The topic of oil is an old one, but is becoming more popular in conversations in Congress and across the U.S. It is virtually impossible to read articles about the state of the economy and not hear about oil, jobs, energy, and North Dakota. Oil producing states are featured in the news because of their [...]

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to “frack” with?  Huh?  I had heard but not understood the term “fracking” until I read a recent article in the Wall Street Journal.  Fracking is the process of pumping water, sand or chemicals into the earth at high pressures to displace or dislodge oil or natural gas [...]

The price of crude oil rose from $38.57 per barrel when President Obama took office in early 2009, to over $107 as of March, 2012.[1]  As you can imagine, a 177% increase gets people’s attention. Given that 68% of the price of gasoline is the crude oil cost, the gas prices you and I pay [...]

Recent headlines scream with grim news: over $15 trillion in national debt and growing, and little to no economic growth. The really depressing topic right now is gas prices rising to near record levels with no end in sight. Oil is connected to virtually every aspect of our lives (e.g. food, transportation, clothing, medicine) and [...]

Two friends were talking about building a fire to cook their meal and stay warm while on a camping trip in the woods.  The first friend said, “Let’s gather all the wood from dead limbs and fallen trees laying right here near our campsite to start the fire, and we’ll be eating in no time!” [...]

Bell-bottoms. Perms for men. Mood rings. Polyester leisure suits. These are just a few of the fads of the 1970’s that many of us are happy to see in the rear view mirror of life.  As painful as it is to see oneself in those old fashion photos, that pain is nothing compared to the [...]

Is not making a decision, making a decision?  This week President Obama decided to not make a decision about the Keystone Pipeline.  What a set of conflicts he faced! The Pipeline has its own unique sets of controversy: Environmentalists don’t want the pipeline built. Unions are all in favor of a project that really is [...]

“Hope. Change We Can Believe In. Transparency.” These were the words in the 2008 election that spoke to the hearts of millions. Americans knew deep down within their souls that business in Washington D.C. was not being run in the way that it should be, and they wanted it to change. They wanted honesty, fairness, [...]