Daylight Again - 5/31/2010

The Next American Revolution

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

My friends, with everything that's going on in our country, isn't it time? Look at what the citizens in Flower Mound TX just did. When their leaders failed to respect their wishes, they changed the course of their future in the election booth. Now, in an incredibly short period of time, they have begun to enact change. Real, positive change. Although I live a thousand+ miles away, I feel as if I'm there and, I believe - what happened there is just the beginning.

Around northeastern PA, with regard to natural gas drilling, a common blurb from the lips of our elected officials is that "our hands are tied."

I say - that's a good start. It'll make escorting you away from the public trough that much easier.

One last thought to my cryptic critic in northeastern PA; Fortnight this..!..

Happy Memorial Day!

Shell Oil - Your New Neighbor

$4.7 billion is a lot of money, and that is what Shell Oil recently paid to stake its claim in the Marcellus Shale play.

Shell Oil; great company, right? Check out what the folks in Nigeria are going through.  Point #2 should get your attention. Of course, it ( or something comparable ) can't happen here, right?

Moratorium in Flower Mound

Several weeks ago, the people of Flower Mound TX elected themselves a new mayor. You can read more about it here. The major issue going into the election? You got it - natural gas drilling.

Well, just a few weeks after Ms. Northern was elected mayor and got to work, guess what they just enacted in Flower Mound TX? Right again - an administrative moratorium on new gas drilling permits.

Hmmmmm. I wonder why the Lehman Township $upervisor$ ( Luzerne County, PA, USA ) didn't think of that? Or the people in Harrisburg?

Where there is a will, there is a way. Vote 'em all out and let's get to work!

Kudos to the people of Flower Mound TX. Semper Fi!

Teddy Nailed "It"

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.” -  Theodore Roosevelt

So my question is...where do you stand?

PFBC SVX

I've been buying fishing licenses and paying for boating registrations for close to 40 years. The wimp*ss position the PFBC has been taking on Marcellus Shale drilling is really starting to tick this PFD wearing midnight paddler off to no end. 

They should be disbanded and/or folded into the equally lame SRBC, DEP or DCNR - take your pick. 

Double O Sideburns

For those not following these EnCana folks too closely, seems they had a little problem last year with some bombings up north. Those mounted dudes in the red suits arrested a guy in January of this year, only to let him go a day or two later. So far, even with a $1M+ bounty up for grabs, the 6 or so bombings remain unsolved the last time I checked. 

I've been hearing that some high-falootin' local folks are trying to find a lawyer to help them fight these intruders from Alberta and Denver. Don't waste your money. If you want results, there's only one guy I'd recommend to get these folks to pack up and slither north of the border where they belong.

I've been watching all his former haunts for weeks, and I finally caught up with him a few days ago. He ain't cheap, and he ain't James Bond, but he'll get the job done.

Call me for his number.

I hope I'm not there

More and more of the "public" meetings being held about Marcellus Shale are being patterned after the one above. Middle of the day, representatives of BIG OIL being allowed to speak freely, and the public being reduced to writing questions on 3 by 5 cards that are selectively presented to the "expert" panel for thoughtful consideration. After the meeting, the (still) clueless politicians babble on about what a great hearing it was and how hard they are working to protect their constituents and create jobs while juggling their other role as a superhero. Suppress your gag reflex as you read about it here.

Eventually, in one of these meetings, in the not too distant future, someone is going to snap. I don't know when it will be, and I don't know where it will be. I just hope, with every fiber of my being, that I am not there.

Wendy, ...I'm coming home.

FATHER!

AS YOU SOW

...so shall you reap.

Please take a few minutes to read this article from less than an hour ago.

Reflect. Then read it again.

This is happening right before our eyes. The seeds of doubt have begun to sprout. And spread. Questions are being asked by socially responsible people. Lots of them.

Do not dismiss it; embrace it. Join in. Do not let this opportunity pass.

Time to bark at the moon.

The future's in the air
I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change... (Scorpions)

Massive Fish Kill

Well, it was certainly a massive event for these little guppies. This pic was taken @ Nesbitt Park this past Sunday.

The headline above is not too far-fetched, and it has happened before on the Susquehanna, and more recently, on Dunkard Creek in southwestern PA. Imagine that - an entire ecosystem wiped out.

Now that - for the tidy sum of $6.1M - the DCNR has leased the land under the Susquehanna for drilling, it is only a matter of time. When it happens, there will be no place to hide.

A modern-day Seventh Coalition is forming. I can sense it growing every day. 

Welcome to Penn's Woods; BIG OIL's Waterloo.

The Tunkhannock Triangle

I'm sure everyone's heard of the Bermuda Triangle. If you've read about it or seen any of the docudramas about that little patch of sea, you'll no doubt be familiar with one of the theories about what may be happening down there. You got it; methane bubbles - big enough to sink ships.

So now that the DCNR is allowing drilling for natural gas ( aka methane ) to take place under the Susquehanna River, well, you figure out the rest. Will paddlers ( and/or roughnecks ) begin to mysteriously disappear on the north branch of the Susquehanna in Bradford and Wyoming Counties? Not possible, you say?

I'd recommend keeping an eye on the north branch of the Susquehanna once drilling under the river begins. A very close watch. BTW, I'd also recommend not firing up a stogie while on the river.

Remember the Cuyahoga?

Can you say: Severance Tax?

Seems that every time a severance tax on natural gas production is discussed in Pennsylvania, the BIG OIL mouthpieces get all whiny and defensive.  Here's a barrage of recent comments from one of their lead whiners, Kathryn Klaber:

Klaber, who presides over a consortium of gas industry-related companies, more than 40 of which are involved in gas exploration, also spoke out against the tax. "There are other ways for us to profit from this than simply to tax," Klaber said. She added that other shale plays might become more attractive if the tax is imposed."The Marcellus play is not the only game in town," Klaber said.

Yet as we have seen from the recent BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, there are even laws in place that limit the amount of money the BIG OIL industry has to pay for an accident that they cause.

Enough already. PA is one of two states that does not have a severance tax. I think it should be enacted immediately, retroactively, and double what is currently being charged in West Virginia. If you want to see what will happen when the NG drillers screw up - look to Dimock.

If the legislators of this commonwealth are not willing to protect us, we should replace them with people that will.

Immediately.

You got a PROBLEM???

Several members of the BIG OIL sorority and a major Washington law firm representing them have been checking out my "radical" post from a few days back.

First of all, I am MUCH better looking than that hothead. Second; free speech is a wonderful thing.

Rather than wasting your time here, why don't you go watch natural gas prices plummet. I'll send some slightly used Pampers for when you run out of tissues. 

Hey! Luzerne County...

Ready for the summer of 2010?

Thank a local elected official today!

Chesapeake Appalachia to Staff: Anyone speak Mandarin?

Off the top of my head, we now have Norway, Korea, Japan, India, Canada, China and Singapore all owning a piece of the gas companies exploiting Pennsylvania's natural resources. I wonder - will they all help with the clean-up?

I'll let the article speak for itself.

If that link doesn't work for you, here's another.

Maybe the Luzerne County Courthouse should order a few new flags. I'll save them some time for the two latest additions, China and Singapore:

Seeing red, anyone?

Pennsylvania's Future: For Sale to the Highest Bidder

"We all need to get radical"

Hey - I didn't say it! Some p-o'ed person named Sara wrote the comment in response to the eminent domain article I mentioned yesterday. Here's an expanded snippet:

This has permitted corporate America - those private profit-driven companies that are the greed speeders of our world - to usurp the rights of the people. We all need to get radical, which requires actually a very conservative reading of the constitution, because corporate interests are driving this country in to the ground.

So, think about it. You work hard all your life to buy a home, fix it up, and keep all mechanicals running. New roof, new hot water heater, pest inspections, painting, yardwork, etc. Then someone decides they want, or need, to put a gas pipeline through your property and with some legal maneuvering - they're ripping up your front lawn and deep-sixing the value of your home along with it. How would you feel? What would you do? Do you think this can't happen to you?

Yes, it is time to get radical; just like these gents did over two centuries ago.

Give it to me, or I'll take it away

Several weeks ago, before I decided to start this blog, I met with a guy I consider to be the most informed voice on this whole Marcellus Shale thing. Not an intelligent guy who went out and read all he could to get up to speed, but someone who was already cruisin' at Warp 12 on the topic years ago. He agreed to meet with me on a Saturday and proceeded, in about 35 minutes, to give me a massive brain dump of information that had my head spinning somewhere in the orbit of the planet formerly known as Pluto, or is it the other way around?  His ability to easily reduce complex issues and scientific concepts to my level still has me scratchin' my head. Why can't those so-called "experts" give that a shot now and then instead of spewing forth gobbledy-gook that no one can understand?

Truth is, I'm indebted to him, and I think I finally met a guy whose word and handshake actually mean something. If he should ever decide to run for office, he's got my vote and anything else he needs. The other wannabes out there can't carry his jockstrap, and I ain't necessarily talking about candidates for office.

This post is a little long for me, so I'll end it with the latest bit of news about the true nature of the companies invading our little corner of the world. Eminent domain, anyone? You are gonna love this.

How many ways can you say the word "DUMB"?

Seems our DCNR is so hard up for cash that they decided to sell drilling rights under the Susquehanna River in Bradford County.

And for only $6.15 million!

I've read several of the articles today, and I'm sure there are more to come. Here's the one that seems to be getting the most comments. I did find it interesting that only three people signed what appear to be their real names. What does that say about the other 12?  Wussies!

For the record, the comparison to what happened at the Knox Mine is a little bit of a stretch. Just the same, I truly hope the DEP, DCNR and Chesapeake have some really deep, well-hidden and well-stocked bunkers when the first major fish-kill or similar environmental slip-up occurs. I truly do.

They are f*(5in' with the wrong marine tributary. 

Luzerne County: Worth Fighting For?

You bet your bippie!

Return of the Susquehannock

I was sure this comment in The Citizen's Voice would be deleted, so I did a quick screenshot just in case:

Surprisingly, at 8:30 at night it's still online, so check out what others had to say here.

To whoever wrote that comment, I have a message: That which was buried under the Tree of Peace is there no more.

When EnCana drops the ball - and they will - let me know where and when, and I will be there.

Statoil Sucks Gas from Towanda to Toronto

Energy independence??? For who??

So they're gonna reverse the flow of the pipeline and send Marcellus Shale gas extracted from under our feet to keep Nanookie of the North warm while they pound down the Molsons and eat moose jerky, yet some our our fellow Americans can't drink the water from their wells - thanks to Cabot & such?

Who's on guard for whom?? How do you feel about this?

Kumbaya with Canucks, anyone?

P!ssed in Palookaville

There's a pretty important meeting tonight up in Wilkes-Barre, PA. I see there's a group that wants to gather outside the courthouse @ 6:30 to protest EnCana's request for a slew of zoning variances. My friends, it is time to take the gloves off.

These EnCana folks got their inch, now they're going for the jugular. Do you now finally realize what you are dealing with?

Where is our modern-day Joe Palooka?

Halliburton: Premature Speculation

The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico brings Halliburton to the forefront once again. And, lest ye forget, Halliburton developed the horizontal/hydrofracturing process used in Marcellus Shale drilling. Of course, they've already started to backpedal.

Residents of Luzerne County, PA - WAKE UP! You're next.

Wussies in (W)underland

I've been watching this whole Marcellus Shame thing develop for quite a spell. I gotta say that the people who oppose this intrusion by the Natural Gas ( NG: also for No Good ) industry are, for the most part , right on the money - because that is exactly what this is all about. Nothing more, nothing less.

I differ, greatly, on their tactics. It's time to take the gloves off. Forget the signs and the placards and the Kumbaya meetings on the street corner with pony-tailed hippie types. My humble opinion is that we need a few face-to-face CTJ meetings on the streets - maybe right in front of their offices - to get their attention.

And I've already picked my time and place.

And So it Begins

Civil disobedience is no longer an option.