Artcic Refuge: they're at it again. What's wrong with these people?

[_dynamicdems]

Dear NRDC Action Fund Supporter,

Please drop what you're doing because here we go again. Senate leaders are
again exploiting rising gas prices to rush a bill to the floor that would
destroy the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and boost oil industry profits. The vote could come as early as Tuesday.

The Senate front men for Big Oil are doing their damnedest to convince
Americans that sacrificing the Arctic and sending each of us a $100 rebate
check will solve all our problems at the pump.

There's only one way to expose these lies and prevent the sacrifice of
America's greatest wildlife refuge: Help light up the Senate switchboard today!

Please call your two Senators right now.

Tell them to vote NO on the Gas Price Relief and Rebate Act. Tell them you will not trade the Arctic Refuge for $100 or be fooled by policies that do nothing to solve the real problem of America's dangerous dependence on oil. Urge them to get to work on cutting oil consumption by improving the mileage of our cars and promoting clean and renewable energy.

Here are the facts: the Energy Department says that drilling in the Arctic
Refuge would save consumers only one penny per gallon at the pump in 20 years! Meanwhile, anyone who drives will be forced to take the Senate's $100 rebate check -- paid for with our tax dollars -- and sign it over to ExxonMobil for their next two tanks of gas.

Only an oil company could love a bill that picks the taxpayers' wallets for $12 billion in gas money. The Gas Price Relief and Rebate Act should really be called the "Guaranteed Profits for Big Oil Act!"

Remember: these are the same Senators who passed a pro-polluter energy bill
last summer that refused to make America's gas-guzzlers more fuel-efficient, but instead doled out billions of tax dollars to oil and coal companies. This latest bill is just more of the same corporate welfare.

Call your Senators right now and tell them you will not surrender the Arctic Refuge or line the pockets of the oil companies with your tax dollars.

And if you want to do even more to expose and defeat this shameless bill, go to https://www.nrdcactionfund.org/arctic/donate.asp
right now and make a donation so we can escalate this campaign in defense of the Arctic Refuge over the next critical days. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Robert Redford
NRDC Action Fund

[ginnyinWI]

1. sigh.

One can only hope that they wouldn't dare do this in an election year, with the polls the way they are. Public opinion is against this, isn't it? Otherwise it probably would have been drilled in before now.

[wisteria]

2. I heard Santorum mention that the US could have oil now if the Dem's

had let them drill in ANWAR. It is despicable how they take a bad situation,(the cost of oil) and try to capitalize on it, to push their own agenda. Even without the drilling included in this $100.00 rebate proposal, most people consider it a joke.

[TayTay]

3. I will put in a call to Sens Teddy & John right away

And maybe Lincoln as well. (Chafee, RI)

[wisteria]

4. Oh sure, contact "your" senators. Both of mine have been contacted

several times on the drilling issue and Santorum sends me a form letter detailing how we will benefit by this and Specter ignores my requests.

[TayTay]

5. I just got in-state e-mail from the good Senator

about the next Governor's race in MA and how we need to sign up to donate time to be 'on the team.' (If I get any more on that team, I am going to have to quit my job.) I pledged already and my husband tried to outsource me to Victory '06, but since they asked so nicely, sigh. (Heavy sigh! It's nice to be wanted. It's even nicer to see that hefty e-mail list in use for Massachusetts.)

Ahm, I am now spoiled.

Dear TayTay,

Republican Governors -- Weld, Cellucci, Swift, Romney -- have been running our state in the wrong direction for almost two decades.

Under Republican rule in Massachusetts, we have lost jobs and lost population. It is clear that it is time to elect a Democratic Governor. It is time for all of us to commit to doing our part toward restoring leadership in the corner office. Just 20 hours of your time between now and November could make the difference.

Pledge 20: Volunteer to support Massachusetts Democrats

I am committed to working with the Massachusetts Democratic Coordinated Campaign, known as Massachusetts Victory '06, to help build a statewide, precinct-level grassroots organization. We'll go door-to-door in neighborhoods across the state, hold Republicans accountable for their failures, and offer a hopeful Democratic vision for Massachusetts.

In order to reach those doors and talk to those voters, Massachusetts Victory '06 is asking local Democrats like you to pledge at least 20 hours of your time between now and Election Day and serve as a neighborhood precinct captain or volunteer in your own community.

Pledge 20: Volunteer to support Massachusetts Democrats http://mailcenter2.comcast.net/wmc/v/wm/44578F7B000F2C34000003E82200750438020E03080C9A0DA1079D9D0A9B?cmd=Show&no=6&uid=199364&sid=c0

Last Saturday, Massachusetts Republicans gathered in Lowell to nominate their candidate for Governor. Let's each commit to pledging 20 hours to make sure that we elect a Democratic Governor in November. We need precinct captains and volunteers in each of the 2,156 precincts in the state. Let's show Republicans that Democrats are ready to take back our state. 20 years is too long.

Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

John Kerry

P.S. In addition to serving as a neighbor precinct captain or volunteering in your community, we need your help to recruit more Democrats and get them to pledge 20. Please pass this email along to 20 friends, co-workers and family members and ask them to pledge 20 today.

How nice to be asked! (Work harder. Ahm, okay.)

[wisteria]

6. What a nice request. How could anyone turn him down? n/t

[TayTay]

7. I hope they don't turn him down.

Can you imagine all those lovely campaign volunteers showing up for training at Victory '06? Can you imagine them saying who sent them? Can you imagine them getting training on grassroots stuff and how to go door-to-door and stuff like that. How nice. I wonder if that will come in handy, say, next year in, oh I don't know, maybe a nice place like New Hampshire or Iowa.

Just a thought. And, in a terrible, I've-lived-with-Repub-Govs-for-20-years way, I am beyond thrilled that Sen. Kerry is doing this. (Plus he's giving some cold hard cash later on for this race, for the general election.) Ahm, that alone is unbelievably great and I am just elated at this. (Yet, it is nice to know that all those lovely trained workers will be just hanging around next year, not doing much. I wonder if anyone will find a use for them?)

[_dynamicdems]

8. So THIS is why we have an oil shortage...

A lot of folks can't understand
how we came to have an oil shortage here in our country.
~~~
Well, there's a very simple answer.
~~~
Nobody bothered to check the oil.
~~~
We just didn't know we were getting low.
~~~
The reason for that is purely geographical.
~~~
Our OIL is located in
~~~
Alaska
~~~
California
~~~
Coastal Florida
~~~
Coastal Louisiana
~~~
Kansas
~~~
Oklahoma
~~~
Pennsylvania
and
Texas
~~~
~~~
Our
DIPSTICKS
are located in
Washington DC

[jillan]

9. This will make you feel a little better---

I am a member of the Sierra Club, and had a long talk with a rep there about this
very subject.

What he explained to me was that even if the repugs gets this passed thru Congress, there will immediately be lawsuits presented. Sierra Club has a whole group of attorneys that will fight this. The issue of drilling in ANWR will get tied up in litigation. He also explained that the rethugs know this and all of this talk is just to win political points with their base.

I urge any of you that can throw a few bucks their way, to do so.
They are a wonderful non-profit organization that works hard to protect our environment.
And if it makes you feel better, they have publicly supported many of Kerry's statements on the environment.

http://www.sierraclub.org/

here's their page on ANWR
http://www.sierraclub.org/arctic/

and their support for Kerry :)
http://search.atomz.com/search/?sp-q=john+kerry&sp-a=sp1001da90&sp-x-1=collection&sp-q-1=Main&sp-t=site_wide&Image1.x=0&Image1.y=0&Image1=Search

[_dynamicdems]

10. That's really good to hear.

Thank you for posting this. It is sad to think that the rising cost of gas could be used by these oil company pals to drill their way to more profits.