Obama Visits & Praises Ethanol Plant Without Even Thinking Of Consequences

[Obama 2012 1,714]

Honestly, how can anyone praise ethanol and the amount of corn that it uses. Forcasters are already saying that meat prices (all forms) are going to skyrocket by the end of the year due to feed costs going up because corn is becoming a much more in-demand product because of it's use here.

That's not even mentioning the poorer gas mileage, and the fact that some in Washington want to push for a 20% standard in regular fuel... ugh.

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Macon, Missouri (CNN) - President Barack Obama donned a hard hat and goggles Wednesday to tour an ethanol plant in Missouri, then touted biofuel production and other alternative energy sources to free the United States from dependence on foreign oil.

On the second day of his two-day swing through Iowa, Missouri and Illinois, Obama told workers at the POET Biorefining plant in Macon that their work creates a stronger economy for the nation and their own community.

The president noted that tough economic conditions in Midwestern states have made it harder for middle-class Americans to get by, and have caused young people to move away due to a lack of opportunity.

He said the success story at the POET plant proves "that doesn't have to be the case."

"Here at POET, I believe that you're doing more than just helping stake America's claim on our future," Obama said. "I'm here to make sure that communities like this one have a bright future of opportunity going forward."

The POET Biorefining plant in Macon produced its first ethanol in 2000, Obama noted.

Today, the plant purchases 16 million bushels of corn from 650 farmers in the region to produce 46 million gallons of ethanol, along with 140,000 tons of high protein animal feed sold to area farmers and 94,000 tons of carbon dioxide - C02 - that is sold to soft drink companies, food processors, water treatment facilities and others, according to information provided by the White House.

Later Wednesday, Obama will discuss Wall Street reform during an appearance in Quincy, Illinois.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/28/obama-tours-praises-ethanol-plant/?fbid=yQF0ZKKt1la&hpt=Sbin

[mawilson 2,133]

Honestly, how can anyone praise ethanol and the amount of corn that it uses. Forcasters are already saying that meat prices (all forms) are going to skyrocket by the end of the year due to feed costs going up because corn is becoming a much more in-demand product because of it's use here.

Sounds like a win-win. Less meat and high-fructose corn syrup (both of which are bad for you), more fuel for your car.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

Sounds like a win-win. Less meat and high-fructose corn syrup (both of which are bad for you), more fuel for your car.

Meat is not bad for you.... and we surely don't want to turn this nation into a bunch of Vegan freaks.

[mawilson 2,133]

Meat is not bad for you.... and we surely don't want to turn this nation into a bunch of Vegan freaks.

It's not all bad, but red meat has been linked to cancer.

Is Meat Good or Bad For Us

[Obama 2012 1,714]

It's not all bad, but red meat has been linked to cancer.

Is Meat Good or Bad For Us

so has white meat...

so has the sun...

so has low oxygen...

so have potatoes...

so have grapefruit...

we can keep going on this for quite awhile...

[Dan J 277]

Meat is not bad for you.... and we surely don't want to turn this nation into a bunch of Vegan freaks.

Cows don't normally eat corn. They only do because of subsidies making it very cheap.

[Niels Bohr 72]

So, have any of you thought that using too much gas guzzlers would increase the price of gasoline? Nope. We're are all stupid. Some people are stupider than others though.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

So, have any of you thought that using too much gas guzzlers would increase the price of gasoline? Nope. We're are all stupid. Some people are stupider than others though.

Consumption in the US is actually down at this point.

The problem we have right now is China.

If China were still doing jack squat, oil/gas prices would be much lower.

[Niels Bohr 72]

Highly doubt it. What we should be focusing on is using other fuel technology other than gasoline. The Obama Admin. had shelled 80 billion dollars to building energy efficient infrastructure.

Consumption in the US is actually down at this point.

The problem we have right now is China.

If China were still doing jack squat, oil/gas prices would be much lower.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

Highly doubt it. What we should be focusing on is using other fuel technology other than gasoline. The Obama Admin. had shelled 80 billion dollars to building energy efficient infrastructure.

Highly doubt what? - US is using less than a few years ago, and China is growing continually.... I don't see what you can doubt about that?

You can't 'demand' technology change, you need to give incentives, not award research grants without results first.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Obama's declaration of support comes at a pivotal moment in the history of government subsidies for ethanol production. The long-standing $0.45/gallon tax credit for blending ethanol into the gasoline supply is set to expire this year. The credit costs the Treasury billions per year. In 2009, for example, 10.5 billion gallons of ethanol entered the auto-fuel supply at a cost of $4.7 billion to taxpayers.

That tax break has been in effect for years, and it's highly unlikely that ethanol would ever have entered the U.S. gas supply without it. Ethanol provides just two-thirds the energy per unit volume of gas; it has traditionally needed the tax break to even approach competitiveness with petroleum-based fuel.

....

In 2007, Congress and President Bush dramatically upped government support for ethanol. They preserved the tax break, while imposing a "renewable fuel standard" which mandated that gasoline manufacturers mix ever-increasing amounts of ethanol into the fuel supply.

The mandates insured a growing market for ethanol, so you might think the industry would be sanguine about letting the tax breaks expire on schedule this year. Not so; ethanol's political champions are fighting tooth and nail to keep the tax breaks in place. They are like spoiled children demanding an extra piece of cake, and to be paid for eating it, too.

Two corn-fed senators, Chuck Grassley (R-Nebraska) and Kent Conrad (D-North Dakota), have introduced a bill to extend the tax credits. They also want to extend another ethanol goodie due to expire: a long-standing tariff on foreign ethanol, which gives the domestic product yet another market advantage.

http://www.grist.org...up-for-ethanol/

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

The mandates insured a growing market for ethanol, so you might think the industry would be sanguine about letting the tax breaks expire on schedule this year. Not so; ethanol's political champions are fighting tooth and nail to keep the tax breaks in place. They are like spoiled children demanding an extra piece of cake, and to be paid for eating it, too.

Spoiled children? They know the system well and are merely attempting to game it in a manner that gives them the maximum benefit.

That's acting like a really smart adult.

[SMR 368]

Sounds like a win-win. Less meat and high-fructose corn syrup (both of which are bad for you), more fuel for your car.

The problem is, ethanol doesn't really provide more fuel for your car. First, the fuel economy is terrible. But beyond that, corn (and agriculture in general in America) is raised on diesel fuel. The amount of diesel fuel required to run the tractors to grow a bushel of corn has more BTUs than the ethanol that can be created from that bushel of corn. Ethanol is a scam.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Spoiled children? They know the system well and are merely attempting to game it in a manner that gives them the maximum benefit.

That's acting like a really smart adult.

Spoken like a true Obama teet sucker.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Ethanol is a scam.

Ethanol is a scam? Or is the way we produce ethanol in the United States a scam?

See: Brazil.

Spoken like a true Obama teet sucker.

kma, neocon!