 45 minutes to 1-hour 25 minutes inexplicably) and it wasn't more expensive than driving. (I only live 20 minutes from work by car...for this I would spend nearly $250 on Metro fare because I work in DC and live in MD and there is a surcharge in fares crossing the border.)

Metro, once the shining jewel of US transit systems, has become as festering wound plagued with out of control costs, crushing debt, falling ridership, inability to keep to schedule, insufficient equipment to meet peak hour demands...oh and they've managed to kill more people in the past 4 years than the other 9 largest US transit systems combined. If the government ended it's subsidy of the once-self-sufficient WMATA, it would fold within a month.

[Deep13]

4. End subsidies. End off-shore drilling. ...

...invest heavily in non-fossil technology, end mountain-top removal, impose caps on CO2 emmissions based on scientific (not political or economic)recommendations and grant EPA broad power and funding to enforce them.

[me b zola]

5. Yes, I'm looking for leadership

Kennedy said within 10 years we would be on the moon-and he did it. I would like an historic speech leading to policies to make us completely independent of fossil fuels withing 10 years. Any oil profits that BP is making from the collection of the oil from the Gulf--or anywhere else--should be placed in receivership. The entire coastline of the Gulf should be manned with teams placing, replacing, and monitoring the booms--oil hitting the marshes would be greatly reduced if such a policy were enacted.

On edit: Stop the use of the freaking dispersants!

[Deep13]

33. At some point a leader has to stop making excuses...

...and lead. That's why it's called leadership. It's to bring the rest of the country to a place where we need to be, but the public doesn't necessarily know we need to be. Although in this case, the public appears to be ahead of the govt.

[me b zola]

38. I completely agree on all counts. n/t

[Xenotime]

49. Is that REALLY what you think Obama is doing?

[asjr]

6. Punt.

[blindpig]

9. Expropriate without compensation

Show us that you are serious, Mister O.

[anigbrowl]

40. There's this thing called the Constitution which requires we do things by law rather than by fiat nt

[blindpig]

42. Another inadequacy given the necessities of these times. n/t

[anigbrowl]

43. Due process is slow but far superior to rule by fiat

There's a good reason for that but I get the impression you're not too fond of law as the bedrock of society.

[blindpig]

46. Not when the law is written by, of and for the ruling class.

Why should I respect that? It is for the benefit of the ruling class and the oppression of the rest.

[anigbrowl]

48. You'd claim to be oppressed if you were the last person on earth.

Your class war narrative limits you far more than any government policy ever will. Our legal system has as many flaws as it has participants and yet it remains the most highly developed and accessible one there is.

You should travel more. It's an education.

[blindpig]

50. Oh, should I get Ayn Rand to set me free?

Our legal system is about keeping property in the hands of the ruling class, all else is secondary. When money is involved, it talks.

Don't you worry, I've been around.

[anigbrowl]

51. Typical non-response. in fact I've never read any of her drivel.

Been around, eh? How many non-democracies have you visited? Have you ever been to a dictatorship or a Communist country? I have, and the results of the ideological, slogan-chanting politics you seem to favor do not enhance the lives if the people - quite the reverse in fact.

[blindpig]

52. Actually, I've been to Cuba

and what I saw is nothing like what you describe. What I saw was a Latin American country that is poor in consumer goods but which has none of the grinding poverty to be found in Guatemala or Mexico, nor Belize and Trinidad for that matter. That they have managed to do this while under economic and political siege, under constant threat of covert action is a testament to their priorities. There was also much less police presence than I have seen in most any country, and NYC for that matter. And all they carried was old Tarus & S&W pistols, quite the contrast to Peru.

[Are_grits_groceries]

53. If they can make an argument

that it is legal to kill an enemy of the US in another sovereign country without their knowledge, they can make an argument to yank BP's bottom line somehow.

I don't like either one. However, if we accept the first in the name of national insecurity, then the second should be possible.

[rudy23]

11. Make this event the textbook example of how the private sector is sociopathic, like how W used FEMA

as a textbook example of why government can't do anything right.

But Obama will never do this because he plays for Bush's team, not ours.

[laughingliberal]

16. That's what's frustrating. Absolute best opportunity in a generation to expose the damage

done by RW economic policies and deregulatory zeal being squandered. This is the face of 'pro-growth' New Democrats.'

[sfwriter]

19. Yup...

And the greatest chance to end terrorism was squandered by Bush...

[rudy23]

22. Just like the global financial meltdown & bailouts. Obama is quite simply not on our side.

He's not a Democrat, he's a Trojan Horse Republican.

[rudy23]

12. Use this to sell green energy, high speed rails, bike lanes, etc.

Again, we'll probably see a bunch of triangulation on this.

[donco6]

13. Elect me President and I'll tell you. n/t

[Vinca]

14. It definitely is a good time for a "to the moon within the next decade" speech.

Kennedy said it and it happened. Sorry to say, I don't expect a great step toward green energy from this administration after they reportedly gave out more offshore drilling leases than Shrub did.

[cilla4progress]

21. The public isn't as gullible now as in 1960.

In fact, we are mostly so cynical, we could hear this speech, and then turn back to more important reality programming....

[XemaSab]

23. Yeah, Kennedy sure suckered us with that whole "going to the moon" thing

Boy were we dumb. :P

[cilla4progress]

56. You missed the point?

[XemaSab]

59. I must have

'Cause I would say it's less about the public being gullible back then than about leaders making bold promises and keeping them.

[cilla4progress]

61. Honestly, for me

I never saw any great gains in space exploration. Just a show piece. What did it get us...really?

So, gullible, then, in terms of,conquering space being an overarching worthy goal; cynical, now, in terms of truly expecting the our modern gluttony to reverse direction.

[harun]

15. I think he should have the Senate vote on a massive package to transition

us over to an electric vehicle economy and high speed rail system.

There is nothing he can do about the oil leak and the damage it is going to cause. However, he could influence great change in the future by securing funds to move us away from oil dependence.

[sfwriter]

18. Make this ground zero of an energy oriented Manhatten Project...

Increase oversight and regulation...

Clean out MMS and the Interior...

Fine BP into insolvency, pursue select individuals in court, and make every bean counter FEAR for leaving the environment and human lives off of their books...

Beat the right SENSELESS WITH THIS in 2010, 2012 and as far as you can take it.

Because in the end, they were FRIGHTENINGLY WRONG.

[bluestateguy]

20. An Oval Office prime time address would be helpful

nt

[mopinko]

24. it's just my personal 'why don't we?' kind of a thing, but

i am sure that someday, when things get tough enough, we are going to start mining landfills. let's just start that now. turn those god damned plastic bottles back into oil. or whatever else we make out of oil.

or just cry.

[taterguy]

26. You can't turn something "back into oil"

That's the thing about oil.

It's a finite resource that was created during a unique geological period.

However, some municipalities are recapturing the methane gas that's a byproduct of landfills.

Not sure why it's not done nationwide because I'm not a sanitation engineer.

[XemaSab]

39. Plastic can be used for energy

It won't be oil, but it can be burned. Or recycled.

[branders seine]

27. 1. Declare a Manhattan Project program for alternative transportation

technologies.

2. Privatize all US oil reserves and all US oil corporations.

3. Privatize the financial services industry, and rebuild it from scratch.

4. Immediately withdraw all US troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

5. Eliminate 80% of the Defense budget.


There are 5 starters he should do before the end of the Summer.

[lostnfound]

28. I think you mean "nationalize" not privatize?

Just checking.

[branders seine]

35. you are completely correct.

Damned multitasking!


NATIONALIZE OIL and then shut it down.

[laughingliberal]

29. First, I think he should call Nick Pozzi in and tell BP 'Pozzi is your new daddy.'

Then, I think he should seize the populist message and go to war with the corporate criminals.

I don't expect to see this, however. His economic advisers have stood in opposition to the more effective efforts to rein in the thieves.

[applegrove]

30. If only they could be investigating and then charging BP for going against regulations. But he can't

He has to wait until they stop the oil flowing. Other than that I would get a great & gifted spokesperson, perhaps Thad Allen is the right guy, to update the nation continuously. So I think Obama is actually doing all that he can do.

[NNN0LHI]

32. He should give the speech from a defunct oil platform with a bullhorn

Seriously. I know it sounds corny but we have to consider the audience he is playing to. These are people who spend their lives happily watching the latest sitcoms in their own little worlds. Basically idiots. They need the visual. Tweety will have another tingle going down his leg.

Don

[ShamelessHussy]

34. Hire a better PR team, for starters... six guys on a shovel ain't gonna cut it in this CATASTROPHE

maybe Jobs is available now that WWDC keynote is over :shrug:

[AllentownJake]

36. Arrest everyone at Goldman Sachs for treason

Everything else will fall into line.

[Skip Intro]

37. Too late. Unfortunately, politically, he's to the point of damage control. Same as with healthcare.

He and his admin allowed themselves to be defined by the wolves who are always at the gate with the health care reform effort - that entire thing was bungled beyond belief. Now we have this disaster. Politically speaking, he needed to be seen out in front of this from day one, not a month and a half later. There's a time to get in front of a situation and there's a time to stop the bleeding. Politically, of course, which is what I think you're asking, he needs to focus on stopping the bleeding. I don't think there is a scenario where he gets to be the good guy to swoop in and fix things here. At this point, what should he do? Well, damn politics, first off, and do what needs to be done to bring the real, physical damage being done to the gulf to as quick an end as possible. Get the military, NASA, and private corps out there with the best that we, as a nation, have and get this over. Get the reality of the thing under control as fast as possible.

Politically, which really is just about image and perception? I don't know. Give some speech from some high-tech looking bunker with tons of activity going on all around and show an overwhelming response in action. Appoint someone to be in charge and have him/her give daily updates. Appear to be on top of things...proactive.

[XemaSab]

41. .

:thumbsup:

[truebrit71]

44. Another speech with pretty words and fuck all action? No thanks..

...I've had about as much of that as I can take...

Unless he goes all Samuel L. Jackson on the oil companies, then forget it..

[mmonk]

47. Let a liberal take over. Either that or follow Denmark's lead on energy.

[taterguy]

54. Denmark doesn't have an army to seize oil fields

What good is an army if they don't take the stuff you need?

Also, Denmarkians can bike to work because it's never too cold in Denmark.

Right?

[mmonk]

55. But they have the North Sea and its oil available. No army needed.

[nickinSTL]

57. It's not my place

I'm not an expert.

But, he has access to all the experts he needs. He should listen to them and then DO SOMETHING.

[NoPasaran]

58. Annex the Sudetenland

[Old Troop]

60. I think out technology outran our technology. We have the ability

to drill a mile below the sea, but don't have the ability to fix problems that deep.