Monthly Archives: August 2007

Pink & Purple Power

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My little boy and I were out in the truck the other night and pulled up to the Burnt Creek boat dock. The sun had already set, but it was still casting color to our sky, and it was a suitable backdrop for MDU’s power plant north of Mandan.

Remember the stereotypical image of stacks belching forth acrid black smoke? Those days are long gone, thanks to pollution control measures. In fact, the only thing you’re likely to see from today’s power plants is steam…which makes sense, because that’s all a power plant really is: a steam factory. Once they’ve made the steam, they force it through the turbines of some very large generators, but the process of the plant is the liquefaction and ignition of coal in order to heat water into steam. As cleanly and as safely as possible, I might add.

On Golden Pond… river, actually

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Some nights you just can’t beat the cliffs of Double Ditch Indian Village for great shots of the river at sunset. This was one of them. I never tire of this view, but I really want to go to the bottom of the cliffs for a sunset. It seems I just can’t get myself out there in time, because the only foot path down to the river is on the south end of the park. By the time I get out there, I haven’t the time to hoof it to the water and thread my way north. Oh well, someday…

Logan County storm – check out this supercell

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While out poking around south of Mandan the other night, I was astounded by this huge mushroom cloud east of the Bismarck-Mandan area. With cloud tops in the 60,000 foot range and a span that looked as big as the county, it was a formidable sight to see. I sure was glad I wasn’t on the business end of such a cloud! Thankfully nobody was hurt or killed by this storm, although it did quite a bit of crop and property damage.

Another reason why E-85 is a joke – one that isn’t very funny

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The ethanol craze is driving up the price of corn. As a result, more farmers grow corn. That means fewer acres of other crops are planted, driving the prices of those grains up as well. Not only is the cost of feed increased, so is the cost of other food products. Ranchers and dairy farmers have to raise their prices to make up for their increased production costs. So all our food prices go up.

I have a hard time believing the farmer or rancher is going to come out successful in the long run, and it’s obvious the consumer is getting robbed. So who’s making money? Simple: the people collecting the government subsidies on ethanol blended fuels.

In ND, E85 can contain as little as 70% ethanol. Check the text on that orange button on the E85 pump. That means an E85 producer can hedge 15% of the ethanol in the fuel he makes and collect a 50 cent per gallon subsidy on 15% more product! What a racket, eh?

Why do you suppose they give it 15% leeway? Perhaps it’s because the ethanol evaporates and/or absorbs water. That’s why they can’t transport it using pipelines. So if it will absorb water in a pipeline, what do you suppose it’s going to do in the underground tanks at the gas stations?

What about putting a hygroscopic fuel in your gas tank? Do you feel like replacing a $500 fuel pump in your General Motors Flexfuel vehicle every winter when the water absorbed by the ethanol freezes up and takes out the impellers of your fuel pump? Since 1995, GM has integrated the fuel pump with the gas gauge sending unit in its vehicles. Trust me, I had to replace one. I couldn’t believe the $670 bill! Look forward to more of those if you’re going to start making ethanol ice cubes in your gas tank.

Let’s not forget that E85 is a thermodynamic loser as well. That means you get less energy out of gallon of E85 compared to a gallon of gasolene. Simply put: your car doesn’t have much power, your mileage goes down, and you save ZERO in the long run. But you get to feel better (until you crunch the numbers) and some fatcat gets to collect a government subsidy. E85 is a joke, plain and simple. Anyone who tells you otherwise has a purely financial interest in doing so.

Before Medora had its ampitheater…there was Fort Abraham Lincoln

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You can’t find any remnants of it now, but there was at one time a large ampitheater set up south of Mandan. Many of us are too young to remember it, but I’ve got photographic proof! I can’t say exactly when this was built, although Fort Abraham Lincoln is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

This photo comes from a friend’s collection. His dad spent most of his time in the air and, like myself, never went anywhere without his camera. He’s amassed a treasure of North Dakota history, which I’ve been entrusted to share with you. You’ll be as astonished as I was.

The last time I was up at Fort Lincoln State Park, one of the young guys working for the park was able to show us where the ampitheater used to reside. It was a pleasant surprise to find out about it, and also to find a guy in his 20s who knows about it.

By the way, the executive director of the Fort Abraham Lincoln Foundation is pro-abortion ND state legislator Tracy Potter, who thinks the ND law outlawing abortion is “terribly embarrassing.” I suppose now I’ll be accused of “attacking” Mr. Potter because I’ve quoted his deplorable political beliefs, but that’s what liberals do: set themselves up in foundations, institutions, or bureaucracies, then cry “attack!” whenever someone points out what they believe.

Here’s a bit of advice for Mr. Potter: instead of trying to advance liberal social agendas in the state legislature, focus on Fort Lincoln and lean on ’em to keep the blockhouse gates open until dark (as the sign says) for local photographers to enjoy them at sunset! Only once this year have I driven out to Fort Lincoln before dark and found the gates unlocked. Now THAT is “terribly embarrassing.”

Friday night boat

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It’s been a grueling couple of days, as we mourn with our family over the loss of Alexis. Tonight, after some truly wonderful family time, my wife and I took a trip up River Road. The sun was already past the horizon, but I saw this lone straggler still out on the water and sensed an opportunity. After that it was back home to snuggle our boy and get some much needed rest.

A one-sided story

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I’d love to know what happened to the other three sides of this barn… wouldn’t you? I found these buildings standing near the road southwest of Mandan. There’s a lot of neat topography and other scenery down there, in my old stompin’ grounds, and I decided to introduce my wife and little boy to some of them today after work. I didn’t know this “barn” was there, though. What a pleasant surprise!

Bird on a wire

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I wonder who mows the patch between these two fences…it looks like a tight squeeze! These fences sit side by side at the Double Ditch Indian Village north of Bismarck. While the land to the north of the fence on the right looks like it’s hayed, I don’t know whether it’s park land or not. To the south of the fence on the left is the area we all know as Double Ditch. Why these two fences sit an arm’s length apart is a mystery, at least to me. They make a nice set of lines for the camera, though…and I had a feathered visitor to share the moment!

My response to the NRCC…again

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I just got a fundraising letter in the mail from the National Republican Congressional Committee, asking for money to help them defeat the Democrats in upcoming elections. Here’s my response (and NO, I did not include a contribution with it…as will be evident from my letter):

To: Congressman Tom Cole, NRCC Chairman
Re: Membership contribution request

Dear Congressman Cole,

Thank you for the notification that my membership in the NRCC had lapsed. It is with good reason that I have allowed such a lapse to occur; it seems that members of Congress, elected to serve the people, have forgotten that they work for the American people and see us as more of a nuisance and hindrance than anything else.

You’re asking me for money to help you fight for reform…yet you had six years of total control in Washington in which to advance our agenda. Who fell asleep at the wheel? The same folks who want my hard-earned money now that they’re powerless to push anything through the House at all, and can merely stonewall Democrat bills in the Senate? What was my money paying for when you guys ran the joint?

The fact of the matter is, I am not sending you guys a penny. I, like many who vote Republican, am the antithesis of the “rich, evil Republican” that the Democrats like to portray. I make a modest living and am content doing so, and thought that sending some of my valuable money to you Republicans while you were in power would actually help you accomplish something. I was sorely mistaken, and I won’t be making such a poor investment any time in the near future.

Until I have assurance that Republicans in Congress will start representing the conservatives who stand by them despite repeated assaults from leftist Democrats, I will not support the NRCC in any way, especially with my hard-earned dollars. I will also suggest to my fellow conservatives that they do the same via my website and any other means at my disposal.

I was not one of those voters who “sat out” the last election in order to teach you Republicans a lesson. I do understand what’s at stake here. But for you to come back to us with your hat in your hand after a shameful squandering of six years in control of Washington is too much. I won’t vote with my wallet the way I will with my ballot. Either you Republicans in Congress had better start acting like conservatives, or you won’t have any support left from people who thought you were there to advance the causes about which we care most deeply.

Good luck. Your candidates will likely get my vote in 2008, but you won’t get one red cent. This time you earn it first. In the mean time, save yourself the embarassment of mailing your legal American supporters with your hat in your hand, asking us for money while simultaneously throwing us overboard.

PS: The same applies to Presidential candidates in 2008. At this point I remain firmly resolved to write-in Ronald Reagan.

Little Lexi passed away this morning

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For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Alexis Vogel died this morning. She was the daughter of my wife’s sister, and I’ve never known a sweeter little girl. Earlier this year, Lexi was diagnosed with an inoperable tumor at the base of her brain. Nothing could stop the tumor from slowly putting a stranglehold on this wonderful little child, and now her battle against it is over. With the Bible as our authority, we can know that she’s in heaven today…but it’s a sad day for all who will miss her.

Lexi lost a little brother a couple of years ago. Little Dominic survived less than an hour after coming into this world. As a new dad I can’t imagine the God-given strength her parents must have, to make it through such a situation…not once, but now twice. They’ve trusted in the Lord to take care of their family and been an amazing testimony for Him all the while. At a time when no human means can deliver any answers, they’ve glorified their God.

This picture is how I choose to remember Alexis. She, like pretty much every little kid that comes to visit, loved Scooter. I imagine it was a pretty big thrill when he flew over and landed on her head! That’s nothing compared to the unimaginable happiness she must be feeling in heaven now. It’s hard for that to be a consolation to those who miss her, but it’s good to know that there’s no sickness, no pain, no parting with her Savior in heaven.