We the Sheeple – The cancer of CARB

George Rebane

Only its numbers make a social issue important.  Not understanding its numbers is to not understand the social issue.

[RR is opening a new category of topics – ‘We the Sheeple’ – in which posts that report on how quietly and without a murmur we accept the governments’ relentless ravages on our freedoms and finances.  These items are meant to highlight that we, a once fiercely free and independent people, have now become what can only be described as yet another cowardly and compliant cohort pretending that we understand what’s going on, and are willing to stand up for our and our children’s rights as citizens of a once exceptional America.  Consider these offerings as a murmur.]

A correspondent sends a report of a local Californian who is planning on changing some light fixtures in his house.  Doing the research on the type and price of the new lights available here in the Sacramento area, the price tag came to $1080 for the required hardware.  A little more online research disclosed that the identical hardware could be purchased in Reno for $730.  The reason – in California such lighting hardware must succumb to, er, conform to California’s ‘Title 24 energy code’ and be certified by CARB (California Air Resources Board) to be in compliance.

In these pages CARB has long been identified as possibly the most vicious agency on the long list of rogue agencies in California, now even surpassing the teachers’ and  public service employees unions.  CARB is the agency most recently charged with implementing and enforcing compliance with the notorious AB32 (‘clean air’) legislation that has shut down hundreds of businesses or driven them out of state.  (Search RR with ‘AB32’)

We recall that California voters attempted to pass Prop23 to remove some of AB32’s fangs.  The unions and green kool-aid funded NGOs successfully fought to defeat Prop23.  Many of us predicted the economic holocaust that was to come, and now it is here.  (As a defiant reminder, Jo Ann and I still have our ‘Prop23, Jobs First’ bumper stickers on our cars.  These are the first and only bumper stickers we have ever had on our vehicles on which they now are permanent fixtures.)  Recall the local yokels who made the northern California rounds proclaiming a new age of green jobs and industries that AB32 would make bloom and get us out of our dire economic straits.  Well, I wonder how all this is working out for them, it sure isn’t working out for the rest of us.

Can you imagine how many everyday items, such destructive laws as AB32’s Title 24, are out there, quietly stealing from us day in day out.  The cancer of CARB has metastasized another 50+% tax (yes, that’s a fifty percent new tax added to all the other taxes) on the above described light fixtures and thousands of other items, and we don’t make a peep.  Those who do discover it will quietly climb in their cars and go over the hill to save more than $300 on this purchase alone, and in the process deprive California merchants from making such sales locally.  Meanwhile, the rest of us just cluck-cluck our tongues, shake our heads, and dig deeper into our wallets to pay the next tranche of tribute to a government that no longer serves.  And California's green catastrophe just rolls on.

Comments

[Russ Steele]

George,

We thought that AB-32 was bad, but now CARB has some new challenges for the citizens of CA. They want to put transponders in cars to report smog data and anything else that the political hacks can think up, including shutting down your vehicle if it does not conform to their rules. More details HERE.

[Todd Juvinall]

Ah yes, the Smartmeter for cars. Pretty soon it will be a pacemaker to shut our bodies down, like that movie Arnld did.

[Russ Steele]

Todd,

Awesome, "Smartmeters for cars."

[George Rebane]

Good thoughts and links Russ and Toddj. I would appreciate any heads up on the continuing saga of how we the sheeple respond to the onrush of Complete Government.

[billy T]

I would drive to Reno to save on light bulbs, but my electric go cart won't make it without a 3 hour stop in route to charge up. Also, when I turn my heater on my electric go cart, my range decreases and decreases even more on the cold Summit. But all is not lost. Here is a green company making money....coaching California companies how to zig-zag thru the maze of regulations....hopefully in an electric forklift. http://www.intertek.com/green/california/

[Russ Steele]

Billy T(08:11)

I once sat down with two former ERC Presidents and suggested one of the great services they could provide to our local businesses would be a monthly newsletter that listed the new regulations and the impact they would have on Nevada County. There were many local companies that were only discovering the new regulations applied to them when an inspector showed up at the door, wrote them up, fined them and left everyone wondering could this happen in my business. No one was willing to step up to the challenge. Too hard, to risky, too much work.

I was a the County Dump, oops Waste Management Facility this weekend and discovered last week they were inspected and written up for allowing wood with any glue or binder in the scrap wood pile. The CA/EPA now considers any wood with glue to or binder to be toxic. So all the MDF, plywood and glued wood objects in our homes are now toxic, all by the decree of a faceless unaccountable bureaucracy. Who knew?

[Russ Steele]

George your (06:20)

You asked the question on how to deal with “onrush of Complete Government. Social Media and the Internet are proving to be powerful tools, when targeted by thousands of angry citizens. I can point to two recent examples. The sudden reversal of SOPA, which has gone to the back burner, when the Internet community responded. NOAA’s withdrawal of a employees survey that was biased, when an employee sent the survey to several widely read climate blogs and outrage was instant. The Survey has been withdrawn. When Mark Morano at the Climate Deport reports some intellectual stupidity, he posted the author e-mail address. The response is often over whelming, and retractions or apologies are issued, or the e-mail address changed.

The Tea Party has been effective in sending e-mails and faxes to our representatives on important issues. We need to gather the e-mail address and fax numbers of CARB and the Legislative Committees that oversea CARB and let the know we are mad as hell and will not put up with it any more.

Dan Logue has been helpful in getting government agencies off the backs of local businesses. In fact, it was an e-mail I sent Dan about what was going on at Diegos and he meet with the Governor the same day. But, now we are about to lose Dan as our representative.

We are not using the tools that we have in a coordinated way to let our State Government know that we are not happy campers about their interference in our daily lives. A perfect example would be CARB vehicle transponder proposal. Kill this stupid idea while they in the study stage. One of the tasks of the contractor is public reaction. When that contractor is chosen, we need to make our voices heard. At NC Media Watch I used to have the e-mail addresses listed for CARB and CARB Project Project Managers and the Legislature Chairs. I doubt that anyone actually used those address but me. We need a more organized response. The trick is to pick one issue and focus on it, then move to the next one, and on and on.

[George Rebane]

Russ 910pm - Good points. May actual 620pm request was for readers to notify me through email or comments on how we continue to knuckle under the onslaughts of big government.

[Paul Emery]

George

I thought you were opposed to majority democracy such as the proposition process (prop 23)?

[Account Deleted]

I think a healthy percentage of California drivers will welcome the new govt monitoring of our vehicles. With the new transponders, new car owners will be able to eliminate the bi-annual smog inspections while they own the car. It will save them a lot of time and money. Expect the govt to play up the "life saving" aspect that will automatically summon emergency responders to your car in the event of an accident. Stolen cars can be quickly located and child abductors stopped dead in their lane. Speeding? Go a few over the limit and a photo of the driver as well as GPS coordinates as well as the speed and throttle position are dispatched to the proper authorities. Electric cars will have to have their mileage and travel details reported for tax purposes, and since they won't want to discourage the sale of electric cars, they will apply the system to all vehicles to be fair. The poor person trying to escape all of this by staying with their '67 VW will find it hard to find any fuel that has less than a 20% alcohol content. On top of that will come a fee added to their registration for polluting an excessive and dangerous amount. Daily driver insurance will be prohibitive as the older cars will be deemed unsafe for regular use as they have no airbags and all of the modern features that the new cars will have. It is simply a matter of numbers and a quiet waiting game. Once enough of the masses are using the transponder equipped cars and don't feel burdened by anything perceived as negative, the new minority of older car owners can be held out as the cause of almost any new crises, calamity or cash flow problem in the govt.
If the people are sheep, they will always welcome the new sheep herder - even if it is a poorly disguised wolf.

[billy T]

Wonder what will happen to my 1963 Dodge Dart V-6? Yep, it is an ugly car for sure, but it is exempt from smog. Has no seat belts in the back bench cause those were considered options at the time. It gets 22 miles to the gallon on the road and runs best on the cheapest spark plugs and parts you can find. I was thinking about getting one of those luxurious Fisker electric cars, but they only get 22 miles to the gallon as well when not running on juice. Think I will keep the Dart until a nasty fine comes in the mail. Maybe I will have to go on-line and buy some of those carbon credits Al Gore was pedaling. Opps, that exchange is closing its doors. The solution to all those Volt recalls to prevent the car burning to the ground a few weeks after an accident was to encase the battery with more steel supports and cage. I ain't a motorhead nor a mileage expert, but something tells me the more weight in a car, the less MPG. I do know ethanol decreases mileage. While not normally a conspiracy theorist, I smell a rat. This smart meter for cars and requiring more electric golf carts is to keep and the employers and employees from emigrating to other states to escape the control freaks. Kinda hard to get out of here when you only get to go 30 miles on a charge. But, hope burns eternal. I knew some evil money grubbing company would find a loophole http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/05/us/california-clean-cars-deal-criticized-as-hurting-green-sales.html

[billy T]

forgive me all readers! My Dart is a slant 6... now I will have to go wash her to make her feel better.

[billy T]

In related news, Caterpillar announced one year ago that the cost of meeting Tier 4 standards will add 12% to the costs of its products. That is no chump chance concerning the costs of their equipment. Now Caterpillar has pissed off the Canadians big time. The heavy equipment manufacture asked for a 50% cut in union wages at its London, Ontario plant to stay competitive. The union said no way, and Caterpillar shuttered its doors today. Seems the company held a job fair over the weekend in Munice, Indiana.....one week after Indiana became a right to work state. Maybe a coincidence, maybe not. http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/article2327946.html

[George Rebane]

PaulE 922pm - It appears that I wasn't able to communicate my thoughts on democracy in a sufficiently clear manner for you to understand. I, along with our Founders, see the serious shortcomings of "majority democracy" when applied in the large scale, and especially so when complex large scale issues are to be decided by majority rule. A more careful rereading of my remarks will reveal that I favor democracy as a form of governance on the smaller scales.

That being restated, we have the governance that we have, and while we must live with it, we have to do the best we can. As all but the most ideologically calcified now understand, in opposing Prop23 Californians did not do the best they could (and thereby underlined my thesis on the frailty of large-scale democracy).

[Douglas Keachie]

As for lighting, nothing beats or even comes close to LED's, and if you are creative, you can do conversions of existing lighting fixtures to take a Christmas string of the things (cheapest way to get them, for now. What happened to good old rgged individualism and knowhow, not to mention best use recycling is reuse?

Could it just be that the advertising and entertainment industries, in their pursuit of the all mighty dollar for their corporate masters, have been whoring away for so long and so well that Americans have lost their supply of precious bodily fluids? If you can't make at least one person laugh per day, you have failed in the eyes of God.

BillyT is an overachiever.

BTW, one thing that a fully linked GPS system would make possible would be 110 miles per hour on 80 at 3 am when the central computer detects no other cars in range, good tires, and recent brake job. Variable speed limits could be cool.

[billy T]

Thank you much, Mr. Keachie for your kind words. I love you bunches and bunches, I reaalllllyyy do! Once again I am ahead of the curve. Had this German Psychobeach from Hell move in a few years back. At Christmas time she ran those led white indoor lights down the hall, down the stairs, and around the inside of the front door. She was not too happy when I kicked her and her psycho cat to the curb. She yelled something in German that I could loosely translate as being not pleasant wishes upon my head. But, I digress again. Point is as one after another bulb in the ceilings burned out, I kept the Christmas lights on year after year. Now, them leds ARE my lighting. I though I was being cheap and frugal. Come to find out I am a bone-fided mean green machine and a recycler to boot. Time to drive the Dart down to the therapist and watch that vein on the side of her forehead bulge out as we examine my new identity as a tree hugger. Hmmm, I just got a hankering for Chi Tea and hummus. California Dreamin' on such a winter's day.

[Gregory]

The power to my house gets so many spikes that all the LED lighting I've installed that doesn't have a switching power supply driving it gets destroyed in a year or two.

Regarding the CARB, the California state legislature has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance. It won't stop until they completely run out of other people's 'substance' to play with.

[billy T]

Addressing a larger issue, a fortune cookie read the other day "You are pragmatic and visionary, which will make your dreams come true." I do see a future of solar panels and clean burning cars and a host of other green stuff. In and of itself, that is a good future. The pragmatic in me says "how are you going to pay for it, does in work in various situations, where is the point of diminishing returns? Is it money down the rat hole? I do see an ever intrusive government looking over our shoulders. They don't call them lawmakers for nuthin', and they have been quite busy doing their job title. Some call them representatives, but that is becoming more wishful thinking than anything else. 15,000 new IRS agents are needed to see if you have health insurance, and if not, you pay. If I want to spend a year working in the jungles of South America looking for a herbal miracle cure (a vision), then I must plan and save and research to make a full year possible (pragmatic). Seems the CARB regulations are appearing more like a Trojan Horse that once opened will create a lot more misery and enslavement than meets the eye. The old "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts" and all that stuff. What is the future going to look like. Thousands of desert acres on Federal land across the Southwest are being scrapped bare as new solar mirrors are being installed. It is pragmatic to put them out in the desert where people can't look at them. Is the green vision of decreased dependence on fossil fuels include millions off acres of solar mirrors from Sea to Shining Sea? Here are small examples of visions and pragmatism:http://www.basinandrangewatch.org/IvanpahValley.html http://www.gizmag.com/enviromission-solar-tower-arizona-clean-energy-renewable/19287/ http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-solar-desert-20120205,0,7889582.story

[Account Deleted]

Doug - A fully linked GPS system will absolutely mean going 110 mph on any road in California at any time will have your car impounded and you in jail pronto. Thinking any differently goes against all existing evidence.
The Germans already have been doing this for decades without any GPS anything and do quite well. Americans as a whole have proven over and over that they don't wish to be bothered with having to think about driving while they are driving.
"What happened to good old rgged (sic) individualism and knowhow, not to mention best use recycling is reuse?"
So are you a libertarian now, Doug? American recycling started a long time ago with re-loading bullets. PG&E was established to provide all the electricity I want at the lowest price. I pay for it and I can use the juice any old way I want. Letting the govt dictate what kind of contrivance I use to produce light in my house is not "rugged individualism".

[billy T]

I know Oregon is struggling with the issue to tax people on their use/non use of hybrids, what % of the time they use electricity and what % they drive using (gasp) fossil fuels. Seems Oregon built a massive charging network across Portland and now somebody has to pay for it. Problem is the state paid for the charging network with money from gasoline taxes. Since people concerned with saving the planet before we are all look like fried Twinkies are driving more electric driven miles, that means they are using the roads without paying for it via gasoline taxes. Unfair. I cry fowl. What gives them the right. Fortunately for the citizens of Oregon their government is coming up with a sensor to detect their non-gasoline miles and send them a bill for using the roads. And we thought green was free. Renewable and all that stuff. Guess we all forgot the old adage "If you are going to play, you're going pay". We forgot the nature of the beast and they will turn you upside and shake out any loose change you have in your pocket. Maybe take your watch as collateral if they caught you at a bad time. The beast must be paid....http://www.marketwatch.com/story/lawsuit-filed-to-halt-riverside-county-sun-tax-2012-02-06

[billy T]

wonder where all that money is going? http://laist.com/2012/02/06/california_public_employees_top_the_pay_charts.php

[Russ Steele]

Billy T,

I wrote about the electric vehcile issue for the State Net Capitol Journal in 2006.

States have historically relied on motor fuel taxes to fund highway
infrastructure, but with revenue declining, cash-strapped states could turn
instead to high tech "road user fees" to build and fix our roads.

SNCJ Spotlight

Ridin' with a tax collector onboard

With gasoline hovering at $2 a gallon these days, owners of gas guzzling
vehicles are being forced to take a second look at more fuel-efficient
transportation. And with buyers no longer forced to compromise on space,
as they did when purchasing the innovative Honda Insight or Toyota Prius,
they can now satisfy their lust for size, power and fuel economy by
choosing hybrid full size pickup trucks, SUVs and high performance
sedans. But transportation experts say the large-scale acceptance of these
new fuel-efficient vehicles will also have a long-term impact on the nation's
transportation infrastructure.

The historical backbone of state transportation revenue has been the motor
fuel tax. This tax has declined annually as inflation has reduced its value,
and as drivers have steadily purchased more fuel-efficient vehicles. This
decline will accelerate even more if and when consumers demand en
masse alternative fuel vehicles, such as those powered by hydrogen fuel.

Here is a link to the full article: http://insightworks2.wordpress.com/?attachment_id=30

[Douglas Keachie]

Russ, lighter cars do less damage to the roadways. Scott, you missed the concept altogether. A central computer could green light your speedo dial all the way to 110 legally, if it detected no other near traffic. Billy T, don't forget the line out every MD, and very teaching prof MD, at all the state medical schools and prisons. Then look at your numbers again.Quite a reduction in max salaries without them.

[Account Deleted]

No, Doug. Once again, you missed the point. Safety has absolutely nothing to do with it. The Krauts already have been doing this for decades. Another vehicle being on the road doesn't have anything to do with the safety of going any speed you can name. They are in one lane, and I'm in another. What does it matter what the speed differential is? The safety and green nazis already are clamoring for a return to 55 max. I know you can hardly wait for the govt to control the vehicles on the road. If you think they're going to let you go 110mph, you are sadly mistaken. The govt apparatchiks, of course, will roll by at any speed they care to. Drunk, to boot. Brave New World.

[Douglas Keachie]

You might want to avoid Portugal, on your next trip to Europe.

http://www.driveandstayalive.com/info%20section/statistics/multi-country_death-rates_1988-2001.htm

[billy T]

Mr. Steele: Excellent link and reporting. You used to do excellent articles on Spain being the leader in solar and renewable energy construction which were quite informative, despite the heat you took. Poor Spain is now in a recession again and the UN wants them to pay up. Spain just can't seem to catch a break. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-06/spain-needs-466-million-in-carbon-credits-to-meet-kyoto-limit.html Suppose this is related to the CARB theme of Dr. Rebane's article.

[billy T]

Finally, documented proof that human activity is causing glaciers to shrink: http://news.yahoo.com/man-stole-glacier-cocktails-063000532.html

[Douglas Keachie]

"The govt apparatchiks" the one percent, as interpreted by the Right?

[Account Deleted]

The ones that have the police and the army to enforce their dictats. Example: Obama giving a speech about how we won't be able to keep driving around in our SUVs and then gets into his SUV and drives off to the airport. Or our last governor who signs legislation to prevent "global warming" and commutes daily in his own private jet. Wall Street has no army and can't tell us how to live. Douglas needs to think about who can throw us in jail and who can't. I'm only concerned with the ones that take away our Constitutional rights and our liberties. The very worst private corp can be stopped by simply saying "no thank you". I'm still waiting for some one to provide evidence of a company that can take my liberty or my property.

[George Rebane]

ScottO 946am - The only corporations that can take my property are the ones that pay a corrupt government to turn their guns on me and condemn my property for the 'public good'. While not a blanket truth, almost all corporate corruption is preceded and abetted by a corrupt government working hand in glove with the corporation.

[Account Deleted]

Exactly - it always boils down to the govt. The company or corporation by itself can not harm my rights or liberty. With the govt stepping in, for example, using eminent domain to let a developer take my home to use as a shopping mall. The govt then not only failed to protect my rights, but actually used a private company to take my home in exchange for being able to collect more tax revenue. Who is evil and greedy in that example? This was upheld by the left wing Supreme Court 4 with help from the "moderate". Only the 4 conservative justices tried to follow the Constitution. I only fear my govt (and it's sheeple supporters), but not any company.

[Douglas Keachie]

"I'm still waiting for some one to provide evidence of a company that can take my liberty or my property."

Here's a company doing just that. What do you think this did to the value of real estate owned by private parties in the area? To their piece of mind?

http://www.water-contamination-from-shale.com/wyoming/some-water-wells-in-wyoming-fracking-community-contaminated-epa-says/

[Douglas Keachie]

It probably blew their minds to pieces, and thus destroyed their "peace" of mind.

[George Rebane]

DougK 1213pm - very interesting to see the liberal mind at work equating private companies using government to gain possession of property to a private company that may or not have accidentally contaminated wells near its gas production sites.

[Gregory]

The fracking report isn't quite as cut and dried as Keachie's link would have it:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2011/12/09/questions-emerge-on-epas-wyoming-fracking-study/

[Account Deleted]

Doug - when you post a link, you might want to read the whole story first. No one has shown it is the company activity that caused the contamination. If a link is proven, the company will face severe financial charges. No one has the right to contaminate a water source. My charge still stands.

[Douglas Keachie]

So God contaminated the water? Or the Marlboro Man? Give me a break!

[Douglas Keachie]

Farting into nearby wells is what I would call, "adverse possession."

[Douglas Keachie]

If you like another study, not from Forbes's oil and gas editor, who may have a certain bias, as well as the "well" funded sites he references (pun intended), try this:

http://www.propublica.org/documents/item/methane-contamination-of-drinking-water-accompanying-gas-well-drilling

[Account Deleted]

Doug - you posted the link. "The EPA has not reached any conclusions about the sources of chemical compounds found in drinking water wells, including fracking as a possible cause, CNN said. However, the agency said it is working with various government partners and EnCana to provide affected residents with water and to address potential sources of the contamination." If you think this is bogus, why did you post it? You might try posting links to articles that you actually agree with if you are trying to bolster your point.
Was the water tested earlier? And as I clearly stated, if the company is responsible, they will be held liable. You still can't provide any evidence of a private company or corporation that can (legally) deprive me of my rights or liberties. Only the govt can do this.

[Gregory]

Note how he doesn't actually fall back to the reasoning from his original source material, just flings another pile into the blog without reading. From the abstract of the "Methane" paper:
"We found no evidence for contamination of drinking-water samples with deep saline brines or fracturing fluids".

Nice going, Doug.

[Douglas Keachie]

I will happily refer back to these two posts in ten years or so. Good luck!

Have another fling, my cosmic monkeys: http://thinkprogress.org/green/2012/02/06/416677/big-oil-pumps-more-than-12-million-into-romney-super-pac/

[billy T]

Mr Keachie, farting into nearby wells is what you would call adverse possession. You ain't seen nothing yet. When Mother Nature farts, all whole lot of stink results. http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Glossary/Lakes/description_volcanic_lakes_gas_release.html

[Douglas Keachie]

Doesn't even take that much. Good old harmless CO2 killed three ski patrollers back in 2006 at Mammoth Mountain.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-10-07-mammoth-fine_x.htm

[Douglas Keachie]

"No one has the right to contaminate a water source."

No one has the right to drive drunk, but remember, corporations are people and they do act like drunks at times. Aggressive, stupid, out-of-control bullies, doing whatever they can get away with, to improve their bottom line. Happens every day. Or do you say otherwise?

[Account Deleted]

So Doug, at least let's be clear. Your attempt to disprove my point has failed and you are now on to some other topic? I can not restate this enough. When XYZ corp comes to your door and says "buy this", we have only to say "no thank you". When Johnny Law comes a calling and says "come with me", you can get into mortal combat or you will hold out your wrists and go. Any questions?
I see that Doug is upset about the amount of money that the SUPER PACS (say it in a sinister voice) have raised for Romney. What has that to do with anything? Is Doug now going to vote for Romney? Does Doug feel tempted to vote for Romney? Of course not. I don't. So what is the problem? I see that President Zero has once again reversed course with a deeply held belief and will accept PAC money. This has been explained away as his PACS are "good" PACS and the conservative PACS are evil. Personally, I like big oil. They take the money I freely give them to provide fuel for my car and I can go places. They don't care what I drive or where I go. And they would provide a better fuel if the govt would let them.

[Douglas Keachie]

The problem, Scott, is that you and I are not your average tv addicted citizens, and are no easily swayed by obvious propaganda.