Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Op-Ed: Connecticut should not be manipulated by the Koch brothers

  • Other
  • by William Buhler
  • July 8, 2014
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

The Koch Brothers own millions of acres in Alberta Canada containing “tar sands,” thick crude oil with a high carbon content. They, along with Canada’s government want to build a 1000 mile pipeline through the US to bring this heavy crude oil all the way to the gulf of Mexico.

Op-ed submit bugWhile processing this oil creates environmental risks, tar sands extraction is being promoted as a way to create jobs, reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil and increase America’s “energy security.”

What is left out is that:

  • The purpose of the Keystone XL pipeline is to bring tar sands oil to more lucrative global markets, not to sell it to the U.S.
  • If the pipeline is built, it will cost the U.S. $3.9 billion more for the Canadian oil we purchase annually.  Potential profits to the Kochs: 100 billion!
  • Average temperature in Alberta has already gone up by two degrees, and if the tar sands are fully developed, NASA scientist James Hansen believes it will be “game over” for the climate.

While Keystone XL promotion goes on,  climate change is announcing its presence with increasing ferocity;   Superstorm Hurricane Sandy, life threatening flooding in the Florida panhandle followed by three days of multiple tornadoes in a dozen southeastern states in April,  severe drought followed by wildfires in California and most recently, the irreversible collapsing of part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.

The implications of these events are long term and serious, but that may not deter Koch funded media groups from trying to trivialize them.

Some Connecticut residents may not realize that the climate has been changing in this region.  Data tracking shows over a 70 percent increase in very heavy precipitation in the Northeast over a 54 year period.  A National Climate Assessment predicts heat waves, coastal flooding and river flooding will continue to increase, posing hazards to “public health, agriculture, transportation, communications and energy systems.”

Should we continue to be manipulated by the oil billionaires, or should we heed the warnings of the climate scientists and get moving on developing less polluting energy sources?  The answer is obvious.

William Buhler, of Cromwell, worked at the Connecticut Juvenile Training School as a school psychologist and is co-chair of legislative action for SEIU/CSEA.

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

William Buhler

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Best of 2019: Key Dems press bill to increase minority recruitment at Coast Guard Academy
by Ana Radelat

The bill is a response to allegations of discrimination and a racially hostile environment at the school.

Navy cuts number of EB Virginia-class subs in new contract
by Ana Radelat

Electric Boat wanted the Navy to include 10 subs, and possibly 11, in the so-called "Block 5" contract. But the Navy agreed to only nine.

Electric Boat facing mounting challenges as sub work ramps up
by Ana Radelat

There continue to be concerns about EB’s ability to build the new Columbia-class submarine alongside its smaller Virginia-class attack subs.

Talk of gun violence, little else
by Paul Stern

In national politics last week there was talk of little else than gun violence, white nationalism and gun control following the fatal shootings of 31 people in Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas. There was little more than talk, too.

Politics and the ‘dark psychic force of collectivized hatred’
by Paul Stern

President Donald Trump insists he is not a racist, but 51 percent of Americans believe he is, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released last week. Certainly his “send her back” comments about Somalia-born U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and last week’s jabs at U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Baltimore did nothing to dispel that […]

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion How do we show that we value teachers? By listening to them.
by Sana Shaikh

When I was graduating college, my friends’ futures were brimming with impressive labels: Google, Facebook, McKinsey, Bain, PhD, MD, Fulbrights – the list of professional excellence was seemingly never-ending. When I said that I was becoming a teacher, I got puzzled looks – “Why would you be a teacher?” “If you can’t do, teach,” I heard. The nonchalance about my professional trajectory was unsettling. What’s more? Nothing has changed in the last ten years.

Opinion Sports betting in Connecticut: Can’t all the brands just get along?
by Bill Field

When it comes to legalized sports betting in Connecticut, it’s time that all of the parties gathered in a room and hammered out an agreement that works for everyone. The adage of everyone benefiting from a rising tide hasn’t resonated in the past two and half years. 

Opinion COVID-19 will push nursing home design forward
by Myles R. Brown

Over 40 percent of American deaths attributed to COVID-19 have been nursing home residents. Outdated nursing home designs contributed to the scale of this tragedy in Connecticut. Many design changes that could have prevented the spread of COVID-19 were already needed to improve the well-being of nursing home residents. The pandemic has made these issues impossible to ignore.

Opinion Let gig economy workers pursue options
by Nicole Petruzzi

In response to your February 22 story, “In an evolving economy, lawmakers take roles once played by unions:” Like many Connecticut workers, I struggle to make ends meet for my family, even when working full time. This last year has been a particularly hard time. I started looking for a part-time job to supplement my income, but I was worried that even something part-time would take away precious and needed time with my family.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO