The First Billion Is the Hardest On a Life of Comebacks and America's Energy Future by T. Boone Pickens is a combination of biography, energy business management, and platform for energy independence in the United States. Somehow, it all ties together very well.
T. Boone Pickens comes across in a folksy direct manner. He includes Booneisms in his book. Booneism #8 is I have always believed that it's important to show a new look periodically. Predictability can lead to failure.
The Frog and the Scorpion is one of the stories he tells in the book as well as many crass jokes and some rather crude, but colorful commentary.
His childhood is described as that of a normal American boy mixed with lessons in entrepreneurship from his grandmother. He had a paper route and mowed lawns for money. At the age of 11, he even pumped gas.
Combined with this is a strong drive for sports. He played basketball and was driven to win. Later in life this translated into his winning business practices and his huge donations for a sports complex at Ohio State University.
Although, it is not my style I can recognize the classic republican sportsman who loves Reagan in his writings. Luckily, he doesn't go too deeply into personal beliefs about race, religion, and social issues, he stays focused on business and energy. He does say he liked Wilt Chamberlain
His whole life seems to say energy entrepreneurship. His college degree was in geology a good precursor for the oil business.
He gives lots of advice. Make big deals, they are as easy to make as little deals, and they often have added benefits to them. He shows his disdain for bureaucracy and old school management.
He does this by describing how he used shareholder rights to help takeover poorly run companies. It shows an interesting combination of ruthlessness and compassion. Usually when he took over companies the stock prices went up. He was bent on winning for the underdog. He envisions himself as the underdog reaching up to face the giant.
About halfway through the book, the story changes. He burns himself out gets divorced, nearly loses everything. He even describes how he loses his dog. We get a very different person than the man who ran Mesa energy.
He reopens a new business which seems much more focused on teamwork BP Capital Energy Equity Fund, a hedge fund which can both sell short and long in both stocks and commodities.
There is a section of maxims on how to run a business. These read something like a story out of Aesop's Fables in a way: win fairly, lead, it's all about team, concentrate on goals not growing the company, and let people succeed are some of the exhortations.
It is towards the end that we get his opinion on America's energy problems. These are straightforward, direct statements, we have reached peak oil, America does not control the oil industry, the reports on reserves throughout the world are false, the age of alternatives must begin immediately.
One of the reasons he is so compelling in his writing is that he tells you that he intends to give away all of his money, he already has enough cash. Then he describes how he is giving away his cash.
We get to the plan. Here is where I am having a little bit of trouble. In his descriptions of working with natural gas, T. Boone Pickens has always not quite succeeded in making the natural gas companies the giants he envisioned them to be.
I think in a way, his attempt to sell natural gas in combination with wind energy is a kind of last attempt at leaving a legacy. He is putting his money where his convictions are. He realizes that is no longer just about the money anymore. Some people will have a hard time believing this.
The one problem I had with his book was his description of how he sold off the water rights under his land. I don't agree with this. There is too much potential for environmental damage when major aquifers are drained.
He says, on page 146, "With supply pushed to the brink of unquenchable demand, we're going to need everything. We're going to need all the oil and gas we can find. We're going to need ethanol, natural gas, solar, wind, biofuels, and nuclear."
He is describing the outcome of "being addicted to oil."
I have mixed feelings about his plan, but I hope it will break the deadlock in Washington. T. Boone Pickens plainly states he has never seen a politician capable of facing the problem of energy independence.
This is an excellent interesting book which people should read. There is a center section with full color photographs. I rather like the picture of him on the cover of Time magazine holding cards and poker chips. He also has pictures of him with his wife, George Bush, and Ronald Reagan. The back has an index.
Put aside any political differences you may have. What he is saying is very important. Get in the dialog, I took the time to sign up for http://www.pickensplan/theplan
Showing posts with label t boone pickens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label t boone pickens. Show all posts
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
Morning Thoughts, Afternoon Thoughts
A World War II Poster Which I liked produced by the government.
Morning Thoughts (Rummaging Through Donations.)
This morning, I spent some time going through the piles of donated books in our basement. Many of them are old and musty. Some can never be added because of water damage, age, or poor condition. Many of them will be sent to the booksale so we can sell them to buy new books. A considerable amount of the paperbacks which we cannot use get sent to the prison libraries. This is where the Friends of the Library sends a lot of the material they cannot sell in the booksale. Hardcover books are a problem for prison libraries. A lot of it simply gets recycled.
As usual, there were piles and piles of old romance paperbacks. Lots of Harlequin and BET black romance paperbacks. Mixed in these were various nonfiction titles from the 1980s and 1990s which had long since gone by the wayside. Most people were shortly interested in them, then they faded into someones attic. Sometimes, if you look closely, you can see garage sale stickers. These are the books that didn't get sold at the garage sale.
Many of the books are still in cardboard boxes. I sometimes wonder how old the cardboard is since it costs money to buy cardboard boxes these days and the supermarkets are not as willing to give them away.
You have to be careful because if you move too quickly, one of the stacks of books will fall over. They are piled very high. They are either on tables or in deep shelves where they are stacked willy nilly. One of our retired librarians comes in to select which books will get picked out for the booksale. She usually has a couple of retired people with her who are sorting through the books. They are in old clothes so they do not get too dirty.
The first thing which I look for are the classics, these never go out of style. We will always get asked for Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist, Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 51, Pearl S. Buck, The Good Earth, and any good old classic books. I find a copy of Voltaire Candide which was recently assigned to the local high school students.
Among the romance books, I find a few urban fiction books. These are very hot titles. There are two copies of Zane Books, a Wendy Williams books, and a copy of the author Noire's book. We have trouble keeping urban fiction in our library because it is so popular.
There are a few very new books which I like, a brand new Elizabeth Lowell Bestseller, and several new books on business innovation. After digging a bit more, I find some new mystery paperbacks as well, a 2007 copy of a book by Faye Kellerman.
Also, among the stacks, there a few books on subjects that really never go out of style. A fairly new book on sailing and a book on pet hermit crabs.
I've managed to pull about 30 books from the piles. Now, I go to the computers and check them on the computer to see if we have them. 15 of them are good enough to be added to the collection.
Later in the morning, I did some more weeding. It is more tedium that needs to get done. I will be doing it every single day until I am done with the 300s which is basically all of social science. It is slow methodical work.
This morning, I spent some time going through the piles of donated books in our basement. Many of them are old and musty. Some can never be added because of water damage, age, or poor condition. Many of them will be sent to the booksale so we can sell them to buy new books. A considerable amount of the paperbacks which we cannot use get sent to the prison libraries. This is where the Friends of the Library sends a lot of the material they cannot sell in the booksale. Hardcover books are a problem for prison libraries. A lot of it simply gets recycled.
As usual, there were piles and piles of old romance paperbacks. Lots of Harlequin and BET black romance paperbacks. Mixed in these were various nonfiction titles from the 1980s and 1990s which had long since gone by the wayside. Most people were shortly interested in them, then they faded into someones attic. Sometimes, if you look closely, you can see garage sale stickers. These are the books that didn't get sold at the garage sale.
Many of the books are still in cardboard boxes. I sometimes wonder how old the cardboard is since it costs money to buy cardboard boxes these days and the supermarkets are not as willing to give them away.
You have to be careful because if you move too quickly, one of the stacks of books will fall over. They are piled very high. They are either on tables or in deep shelves where they are stacked willy nilly. One of our retired librarians comes in to select which books will get picked out for the booksale. She usually has a couple of retired people with her who are sorting through the books. They are in old clothes so they do not get too dirty.
The first thing which I look for are the classics, these never go out of style. We will always get asked for Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist, Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 51, Pearl S. Buck, The Good Earth, and any good old classic books. I find a copy of Voltaire Candide which was recently assigned to the local high school students.
Among the romance books, I find a few urban fiction books. These are very hot titles. There are two copies of Zane Books, a Wendy Williams books, and a copy of the author Noire's book. We have trouble keeping urban fiction in our library because it is so popular.
There are a few very new books which I like, a brand new Elizabeth Lowell Bestseller, and several new books on business innovation. After digging a bit more, I find some new mystery paperbacks as well, a 2007 copy of a book by Faye Kellerman.
Also, among the stacks, there a few books on subjects that really never go out of style. A fairly new book on sailing and a book on pet hermit crabs.
I've managed to pull about 30 books from the piles. Now, I go to the computers and check them on the computer to see if we have them. 15 of them are good enough to be added to the collection.
Later in the morning, I did some more weeding. It is more tedium that needs to get done. I will be doing it every single day until I am done with the 300s which is basically all of social science. It is slow methodical work.
Afternoon Thoughts
The T. Boone Pickens book, The First Billion Is The Hardest Reflections On A Life of Comebacks And America's Energy Future (With a Plan for Reducing U.S. Oil Dependency) came in for me today through interlibrary loan. It is one of the books which I am hoping to read.
It has been a long week and I am very tired. Things are piling on very fast. I have to work this Saturday. I don't particularly like working on Saturdays. In winter time, I work every other Saturday. During the summer, I manage to have no Saturdays. Things don't always make sense.
I like to think that libraries operate in another zone of time where the clocks are set slightly off cue. Libraries and bookstores seem to somehow be a space where you can step into which isn't quite the same as the rest of the world.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Good Afternoon, Good Evening
One of the best possible uses of a dollar bill. A dead president becomes an elephant.
Good Afternoon
This morning, I spent a little time working on my post on the concept of a turbine future. I just felt compelled to write something a little different.
I had my coffee this morning, so I am feeling pretty good. I spent an hour and a half weeding the social sciences books, then I spent another hour and a half going over social science titles to buy.
As usual, I found something interesting to order, The First Billion Is The Hardest, Reflections On A Life of Comebacks and America's Energy Future by T. Boone Pickens. This book is supposed to have a complete description of his energy plan and investments in alternative energy. If this is true, it would be an interesting opportunity for exploring some green investments.
I got a few minutes to look at the new books which came in. I put a few books on display, and put aside two items to read, Impact, How To Get Noticed, Motivate Millions, and Make a Difference in a Noisy World by Ken McArthur and Rebel Visions The Underground Comix Revolution 1963-1975 by Patrick Rosenkrantz. This book is published by Fantagraphics which is my favorite of the alternative comic book publishers. Fantagraphics publishes The Comics Journal. This book is definitely for adults. It has mature content. The book lists a lot of very interesting comics artists, Bill Griffith, R. Crumb, Vaughn Bode, Richard Corben, Kim Deitch, Denis Kitchen, Dan O'Neill, Art Spiegelman, Trina Robbins, and many others.
This morning, I also spent some more time reading Groundswell. It is describing how to put together message boards, blogs, and community sites for corporations. It even gives some guidelines on how to choose which type of social networking tool for a company. I think I will finish reading it on the train home tonight.
This morning, I spent a little time working on my post on the concept of a turbine future. I just felt compelled to write something a little different.
I had my coffee this morning, so I am feeling pretty good. I spent an hour and a half weeding the social sciences books, then I spent another hour and a half going over social science titles to buy.
As usual, I found something interesting to order, The First Billion Is The Hardest, Reflections On A Life of Comebacks and America's Energy Future by T. Boone Pickens. This book is supposed to have a complete description of his energy plan and investments in alternative energy. If this is true, it would be an interesting opportunity for exploring some green investments.
I got a few minutes to look at the new books which came in. I put a few books on display, and put aside two items to read, Impact, How To Get Noticed, Motivate Millions, and Make a Difference in a Noisy World by Ken McArthur and Rebel Visions The Underground Comix Revolution 1963-1975 by Patrick Rosenkrantz. This book is published by Fantagraphics which is my favorite of the alternative comic book publishers. Fantagraphics publishes The Comics Journal. This book is definitely for adults. It has mature content. The book lists a lot of very interesting comics artists, Bill Griffith, R. Crumb, Vaughn Bode, Richard Corben, Kim Deitch, Denis Kitchen, Dan O'Neill, Art Spiegelman, Trina Robbins, and many others.
This morning, I also spent some more time reading Groundswell. It is describing how to put together message boards, blogs, and community sites for corporations. It even gives some guidelines on how to choose which type of social networking tool for a company. I think I will finish reading it on the train home tonight.
Now, that I am not clicking away at Entrecard, I got a chance to look at some book sites.
This is a rather interesting article from Library Journal. http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6592086.html?desc=topstory
It is absolutely true in my experience that we cannot provide enough computers with internet access at our library. From the moment we open to the moment we close there are people waiting to use computers to get internet access. We expand the internet access and more people come to use the computers. People get an hour to use the internet per day. At my local library, there is usually a waiting list for the computers as well. I usually have to wait for half an hour to a full hour to get the computers.
Like many of the people waiting for the computers at the library I work at, I am looking for some light reading while I wait. Many people read graphic novels (comic books), magazines, or the newspapers while they are waiting for their turn. I usually read graphic novels while I am waiting if I go to my local library.
I was looking at Locus magazine and saw an interesting book which I want to get for the library (as well as for my own reading) Cory Doctorow, Content: Selected Essays On Technology, Creativity, Copyright and the Future of the Future. Cory Doctorow is a fairly important figure in the history of intellectual freedom on the internet. This is a brief bio from his site.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Morning Thoughts
A bust of Homer in the British Museum in London.Morning Thoughts
Good morning. I had my morning coffee, so I am not feeling too bad. I watched a little bit of the 7th Voyage of Sinbad. It is much better than Harryhausen's other films. I rather like the Valley of the Cyclops. The animation for the cyclops is quite interesting. I like the way it uses a tree to smash several of Sinbad's companions.
There is a lot in this movie so far which is quite interesting. Sinbad often creates his own problems when he hires criminals who would be facing the gallows to voyage with him to the Vally of the Cyclops.
The special effects, even if they are old are quite interesting. The miniature princess that is three inches tall is entertaining, so is the scene of the four armed snake woman.
The way the story is told reminds me a little bit of the Odyssey. It is an old fashioned adventure story with gold, magic, and monsters. I will write more about it as I watch some more of the film.
I took a break from the movie and am reading a bit more of Acacia: The War With the Mein. The story is interesting, it seems to draw from African myth and legend, as well as North African history. The scenes with pirates remind me a bit of the pirates of the Barbary coasts from North Africa. The setting is a bit different than your usual fantasy setting. It seems to mix a bit of African history with Roman history.
I also like some of the themes in the novel so far. For a while, the Acacians ruled the known world through a combination of a drug called the mist and various forms of slavery including child slavery. Now they are being attacked by the Mein who consider the Acacians unjust and dishonorable.
Good morning. I had my morning coffee, so I am not feeling too bad. I watched a little bit of the 7th Voyage of Sinbad. It is much better than Harryhausen's other films. I rather like the Valley of the Cyclops. The animation for the cyclops is quite interesting. I like the way it uses a tree to smash several of Sinbad's companions.
There is a lot in this movie so far which is quite interesting. Sinbad often creates his own problems when he hires criminals who would be facing the gallows to voyage with him to the Vally of the Cyclops.
The special effects, even if they are old are quite interesting. The miniature princess that is three inches tall is entertaining, so is the scene of the four armed snake woman.
The way the story is told reminds me a little bit of the Odyssey. It is an old fashioned adventure story with gold, magic, and monsters. I will write more about it as I watch some more of the film.
I took a break from the movie and am reading a bit more of Acacia: The War With the Mein. The story is interesting, it seems to draw from African myth and legend, as well as North African history. The scenes with pirates remind me a bit of the pirates of the Barbary coasts from North Africa. The setting is a bit different than your usual fantasy setting. It seems to mix a bit of African history with Roman history.
I also like some of the themes in the novel so far. For a while, the Acacians ruled the known world through a combination of a drug called the mist and various forms of slavery including child slavery. Now they are being attacked by the Mein who consider the Acacians unjust and dishonorable.
I finished reading the novel this afternoon. It has a rather interesting and surprising ending. I will write up a review later this week.
Entrecard is still having some problems. Apparently Amazon S3 which provides remote memory storage and other applications to Entrecard is having some problems with their cloud computing system. Cloud computing is a form of distributed computing.
Amazon S3 rents applications and memory to other companies through the internet. In other words you can rent chunks of memory, internet bandwidth, and complex computer programs by the hour at reasonable rates.
Unfortunately when Entrecard added Sezwho and Diggit, it looks like the new applications disrupted the cloud computing system on Amazon S3. It is rather interesting to follow.
It is a bit annoying. It means that I will be getting less blog traffic through Entrecard. Hopefully, Entrecard and Amazon S3 will fix this soon. Still, it is rather fascinating to follow the process. I am learning something about how social networking systems can have problems.
I am trying to understand this stuff in terms of Occam's Razor, otherwise it would be completely over my head. "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best."
While I was at the laundromat during the evening folding clothes, I was watching television. I have a television but it doesn't work properly, you have to subscribe to cable to get any channels so I don't watch it at home. The television I have at home has a built in VCR and DVD player which is easy to use. I watch movies on my television but not any television shows.
Anyways, I was watching the news on television at the laundromat when I saw a rather interesting advertisement. Apparently T. Boone Pickens the oil billionaire has an energy plan which he is advertising on television. I went to the site and it was very straightforward. Invest in wind power, solar power, and natural gas. Straightforward, easy, something which we can definitely do. I liked it enough that I looked at the website. He says some things which are quite correct. Oil peaked in 2005 and we are sending too much money to foreign powers. Here is the link: http://www.pickensplan.com/theplan/
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