NC Governor Perdue Promotes Wind Power in Eastern NC

NC Governor Beverly Perdue touts a new wind power project in eastern, NC. The project is be in the Elizabeth City, NC area and is promoted as a economic boom, job creating, revenue producing, everything the greenies love project. But what they don't tell you is the cost in direct federal subsidies, state subsidies, tariffs, and indirect subsidies such as tax incentives, hidden fees tacked onto your electric bill, and the down-the-road maintenance fees that taxpayers will also pay for in the decades to come. I order for you to compare the cost of renewable energy such as wind and solar, you first have to look at what the monthly cost of your electric bill is plus the hidden costs of subsidies. This article touches on these costs Wall Street Journal.

Questions to ask Governor Perdue include:

• How much in federal subsidies does the Elizabeth City wind power project depend on?
• What happens if Congress cuts off the federal subsidy in part or entirely? Who pays then?
• How much in state subsidies and incentives does this project depend on?
• What happens if the Elizabeth City wind power project goes bankrupt? Who pays for the project operation? Who pays for dismantling worn out and malfunctioning equipment? Who pays rent to landowners who have leased their land as wind farms?
• Are there any fees or tax increases that will be applied to customer's electric bills?
• Are there additional costs involved with the project such as expansion of, or connection to the power grid? What are those costs?
• Has an Environmental Impact Statement been done? Does the EIS evaluate the impact of this wind farm on the wind, precipitation, and other weather factors in eastern NC?

Here is the press release by Iberdrola Renewables the company that will be building the project, including a statement by Governor Perdue:

Iberdrola Renewables Announces Permit Application for North Carolina Wind Power Project

Project Would Be First Commercial Scale Wind Project in State

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Iberdrola Renewables Inc., filed an application today with the North Carolina Utilities Commission as the first step toward development of a wind energy project it is considering in Pasquotank and Perquimans Counties in the northeastern part of North Carolina.

“Developing our green economy is a cornerstone of my vision for North Carolina’s economic future”

If built, the Desert Wind Power Project -- named for the flat, agricultural region in the area -- would be located on approximately 20,000 acres of private land near Elizabeth City. The company is considering development of a 300 megawatt (MW) project, which is enough to power between 55,000 – 70,000 North Carolina homes with clean, homegrown electricity.
“Developing our green economy is a cornerstone of my vision for North Carolina’s economic future,” Governor Bev Perdue said. “Projects such as the proposed Iberdrola Renewables’ wind farm can help us lay the foundation for North Carolina to lead the nation in clean, homegrown energy.”
Iberdrola Renewables has been working with the communities, landowners, multiple state and federal agencies, and conducting various studies on the potential project since 2009. The filing today represents the first step of many regulatory reviews that must be completed before Iberdrola Renewables makes a final decision on the project, which could begin construction as early as late 2011.
If developed as proposed, the Project is expected to bring substantial economic benefits to the area.
“Governor Perdue has made fostering the development of clean energy projects a priority to make North Carolina a national leader in the green economy,” Commerce Secretary Keith Crisco said. “We encourage Iberdrola Renewables to invest in North Carolina for a major wind energy project. This project would spark creation of clean energy manufacturing and jobs in North Carolina.”
Construction would be expected to create over 400 jobs, payments to local landowners could approach $1 million per year for the life of the Project, and additional property tax revenue would result from the Project’s operation. Additionally, due to the Project’s small footprint, less than two percent of the agricultural land would be taken out of corn, soybean, and cotton production.
Iberdrola Renewables, Inc. is headquartered in Portland, Ore., with more than 850 employees. It is part of the Iberdrola Renovables global group, the world's leading provider of wind power with more than 12,000 MW of renewable energy installed around the world, and more than 4,600 MW of that wind power located in the U.S. www.iberdrolarenewables.us. 
Press Release 

The company developing the wind project in Elizabeth City, NC, Iberdrola Renewables parent company is Iberdrola Renovables whose corporate office is in Spain, http://iberdrolarenewables.us/pdf/iberdrola-renewables-fact-sheet.pdf. Span's renewable energy program has cost Spain dearly in subsidies that their taxpayers fund, http://ianscityscope.wordpress.com/2009/03/29/heavy-subsidies-sustain-spains-wind-power/. The cost to taxpayers through subsidies and hidden fees paid to electric companies are so easy to find and document that it is amazing that politicians continue to get away with scamming the public. I think with very little effort, anyone can do a little research into the top three wind power countries, the USA, Germany, and Spain and can debunk many of the wind power claims.

The Progressives in this country continue to lure the unsuspecting public to the government water-trough by promising jobs, money, and low-cost, renewable energy. But since they created the U.S. Department of Energy, the agency that was going to solve the nations energy woes, they have delivered nothing but excessive spending and higher taxes. You must protect yourself by educating yourself on these issues; don't take anything they promise for granted. Like they say, "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!" Or, as P. T. Barnum said "there's a sucker born every minute."

NC House Bill 2, Protect The Freedom to Choose Health Care

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2011
H 1
HOUSE BILL 2
Short Title: Protect Health Care Freedom. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Stam, Barnhart, Hollo, and Murry (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of Sponsors, see Bill Information on the NCGA Web Site.
Referred to: Judiciary, if favorable, Finance.
January 27, 2011
*H2-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO PROTECT THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE HEALTH CARE AND HEALTH 2 INSURANCE. 3
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 4
SECTION 1. Chapter 58 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new 5 Article to read: 6
"Article 49A. 7
"North Carolina Health Care Protection Act. 8
"§ 58-49A-1. Constraints on health care freedom prohibited. 9
(a) A law or rule shall not do any of the following: 10
(1) Compel a person to (i) provide for health care services or medical treatment 11 for that person or (ii) contract with, or enroll in, a public or private health 12 care system or health insurance plan. 13
(2) Interfere with a person's right to pay directly for lawful health care services 14 or medical treatment to preserve or enhance that person's life or health. 15
(3) Impose a penalty, tax, fee, or fine on a person for (i) providing for, or failing 16 to provide for, health care services or medical treatment for that person or 17 (ii) contracting with, or enrolling in, or failing to contract with or enroll in, a 18 public or private health care system or health insurance plan. 19
(b) This section shall not be construed to expand, limit, or otherwise modify any of the 20 following: 21
(1) The common-law doctrine of necessaries that a spouse is liable for the 22 necessary expenses incurred by the other spouse, including expenses 23 incurred by medical necessity, or any other duty a person owes to a spouse 24 or dependent with respect to the provision of health care services or medical 25 treatment. 26
(2) Any law regarding which health care services or medical treatments are 27 lawful within this State or who is authorized to provide health care services 28 or medical treatments within this State. 29
(3) Any right or duty of a health care agent with respect to the principal pursuant 30 to a health care power of attorney executed in accordance with Article 3 of 31 Chapter 32A of the General Statutes. 32
(4) Any law regarding the right or duty of a parent or guardian in the 33 determination or provision of health care services or medical treatment for a 34 minor. 35
General Assembly of North Carolina Session 2011
Page 2 House Bill 2-First Edition
(c) An individual aggrieved by a violation of this section has standing to bring a private 1 right of action for the violation. In addition, the Attorney General shall have the duty and 2 standing to bring or defend a State or federal action or proceeding on behalf of the residents of 3 this State to enforce the provisions of this section." 4
SECTION 2. This act is effective when it becomes law.

What Can I Do?

One of the most common and frustrating questions about how to reverse 100 years of Progressive attacks against the U.S. Constitution is "What Can I Do?" Many people feel powerless. Some even say "I Don't Vote Because It Doesn't Make Any Difference," or simply "My Vote Doesn't Count."

Well, if there is anything that the Tea Party movement has shown is that everybody's vote and everybody's opinion does count, and when you sit on your couch and don't say anything the Progressives, who represent the minority (<20%) in this country, gradually erode away your God given inalienable rights.

So, what can you do? The Tea Party Patriots make the following recommendations (slightly edited to be more generalized):

1. Hold rallies and vigils in very public places and try to get as much media as you can
2. Write letters to the editors of local newspapers.*
3. Write articles on your own blogs and comment on other blogs, especially those that seek to propagandize the Progressive agenda
4. Call, email, and fax Congress.*
5. Post the facts on your Facebook pages and Twitter accounts.*
6. Respond through press releases to local media.
7. Form your own rapid response team to combat the Obama and Progressive machines.
8. Most Democrats like to trot out personal, anecdotal stories about how their "crisis-du jour" will hurt a specific person, so tell your story about how Obama and the Progressive movement will hurt you.
9. Take the time to confirm and double check the facts and arguments.*
10. Use your network and the experience you gained from working for campaigns to reach out to people in your area - i.e. schedule phone banks, door belling, sign waving - basically, instead of working to educate your neighbors about a candidate, work to educate your neighbors about the dangers of the Obama and Progressive agenda.

*I find these (2, 4, 5, and 9) to be something anyone can do.

In addition:

• make sure to vote in Primaries and Elections, and badger your friends and acquaintances into voting. Make sure they know how important their vote is, and point to the 2010 election to drive home your point.
• Get involved in something, whether its a Tea Party, the local school board, county or state issues and election, national elections, whatever, just get involved.
• Know what is going on in your local community.

Letter on the Repeal Amendment

This past Saturday, January 15, 2011 The John Locke Foundation and the Crystal Coast Tea Party Patriots held a Constitutional Workshop in Morehead City, NC. During the workshop, there was a good discussion of the proposed Repeal Amendment that is being considered by a number of state legislatures.

The Repeal Amendment states “Any provision of law or regulation of the United States may be repealed by the several states, and such repeal shall be effective when the legislatures of two-thirds of the several states approve resolutions for this purpose that particularly describe the same provision or provisions of law or regulation to be repealed.” The Repeal Amendment would give two-thirds of the states the power to repeal any federal law or regulation, in effect countering the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and restoring power to the states eroded by the Federal government (http://www.repealamendment.org/).

I know that the new Republican majority in the NC Legislature has a lot on it's plate after over 100 years of Progressive government in NC, but the Repeal Amendment would seem to rank as a high priority by the NC Legislature in order to regain the right of our State to control our own destiny sans Federal interference.

I hope that you will contact your NC State Legislators and ask them to make passing the Repeal Amendment a high priority on this years agenda. It would indeed be historical if NC became one of the first states to pass the Repeal Amendment, a good first step in reversing decades of progressivism and Federal domination.

Letter to the Editor, Candidates to Replace RINOs

The Crystal Coast Tea Party Patriots encourages conservatives of either party or political affiliation to consider becoming a candidate to replace NC elected officials who do not embrace the principles of Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, and Free Markets that promote U.S. products, businesses, and labor.

It seems like the 2010 election was just yesterday, but we've already seen that many of those who portrayed themselves as conservatives and who were recommended by Tea Party organizations including the Crystal Coast Tea Party Patriots are not being faithful to our principles.

Senator Richard Burr, just reelected to a second term with the recommendation of the Crystal Coast Tea Party, voted in the Lame Duck Congress with the liberals by voting for The Food Safety and Modernization Act that expands government and the deficit while hurting small farmers in NC; The new Tax Bill that extended most the current tax rates but also increased the deficit with subsidies for ethanol, and wind and solar power, as well as bailouts for mass transit unions; and voting with the Democrats to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in the military. Senator Burr’s next election is six years away, but we need start now to find a conservative candidate to replace him in 2016. As demonstrated by his votes in the 2010 Lame Duck Congress, Senator Burr pretends to be a conservative, but he is a Republican In Name Only (RINO).

Senator Kay Hagan votes her party’s line consistently, voting 90% of the time with her party (according to http://www.opencongress.org). Conservative candidates from both parties are needed to run against Senator Hagan when her term expires in 2014. Democrats would be wise to find a conservative to run against Senator Hagan or they will surely risk losing the seat.

NC 3rd District Representative Walter B. Jones, recommended by the Crystal Coast Tea Party Patriots in 2010, is an enigma. He votes with his party 86% of the time, abstained in 2010 a whopping 4% of the time, and votes against his party 10% of the time (according to http://www.OpenCongress.org). On December 2, 2010 Representative Jones was one of only three Republicans to join the Democrats in passing H.R.4853: Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Authorization and Job Creation Act. From December 17 to December 22, 2010, Representative Jones abstained from voting on 17 bills (http://www.opencongress.org) prompting one to ask “Where was Representative Jones?” I’ve heard that Representative Jones promised to support term limits in Congress, and that he vowed not to serve more than 6 terms; he is now in his 9th term. I guess he likes living in Washington, DC more than he likes eastern NC. Eastern North Carolina desperately needs a conservative candidate to run against Representative Jones in 2012. The Democrat 3rd District candidate in 2010 was somewhat to the left of Nancy Pelosi, and didn‘t stand a chance of unseating Representative Jones. If the Republicans won’t replace Representative Jones, then the Democrats need to get serious and find a conservative candidate that will bring Representative Jones back to NC where he belongs.

This is the time to decide. If you are a conservative who embraces the principles of Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, and Free Markets that promote U.S. products, businesses, and labor, please consider running in opposition to Senators Richard Burr and Kay Hagan, and Representative Walter B. Jones. Contact us at http://www.crystalcoastteaparty.com.