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May 21, 2005
Oil Patch Democrats Launch Blog and Yahoo Group
The Oil Patch Democrats now have two online sites, a Yahoo list and a Blogspot blog:
You must sign up to read or receive mail from the Yahoo list. Mr. OPD himself, John Wm. Preston, will send out an invite to the current list to make the transition from the old email list to the new Yahoo list easier. You must have a (free) Yahoo mail account to join the group. To minimize email traffic, this list should only be used for announcements and alerts. You can also set up your account to not get email and only read the list online if you prefer. The Yahoo site also has a place to attach files, so it can serve as a reference section.
Anyone can read the blog without signing up or being logged in. This is where discussion happens. Hopefully we differentiate our site from other blogs by having insider informed discussion about oil and gas topics, helping to chart a progressive course for the industry, but a good rant about the Downing Street memo or the erosion of Constitutional rights is always welcome as well. Only moderators can post topics on the blog, but anyone can comment. If you want a new topic, email a moderator who will post it if appropriate. If you have frequent topics, ask to become a moderator. To post comments on a topic, you need to sign up. All blogspot blogs use the same signup, so you may already be signed up from a different blog. You may find that your username has already been chosen. Just use a nonsense username to sign up and set your display name to your preference. The username is only used to log in and the display name what is shown next to your comments.
Posted by Lyn Wall at May 21, 2005 02:21 PM | Permalink
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The OilPatch Democrats met last night at Mykonos and heard a presentation by Dr. Stephanie Hrabar of the Environmental Initiative of the Houston Area Democrats (for which I have been unable to find a webpage providing more info). She has been speaking to a variety of Democratic groups around the Gulf Coast to largely enthusiastic reception.
Dr. Hrabar presented us with two resolutions and asked our assistance in advancing them since, she tells us, the Harris County Democratic Party has no official stance on these environmental issues.. Specifically, she wants us all to contact our Precinct chairs and encourage them to support the resolutions at the County Executive Committee meeting in June where they will be introduced and a motion will be made that the Harris County Democratic Party adopt and endorse them with intentions to do the same all the way to the state level.
The 2004 Platform of the Democratic Party (June 2004) contains language regarding environmental needs, but is not nearly as specific as it could be. In fact, it's a bit vague:
Dem Platform-Environment
These two resolutions address specific issues of Safer Air to Breathe and the Regional Water Management Plan. Dr. Hrabar told us that the air and water standards are rather arbitrary and not neccesarily based on scientific data, therefore open to misinterpretation and arbitrary non-enforcement or they simply don't address the problems at all. The result has been the highest lung cancer rates in the state and Houston having some of the worst environmental problems in the nation.
These resolutions are available for download at:
OilPatchDems Yahoo Files
Safe Air Resolution
Water Plan Resolution
"BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED THAT the Harris County Democratic Party supports:
Appropriate science-based air quality standards for the Houston Region that will result in safer indoor and outdoor air for all humans to breathe.
Environmental assessments that include protection for human health based on appropriate health and life science peer reviewed studies.
An environmental economic formula that includes an environmental assessment that will protect both public revenues and public health for publicly funded transportation and development projects."
"BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED THAT the Harris County Democratic Party supports:
Good management of the Region H Water Plan and the Regional Transportation Plan to increase the quality of all human life and reuse and recycle limited water resources.
Appropriate and high human life and health science-based standards for regulating both surface and underground drinking water supplies.
Green-space for parks, recreation, floodwater management, and wetlands protection within the region.
An environmental economic formula for water and transportation projects funded with public revenue, that includes an environmental assessment to protect public health as well as public funds."
In our first "official" act as a political action club, the attending members of the Oil Patch Democrats voted unanimously to endorse these resolutions. Further the discussion expressed the sense that we should encourage all Democrats, from precinct to state, to endorse the resolutions and strongly advise Democratic candidates to publicly endorse them and adopt them into the candidate's platform as a condition of seeking the OPD's endorsment of their candidacy.
Posted by: Randy Scott at May 24, 2005 06:00 PM