Horizontal drilling into the Cana Woodfod Shale, Canadian County, Oklahoma, fairly recently
Psalm 114-14-15 14 He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; 15 And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart. Don’t worry folks, I haven’t gone off into the deep end. I am reading a book about the history of the oil industry and this scripture was telegraphed as a prearranged signal by a predecessor company of British Petroleum that a well they were drilling in what is now Iran was successful. Personally I think the verse refers to olive oil. As part of the research for this post I found that there are lots of swindlers who use vague Bible quotes such as this to try and fleece trusting people out of their money by promising amazing insights into where the oil is by using the Bible only. And that brings to mind another verse: 16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Matthew 10:16
This is a well fed coyote, not a wolf, that I met on a geocaching excursion in Bixby, Oklahoma.
Personally I thought GasLand, which I saw on NetFlix was a good movie. It could have been a great movie if they paid as much attention to the facts as they did the cinematography but hey, that’s the movie business. I can’t vouch for Truthland and I can see why some would view it skeptically because it was funded by the gas industry. But hey you know what? I think that you and I should look at all opinions and presentations skeptically, but not cynically.
(Sweetie’s family is not afraid of fracking. They are here having a picnic on a Chesapeake Energy well site in western Oklahoma. The well was horizontally drilled into and hydraulically fracked in the Colony Wash formation. Sweetie is in the back at the far left standing up trying to sneak some food. So far, no ill effects except that I have gotten somewhat older, fatter, balder, dumber, and uglier since the event.)
Do your research, check the facts, decide for yourself but keep an open mind. Write your Senator, take some action if you feel led. Don’t take everything at face value. Think about what the unstated assumptions are? (Like do you really want all the water quality enforcement everywhere taken over by the Federal Government? Is that good? bad? Why? Or should exploration companies be allowed unchecked access anywhere they want regardless of the environmental impact? Why? Can’t we keep sensitive areas untouched? Why not?) Check and see who has what to gain or lose by presenting a certain viewpoint.
It’s kind of fun actually googling GasLand and TruthLand and seeing how the pro and con fracking trolls are tearing each other up on the internet. Are the various advocates answering questions and providing information that can be checked or are they just bobbing and weaving?
(And they like hot showers in the morning!)
(And your most stubborn oilman likes a to get away from it all to a place with clean air and water.)
I could give you a bunch of links, but I’m not. Just google it. Read the pros and the cons. Make up your own mind. (But keep it open.)
Can I get off my soapbox now?
(Full disclosure: I work for a natural gas pipeline company and I don’t have any problem with properly designed and executed fracking. My opinions are my own and not necessarily that of my employer).
