Dick Vodra responds to a letter to the Editor published in last week’s issue. Dick’s original article, Peak Oil and the Long Term Asset Allocation Implications, appeared two weeks ago:

Dear Editor,

Thank you for the opportunity to respond to Michael Sleeter's letter.  I won't take time to refute everything he said, from his denying the biological origin of oil to the facts that average temperatures continue to rise and arctic ice continues to disappear. I would simply point out two events since he wrote his letter that suggest the world's in a heap of trouble.  On June 22 the King of Saudi Arabia gathered everyone together to figure out how to increase production and cut oil prices, and prices have gone up since, breaking $142 on June 27.  On June 25 the US government issued a National Intelligence Estimate saying that climate change will have wide-ranging impacts on US security.  Thus, the CIA joins the National Academy of Sciences, the UN, and many others who have apparently been baffled and bamboozled by ”all this purposefully wrong-headed information."  If abiotic oil is there, I urge Mr. Sleeter and those who share his views to find it, produce it, drive prices down, and become incredibly wealthy.

Until that happens, though, it is urgent that people (individually, nationally, and globally) prepare for a world with less energy and a less-friendly climate.  Changing our infrastructure and way of life, here and around the world, will be expensive and will take time.  If we fail to start aggressively now, we could consign millions to death and billions to a very bad life.  If we start now and - against all evidence - it turns out we didn't need to, then we got agitated but also produced some new technologies that we can use anyway.  To me, that is a wager we clearly need to take.  It is unfortunate that the attitudes (and name-calling) of Mr. Sleeter and many others are continuing a debate that has been largely settled at the scientific level for some time, and preventing us from moving forward.

Dick Vodra

Spire Investment Partners

McLean, VA

In addition, we received these letters from readers regarding Dick’s article:

Dear Editor,

I have to whole heartedly agree with Mr. Sleeter's assessment of the positions taken by Mr. Vodra.  I do think that Advisor Perspectives is one of the best resources I get regularly (and I get many), and I further agree with the contention that the editors of AP need to be on guard against articles that purport to be based on researched fact that are really based on still questionable evidence.  As a technical editor for the Journal of Accountancy and the AICPA Personal Financial Planning newsletter "Planner", I know how difficult this can be; but it is still an obligation the publication owes to its readership if it wishes to maintain its credibility that is so hard fought for in the first place.

Clark M. Blackman II, CFA, CFP, CIMA, CPA*/PFS, AIF 

President & C.E.O.
Alpha Wealth Strategies, LLC
Kingwood, Texas 

Dear Editor,

I take Peak Oil seriously..and the Drill Now debate will continue.  But I don’t take seriously Climate change.  Mr. Vodra said:

"On the climate side, all the news is coming in worse than we projected: water temperatures, jet stream changes, ice cap shrinkage, greenhouse gas levels, and so much more.  James Hansen, from NASA, says we may already be at the tipping point where feedback effects will overwhelm any attempts we make to address the climate problem."

As a Physical Chemist and Polymer Scientist for 35 years, my role was to invent materials and create new businesses.  I also created my own financial advising business in 1986.  When I retired in 2004 to be full time as an Investment Advisor, I also had time to investigate Global Warming.  Another award winning NASA Scientist, Dr. Roy Spencer,  completely disagrees with Dr. Hansen.  See this site.

Many other climate scientists dispute global warming as well.

Here is a site that shows a petition signed by over 31,000 scientists, including me, who disagree with Vodra's and Hansen's views.   My name is not yet on the site but it will update soon.

The FACT that the earth was much warmer in the past than today is irrefutable…1000 years ago when Greenland was…well…GREEN.  The Vikings have a wonderful well written history about Greenland and archeological digs prove it. 

Here are two sites (site 1 and site 2) that discuss Greenland.

Finally, a compilation of science is shown in the attached document (available on .

The bottom line:  Human induced Global Warming (now called Climate Change) is a FRAUD.  Cap and Trade is a government money grab and is a simple bait and switch from the tax and spend views of the past.  It is a secular god worshiped by many uninformed and scientifically naive people.

Open your mind, read these articles, and ask the simple question: 

Do you want your children and grandchildren to live a lower standard of living based on the words of Dr. Hansen and Al Gore?  Do you want the  poor peoples of the earth to be poorer because they will not be able to get ENERGY to increase their standard of living? 

There is too much scientific data on the opposite side of Human Induced Global Warming to risk such tectonic free enterprise change.

BTW, Greenland was Climate Change as well…. 1000 years ago.

You can check out my resume on our firm’s web site.

I would be happy to debate this with anyone.

Best Regards,

Dave Romenesko

President & Chief Investment Officer

Tempo Investment Products, Inc.

Midland, MI