Judge Blocks Obama's Drilling Ban

The Judge DOES live in the Real World, IS intelligent.

Hey folks,

Just yesterday I told you that it was now going to be in the hands of a Federal Judge. I said this.

We all already know why Obama put the six month moratorium. It really is crystal clear why. You do not ground all Airplanes when one crashes. You do not stop making cars and say, we need to find another way to get around, after someone dies in one. There is no reason to BAN Drilling for six months. NONE. Well, other than his agenda.

I ended Yesterday with this.

May this Judge have a modicum of intelligence to him and may HE live in the real world, where we all know, we NEED Oil. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know, the Environuts love the ban. I know, the MMD love to report the CEO of BP is out on his yacht, the same time Obama was, uh, playing golf, watching Baseball, and uh, OH Yeah, sending a bill to BP. Yeah he's on top of things. {Sigh} I hear that Obama may actually be considering accepting some help. But he hasn't really decided yet. "FORE!!!!!"

Turns out that the Judge, Judge Martin Feldman, DOES live in reality, and DOES understand that this was insane. According to Bloomberg - Deepwater Drilling Ban Lifted by New Orleans Federal Judge

U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman yesterday granted a preliminary injunction, halting the moratorium. He also “immediately prohibited” the U.S. from enforcing the ban. Government lawyers told Feldman the ban was based on findings in a U.S. report following the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig off the Louisiana coast in April.

“The court is unable to divine or fathom a relationship between the findings and the immense scope of the moratorium,” Feldman said in his 22-page decision. “The blanket moratorium, with no parameters, seems to assume that because one rig failed and although no one yet fully knows why, all companies and rigs drilling new wells over 500 feet also universally present an imminent danger.”

Of course Obama and Crew will appeal. How dare this little Judge block what Obama wants to do. Who does he think he is? Well, thankfully, he is an intelligent Judge who understands that this insanity, will do nothing but lose 150,000 plus Jobs, and Skyrocket energy costs, for no REAL benefit to anyone. He understands that this is like banning all air travel because one Plane goes down. Thankfully, U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman possesses the ability to use reason and logic. He actually said this.

"The blanket moratorium, with no parameters, seems to assume that because one rig failed and although no one yet fully knows why, all companies and rigs drilling new wells over 500 feet also universally present an imminent danger."

Now our friends can get back to work. API {The American Petroleum Institute} issued the following Statement on the Judge's Ruling.

“We welcome Judge Feldman’s decision to lift the moratorium on deepwater operations in the Gulf of Mexico.

“The administration acted appropriately in its immediate steps to inspect every rig in the Gulf following the Deepwater Horizon explosion. Those inspections were necessary to assure Americans that offshore operations were safe and subject to appropriate oversight.

“In addition, the oil and natural gas industry took immediate steps to review practices and equipment to ensure safety and environmental protection, through the formation of two industry-wide task forces. The task forces provided important insights to the Department of Interior during its earliest examination of Gulf operations.

“Those task forces, and two recently created ones, are actively working to find ways to improve the safety of offshore operations, subsea well control and oil spill response. They should prove invaluable to the independent commission established by the president to investigate the Deepwater Horizon incident. Their work, and the work of the commission, will help ensure that deepwater oil and natural gas exploration and production is the safest and cleanest in the world.

“The moratorium was an initial reaction to concerns about the safety of offshore oil and natural gas operations. However, an extended moratorium would have a tremendous impact on the nation’s energy security – and cause significant harm to the region of the country that was already suffering from the spill – without raising safety or improving industry procedures.

“With this ruling, our industry and its people can get back to work to provide Americans with the energy they need, and do it safely and without harming the environment.”

So for right now, Sanity wins. Let's hope that the Appeals Court will be both as intelligent, and bold, as this Judge was. We can not Ban all drilling because on ONE accident in all the Decades we have been drilling. That is just insanity.
Peter