The Strategic Petroleum Reserve


Book Description

In 1973, the United States and other western countries were shocked by the Arab oil embargo. Lines formed at gasoline pumps; fuel stations ran out of supply; prices skyrocketed; and the nation realized its vulnerability to decisions made by leaders of countries half a world away. In response, the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), which was signed into law by President Gerald Ford in 1975, has become the nation’s primary tool of energy policy. Following its first major use during the Persian Gulf War of 1991, officials and policy makers at the highest levels increasingly turned to the SPR to stave off shortages and mitigate rising energy prices. Author and historian Bruce A. Beaubouef examines, for the first time, the interactions that have shaped the development of the SPR. He argues that the SPR has survived because it is a passive regulatory tool that serves to protect energy consumers and petroleum consumption and does not compete with the American oil industry. Indeed, by the late twentieth century, as American import dependency reached new heights, refiners and transporters increasingly relied upon the SPR as a ready resource to help maintain feedstock when supplies were tight or disrupted. In a time of continued vulnerability, this definitive work will be of interest to those concerned with the history, economy, and politics of the oil and gas industry, as well as to historians and practitioners of oil and energy policy.




'What the Heck Are You Up To, Mr. President?'


Book Description

An assessment of the events that led up to Jimmy Carter's infamous 1979 "malaise" speech places it against a backdrop of such events as the gas crisis and the Iran-hostage situation while explaining that the speech had far greater relevance than its reception reflected, in an account that also claims the speech inadvertently set a course for the conservative movement. Reprint.







One Nation, Uninsured


Book Description

Every industrial nation in the world guarantees its citizens access to essential health care services--every country, that is, except the United States. In fact, one in eight Americans--a shocking 43 million people--do not have any health care insurance at all. One Nation, Uninsured offers a vividly written history of America's failed efforts to address the health care needs of its citizens. Covering the entire twentieth century, Jill Quadagno shows how each attempt to enact national health insurance was met with fierce attacks by powerful stakeholders, who mobilized their considerable resources to keep the financing of health care out of the government's hands. Quadagno describes how at first physicians led the anti-reform coalition, fearful that government entry would mean government control of the lucrative private health care market. Doctors lobbied legislators, influenced elections by giving large campaign contributions to sympathetic candidates, and organized "grassroots" protests, conspiring with other like-minded groups to defeat reform efforts. As the success of Medicare and Medicaid in the mid-century led physicians and the AMA to start scaling back their attacks, the insurance industry began assuming a leading role against reform that continues to this day. One Nation, Uninsured offers a sweeping history of the battles over health care. It is an invaluable read for anyone who has a stake in the future of America's health care system.







Jimmy Carter


Book Description




Energy: Sources, Utilization, Legislation, Sustainability, Illinois As Model State


Book Description

This 800-page premier book on energy focuses on energy sources, utilizations, legislations and sustainability as it relates to a state, a province, or a country, or a community within a state. This book presents various kinds of energy sources, ways to convert energy for end use, better use of energy towards conservation and energy- and environmental-sustainability. As a very proper model-state the authors chose the State of Illinois which has the largest overall fossil energy reserves, including the largest strippable bituminous coal reserves; the largest user of nuclear energy in USA and has also been investing in all kinds of renewable energies including wind energy, solar energy, biofuels, geothermal energy, and various energy storage options. In the authors' opinion, State of Illinois is a pioneer in legislations for proper development and use of all kinds of energy. Their motivation to do this project was to educate the public (including students, energy engineers and planers, as well as state- and country-wide policy makers) about all aspects of energy.In this book, the authors present various energy sources, conversions technologies, and conservation possibilities. In every case, the authors have presented various options available for a country, for a state, or for a community to achieve its goal of energy sufficiency, clean environment and as a result, sustainability. Variety of schemes related to each energy source and its related conversion technologies are presented and sustainability of renewable energy sources is discussed. All the possible energy sources including coal, natural gas, petroleum, nuclear, solar, wind, biofuels and geothermal energy are presented in this book, as well as energy storage options. The authors have also presented various ways of dealing with carbon dioxide, which is produced from fossil fuels combustion, including its collection, transportation, storage and sequestration. The energy storage systems presented in this book will facilitate reliable and full integration of renewable power to the grid.







Americans at the Gate


Book Description

Unlike the 1930s, when the United States tragically failed to open its doors to Europeans fleeing Nazism, the country admitted over three million refugees during the Cold War. This dramatic reversal gave rise to intense political and cultural battles, pitting refugee advocates against determined opponents who at times successfully slowed admissions. The first comprehensive historical exploration of American refugee affairs from the midcentury to the present, Americans at the Gate explores the reasons behind the remarkable changes to American refugee policy, laws, and programs. Carl Bon Tempo looks at the Hungarian, Cuban, and Indochinese refugee crises, and he examines major pieces of legislation, including the Refugee Relief Act and the 1980 Refugee Act. He argues that the American commitment to refugees in the post-1945 era occurred not just because of foreign policy imperatives during the Cold War, but also because of particular domestic developments within the United States such as the Red Scare, the Civil Rights Movement, the rise of the Right, and partisan electoral politics. Using a wide variety of sources and documents, Americans at the Gate considers policy and law developments in connection with the organization and administration of refugee programs.