Bill authorizing Drilling w/in 3 miles filed last night

[Lake View Too]

"What a crock of response" is quite right. I've never heard a more pathetic pandering to the powers that be. I don't recall anybody bringing up the issue of "foreign oil" anytime in the thirty-five years since the oil-embargo of 1973 (Carter administration). It's called greed, folks, and has nothing to do with national security.

 

[30A Skunkape]

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am really growing concerned about the very real prospect of the legislature sending a bill to Crist's desk that will allow for oil drilling. On WFSU this morning there was a segment aired during the local news discussing the legislative session that opens today. The Senator who authored the bill and his co-conspirators basically said they didn't care that recent analysis failed to show appreciable oil to extract. Obviously, there are a core group of traitors in Tallahassee who have been bought by oil lobbyists.

Please, please, double down on your efforts to contact the Governor and legislators. Write letters to the newspapers. Do anything you can to voice your opposition, as many voices are what will be needed if we are to win on this issue!!

 

[Lake View Too]

In this morning's Daily News, all the local politicians deferred their decisions on the subject to the military. None of them opposed drilling because of any moral principle. What a bunch of jerks. I e-mailed a list of about five legislators on the subject, and basically got a form letter that said, in effect, if i wasn't from their district, my opinion didn't count. Just the way this is being downplayed by the media makes me think that something stinks. :angry:

 

[Andy A]

The state of Florida has term limits and our lhouse district extends east of Tallahassee.

I FORGOT!!! I was referring to Congress, anyway.

 

[30A Skunkape]

In this morning's Daily News, all the local politicians deferred their decisions on the subject to the military. None of them opposed drilling because of any moral principle. What a bunch of jerks. I e-mailed a list of about five legislators on the subject, and basically got a form letter that said, in effect, if i wasn't from their district, my opinion didn't count. Just the way this is being downplayed by the media makes me think that something stinks. :angry:

They are all cowards who have sold their souls to finance their perpetual campaigning. Take a stand. Grow a set. However you want to put it, anyone who has a vote on an issue that has such permanent repurcussions and will not tell you straight-up where they stand is behaving like a cockroach running for cover when the lights are flipped on.

 

[TreeFrog]

I Emailed Gov. Crist, Sen. Gaetz, and Rep. Coley on Sunday night. Here's the (lighly edited) text of what I sent:



Dear Gov/Sen/Rep Crist/Gaetz/Coley,

My family are your constituents, residing in Santa Rosa Beach, Walton County. We strongly urge you to vote against SB 2622.

It is clear and unquestionable that the economy of the region you represent is heavily dependent on tourism and on investment in real estate and vacation homes.

In that light, it is reckless to risk the livelihoods and property values of your constituents by voting for a bill that will allow oil drilling within three miles of shore. Such a rig would be plainly visible from the beach.

Yes, I've read the text of the bill. I know there will be a publicized meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund before granting leases. Let's be realistic here. We both know that once the "cat is out of the bag", there's no stuffing it back in. And that the Board Meeting is highly unlikely to result in denial of a lease application, just because local citizens oppose.

The time to act is now. This bill is wrong for Walton and Okaloosa Counties, not to mention much of the rest of Florida.

Vote against SB2622.

TreeFrog's name and address in signature line




I got an auto-reply from Crist, the only response I've ever gotten to an EMail to the Gov's office.

No answer so far from Gaetz.

The following just arrived from Rep. Coley:



Thank you for expressing your concerns about oil drilling in Florida's Gulf of Mexico. I really appreciate the input. Last year the Florida House passed legislation that would authorize the governor and cabinet to accept a $5 million non-refundable application fee for a company to explore the oil drilling possibilities; it did not authorize drilling. As you expressed, the asset of the Gulf is one that cannot be compromised. Because energy independence is extremely important, I am diligently studying all facets of the issue. However, I cannot stress enough my commitment to protecting the military mission, the tourism industry, and the environment in the panhandle.
I have actively attempted to educate myself on this issue. I invited Representative Dean Cannon, last year's House sponsor, to the Panhandle to see how important the beaches are to our economy and to learn how important the military presence is to the entire region. We both learned a great deal. This is an emotional issue in District 7 because many of the inland counties support drilling. I want to assure you, however, that I have listened to the concerns of the people that would be most affected by the issues - those living on the coast- and will not support legislation that would harm our tourism base or our military presence.
Representing a district with nine counties requires that I listen to all constituents so no issue is a simple one. Please know that I am committed to be a strong voice for all of District 7.

Sincerely,

Marti Coley

 

[TreeFrog]

In this morning's Daily News, all the local politicians deferred their decisions on the subject to the military. None of them opposed drilling because of any moral principle. What a bunch of jerks. I e-mailed a list of about five legislators on the subject, and basically got a form letter that said, in effect, if i wasn't from their district, my opinion didn't count. Just the way this is being downplayed by the media makes me think that something stinks. :angry:

Using the military angle is just a roundabout way of saying they are going to vote for the bill. Nobody in their right mind would suspect that the bill would be passed over the objections of the military, so it isn't hard to imagine that the final version will include whatever exemptions and exclusions the military asks for. That's great for them, but it doesn't do a thing for our jobs and property values.

 

[scooterbug44]

I can think of a couple other names for a "$5 million non-refundable application fee". :angry:

If they aren't drilling, why would they need to pay a fee? You can study something all you want w/o paying a fee in Scooterbugland. :roll:

NEWSFLASH POLITICIANS: the military is against it!

 

[Matt J]

From what Rep. Coley keeps stating it seems like her solution to a budget shortfall is to basically eff over out of town business. Is this really the solution we are looking for? Basically if I'm reading this correctly she's saying that the sole purpose of this bill is to accept money for something we aren't going to allow. Why would Big Oil go for that and be pushing so hard to effectively donate $5 million dollars to the state?

Rep. Coley, exactly how stupid do you think your constituents are?

 

[30A Skunkape]

I Emailed Gov. Crist, Sen. Gaetz, and Rep. Coley on Sunday night. Here's the (lighly edited) text of what I sent:



Dear Gov/Sen/Rep Crist/Gaetz/Coley,

My family are your constituents, residing in Santa Rosa Beach, Walton County. We strongly urge you to vote against SB 2622.

It is clear and unquestionable that the economy of the region you represent is heavily dependent on tourism and on investment in real estate and vacation homes.

In that light, it is reckless to risk the livelihoods and property values of your constituents by voting for a bill that will allow oil drilling within three miles of shore. Such a rig would be plainly visible from the beach.

Yes, I've read the text of the bill. I know there will be a publicized meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund before granting leases. Let's be realistic here. We both know that once the "cat is out of the bag", there's no stuffing it back in. And that the Board Meeting is highly unlikely to result in denial of a lease application, just because local citizens oppose.

The time to act is now. This bill is wrong for Walton and Okaloosa Counties, not to mention much of the rest of Florida.

Vote against SB2622.

TreeFrog's name and address in signature line




I got an auto-reply from Crist, the only response I've ever gotten to an EMail to the Gov's office.

No answer so far from Gaetz.

The following just arrived from Rep. Coley:



Thank you for expressing your concerns about oil drilling in Florida's Gulf of Mexico. I really appreciate the input. Last year the Florida House passed legislation that would authorize the governor and cabinet to accept a $5 million non-refundable application fee for a company to explore the oil drilling possibilities; it did not authorize drilling. As you expressed, the asset of the Gulf is one that cannot be compromised. Because energy independence is extremely important, I am diligently studying all facets of the issue. However, I cannot stress enough my commitment to protecting the military mission, the tourism industry, and the environment in the panhandle.
I have actively attempted to educate myself on this issue. I invited Representative Dean Cannon, last year's House sponsor, to the Panhandle to see how important the beaches are to our economy and to learn how important the military presence is to the entire region. We both learned a great deal. This is an emotional issue in District 7 because many of the inland counties support drilling. I want to assure you, however, that I have listened to the concerns of the people that would be most affected by the issues - those living on the coast- and will not support legislation that would harm our tourism base or our military presence.
Representing a district with nine counties requires that I listen to all constituents so no issue is a simple one. Please know that I am committed to be a strong voice for all of District 7.

Sincerely,

Marti Coley

Well, thats a true story!