Quick Hits and Deep Thoughts: Heat Wave Edition
Kari Chisholm
Lots of interesting stuff happening - despite the heat. (And that's not including the hot posts about Mike Erickson's "humanitarian" trip to Cuba, and Gordon Smith's opulent furniture.)
- I love this story. Allen Alley is trying to make a big damn deal about 100-mpg cars. (Not sure why. Congress controls CAFE standards, not the Oregon State Treasurer.) But while he's doing that, he's been twittering about his awesome big-ass gas-guzzling Tahoe urban assault vehicle.
- On the day John Kerry lost, four things that didn't exist (at least to the general public): ActBlue, YouTube, iPod Nano, Facebook. And they've all changed politics - driving power to the grassroots. We've come a long, long way in the last four years. Here's a huge raft of congressional candidates (including Jeff Merkley) talking about the power of ActBlue.
How can you change the world? Start your own ActBlue page - and ask your friends to donate to the candidates that YOU have endorsed.
- Looks like Oregon's congressional delegation are mostly doing their part to help expand the Democratic majorities in Congress. According to the Politicker, Senator Ron Wyden donated $100,000 to the DSCC's campaign fund. And as for our members of Congress:
U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Portland) and outgoing U.S. Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-West Linn) tied for the largest overall donation. Both gave the DCCC $200,000. U.S. Rep. David Wu (D-Portland) wrote checks totaling $150,000. The smallest donation came from U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Springfield), who gave the DCCC $30,000.
- While Mike Erickson scrambles about trying to defend his trip to Cuba, Kurt Schrader has challenged Erickson to a series of five debates.
- Blogger Isaac Laquedem proposes a way to end the debates about renaming streets - with a much more restrictive rule:
No street, public building, park, bridge, geographic feature, or other public place, once having been named, and which is within the power of the City of Portland or any agency, subdivision, bureau, division, or other part thereof to rename, shall be renamed after any person or persons who did not live within the State of Oregon for at least twenty years, except by affirmative vote of the electors at a general election.
- According to a comment posted on a five-month-old BlueOregon post, there's a new website taking Rep. Kevin Cameron (R-Salem) to task. Check out the Kevin Cameron Watch. (Not sure who's behind it...)
- I think we have a bodysurfing gap in the presidential race. Seriously, I want to see John McCain do this.
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Aug 17, '08
Gosh, it would nice to take down Kevin Cameron.
Aug 17, '08
Actually, Allen Alley told me during an interview a few months back that the gas-guzzling SUV he's driving is a hybrid. Nice try, though.
11:24 a.m.
Aug 17, '08
Even if Alley's Tahoe SUV is a hybrid, I bet you'd be hard pressed to name a LESS fuel efficient hybrid while I could easily rattle off a long list of hybrids which are MORE fuel efficient.
On a full-sized SUV the "hybrid" tag is a more marketing gimmick than anything else. Which is probably why the Tahoe "Hybrid" doesn't make CNN's list of Best Gas Mileage Cars while other Chevy's do make the list.
Aug 17, '08
Scott Jorgensen, Kevin is right. The gas-guzzling SUV that the article posted mentions IS indeed a hybrid--the point is that it still gets terrible gas mileage. And the article accurately lists the highway efficiency of the Chevy Tahoe hybrid as a pathetic 22 mpg.
Aug 17, '08
Bill R., I agree--we should do everything we can to help the Democratic challenger Hanten Day (HD) to win the seat of Kevin Cameron. One way we can do this is give HD a campaign contribution (whether or not you live in the district). I have already done this and I hope you will too (Kevin Cameron is well funded by special interests). Please spread the word! You can give here:ActBlue Page for HD
Aug 17, '08
Bill R, the Democratic candidate running against Cameron is named Hanten Day. He is the most outspoken member of the Salem Keizer school board and has a volunteer-run campaign. Very bright guy.
Written up on the Oregon House Democrats blog: http://www.oregonhousedemocrats.com/2008/07/last_week_in_th.html
Electing Hanten Day would be a way to gain 36 seats for Democrats in the Oregon House.
11:44 a.m.
Aug 17, '08
By way of comparison - viz highway mileage - when I was a kid my dad had one of those customized full-sized Chevy vans. Y'know... bubble windows in the back, plush interior, cutting-edge sound system (which was a dual 8-track/cassette player!!), wood paneling, etc.
He routinely got 20 MPG on the highway with 1976 Detroit technology.
Aug 17, '08
Love the Kevin Cameron website! How can we get this more distribution and exposure? Kevin Cameron Watch
Aug 17, '08
I completely understand, Kevin. A few years ago, I was driving a 1993 Nissan Sentra and took it all over the west coast. It finally needed to be replaced, so I bought a 2004 Sentra. You figure they would have been able to improve the gas mileage in the decade between them, right? No. I still get the same mileage with my 04 car than I did with my 93.
Aug 18, '08
The Ford Model "T" got an reputed 25 mpg and was a flex fuel vehicle, designed to run on gasoline and ethanol. The Model "A" got between 20-30 mpg. The "T" was lightweight (1,200 lbs) and had 22 HP with none of the safety features and amenities we want today, so its apples and oranges, but still 100 years later, you would think technology would have increased the average a little bit more than what we have now for the average car.
Just one example would be the Toyota RAV4 that is rated at 21/27 mpg, about the same as my 1980 Volvo wagon (3,000lbs) that got 18 mpg in town and 28 on the highway with a 2.1 liter 120 HP engine. It can carry more than most of the new "cross over" little 4 wheel drive rigs (RAV4, Subaru Forester etc.). With the optional rear facing seat it can transport 7 people. It was still going strong with 344,000 miles on it when the heater core developed a pinhole leak and I upgraded to a 940 turbo wagon which gets about the same mpg if I keep my foot out of the turbo.
You would think in 20 years Toyota could beat an old Volvo's specs.
By the way, Volvo made a 760 diesel wagon (VW engine) that got 30-38 mpg back in the mid 80s.
Aug 18, '08
By way of comparison - viz highway mileage - when I was a kid my dad had one of those customized full-sized Chevy vans. Y'know... bubble windows in the back, plush interior, cutting-edge sound system (which was a dual 8-track/cassette player!!), wood paneling, etc.
If I would have known you then I could have loaned you my mom's Debbie Boone 8-track of "You Light Up My Life"!
We had "The Sound of Music" soundtrack and "Tammy Wynette" on 8-Track, too. You would have had choices..LOL
8:58 a.m.
Aug 18, '08
Well, I don't remember the whole collection but I do remember a Henry Mancini tape, and a Deep Purple instrumental tape and several of The Heritage Singers - Christian pop meets Lawrence Welk - [affectionately referred to, by your's truly, as "The Heritic Swingers"]. Oh, and a Switched On Bach tape.
LOL - scary!
Aug 18, '08
Too good... the last part of this post evoked the mental image of McCain's fish-belly white torso (no racism, I myself am fish-belly white, off season)....gasping and flailing in the surf. Laughed out loud and I'm still chuckling.
It took the edge off my Monday.
<h2>(Hey! the personal info memory check the box thingy is working again! Good job!)</h2>