Pickens Plan Floundering, But Has Helped Raise Grid Awareness

Mr. Pickens is also amassing a nationwide cadre of supporters, including a "Pickens Army" of 1.3 million online adherents. One such foot soldier is Ryan Jones, a 32-year-old automation student at Idaho State University in Pocatello. The goal is to have one designated foot soldier in all 435 congressional districts. Mr. Jones, who helped convert Pocatello's mayor, is now planning a recruitment party at the local brewery to "get some people signed up," he says.

Some top lawmakers credit the Pickens publicity barrage for solidifying support for updating the U.S. electricity grid, among other things. Majority Leader Harry Reid once labeled Mr. Pickens a "mortal enemy" but now calls him "a pal." Mr. Reid talks with Mr. Pickens every few weeks, aides say, mainly to update him on energy-related legislation.

Still, for all his labors, Mr. Pickens appears likely to fall short in his quest to force some mass conversion to natural gas-fueled transportation anytime soon. Legislation now in the works, top congressional aides say, will probably include some tax incentives to get companies to reduce their oil consumption, but not much more.

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Comments

[rkimball]

cheap gas prices has put our national energy policy on hold. people are once again buying full sized suv & trucks. hybrid & economy car sales have dropped.

nobody is interested in going green as long as gas is cheap & plentyful. the only solution is to tax gas to force people to conserve.

[ObjectiveRealist]

http://www.betterplace.com/our-bold-plan/how-it-works/
Shai Agassi has a better idea for transportation than natural gas, but they will need to be charged and Pickens' windmills could help with that.

[KillTheMessenger]

Wow... 1.3 million naive people who want to help a rich man to get even richer at tax payer expense. Amazing and only possible in America.

[littlepuffycloud]

He simply wants to make more money...he couldn't care less about America.

[Hunffingtongreen]

You can prove this?

[KillTheMessenger]

Hmm... shall we start with Mr. Pickens failed business of NG fueling stations ... or the fact that he wants to sell his electricity though a tax payer funded electrical power network?

[electricitycycles]

Like all armies who are fighting wars, tactics and methods change until the war is won. By compartmentalizing and turning this into a war of attrition he and the rest of his team will win. The battle is being fought from a populous that is expanding from the ground up and not being dictated to by the top down. This problem isn't going away and neither are we.

[wdw505]

whatever?

[wdw505]

so are you saying i should toss another log on the fire?