PEMEX future remains cloudy

There has been some progress by Felipe Calderon to open Pemex up to foreign investment or partnership in exploring and drilling for oil in deepwater Gulf of Mexico. But it has been slow and not without dischord. From mid April:

Leftist politicians have shut down Congress, staged hunger strikes and rallied tens of thousands in the streets to fight what they call the “privatization” of the state-owned oil company, Petróleos Mexicanos.

All that in just nearly two weeks since Mexican President Felipe Calderon unveiled his oil reform proposal. (from Houston Chronicle – link dead now)

There is still optimism that these proposals will pass, but will they be enough, even as a starting point to reform Pemex? A recent editorial in the WaPo touched on the need for union reform as a long-term requirement as well. There is some time to act, but the current estimate is that Mexico becomes a net oil importer in 2018. Currently, they are the number three importer into the US

At the same time, Mexico’s attitude about oil and Pemex’s serious systemic flaws don’t inspire much optimism. The energy proposals introduced last month by President Felipe Calderon offer some modest reforms, but probably not enough to stem the crisis. As Jeffrey Davidow, a former U.S. ambassador to Mexico, put it diplomatically, “the steps they are taking are not sufficient.”

Calderon wants to allow outside investment in some areas of transportation, storage and refinement. Those steps alone would be of historic significance. Since the day in 1938 when President Lazaro Cardenas nationalized the oil industry and created Pemex, oil has become so sacrosanct that nobody outside Mexico can help get it out of the ground, refine it, or even move it. Such restrictions have led to unintended consequences — Mexico today is a gasoline importer, with four out of every 10 gallons coming from refineries abroad.(link)

All quiet on the domestic spying front

I last posted about efforts to give telecoms immunity from lawsuits over domestic spying a while ago. Since then, not much has happened. I am glad that lawmakers have not completely abdicated their obligations to defend the constitution.

I do not really think the telecoms should be the ones to suffer. The government really pushed this, and might have coerced some to help them with a “judgement” by the Justice department that their participation wasn’t really illegal. Still, I want to have revealed, for all to see, who did what and under what circumstances they did it. Let the consumer see how their legal rights are being protected by their carriers.

In the intervening months since the last post, it looks as if Obama might actually get the Democratic nomination. I am surprised that Clinton has not been able to manipulate ther way to block him. While it is not over, and I do not expect Clinton to quit, it looks like a very uphill struggle for her now. I think what really amazes me is what Bill has done (or said) to try and get back into the White House. Some things that really backfired – and he should have known better.

Another political related topic of interest recently is the price of oil. I have to snicker when Bush goes, hat-in-hand, to Saudi Arabia and is rebuked rather publicly when he asks “Please sir, can I have some more?”

Battlestar Galactica last season

I have liked the last season of BG so far. It is getting pretty interesting with the possibility of human-cylon alliance of some form.

My one beef relates to Colonel Tigh being a cylon. Doesn’t seem to really fit, seeing as he would have to have been “planted” a long time ago. Now, there has been very little about how he is coping with the revelation that he is a cylon. With his suffering during the resistance, it seems like he would be having real problems. But almost no time has been given to his story.

At least Katee Sackhoff has been getting plenty of airtime. I am still sad her character from Bionic Woman will no longer be gracing the screen.

I read today about a movie that has just come out on DVD, Walk All Over Me. Apparently it stars Tricia Helfer playing a dominatrix. Oh YES!