We are over 10 years into the shale revolution and sadly we still hear about the “evils of horizontal drilling and fracking” in the media and especially at public meetings. New York State decided to ban the process. One quote I heard from one of the public officials was, “I wouldn’t want my kids to live next to a well site.” (Because of the dangers) I have 4 wells around me on all sides and we raised 3 kids in this house. I wouldn’t want to raise my kids in New York City. I have been there and it is far more polluted and dangerous.
In communications the oil and gas industry focuses primarily on the jobs and economic benefits they provide to the communities they operate in and to our country. This is certainly true. The oil and gas industry probably kept the latest recession from being a depression. But this is just the beginning. It is time to bust the myth of the “evils of fracking” once and for all. If there are any evils out there it is probably among the anti- frack crowd who are doing their best to hurt ALL Americans as well as the environment. Most “antis” are probably clueless to the damage try are trying to cause and all the people they are trying to hurt. Here is a bigger picture of what the oil and gas industry does that we all should be talking about;
- If you like your low gasoline prices, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you prefer riding in your car to walking, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you were warm, dry and had your lights on during one of our worst winters ever, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you like wearing your clothes and shoes which are made possible by petrochemicals, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you like modern medicine, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you like your computer, TV and cell phone, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. (Petrochemicals again.)
- If you like a cleaner environment, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. This isn’t talked about but the OIL & GAS INDUSTRY ACTUALLY DOES MORE for the planet than the EPA and the “environmental groups.” They have lowered CO2 to Kyoto Treaty levels without a carbon tax that would hurt everyone but especially seniors who probably wouldn’t be able to stay in their homes. Their reclaimed well sites and pipeline right of ways have become animal and bird habitats. Every factory built in the USA due to our now abundant fuel supply is built under the toughest environmental regulations on the planet and less polluting than its counterpart in China, India etc. This is just part of what they do to improve the environment.
- We always hear about the promise of renewables. Renewables are old. They are important to developing countries because that is all they have. If you like not using renewables to cook with (Developing countries use wood and animal dung) THANKS A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. Developing countries still use rocks for washing clothes. My grandmother used a washboard. Most young people probably wouldn’t know what that is. If you like using your washing machine, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. I have 5 brothers. Monday was wash day and for years my mother hung her clothes outside on the line to dry. She was using renewables. (wind and solar) This was hard work and she had to worry about the sudden rain or some kid (like me) whose dirty ball bounced into the clothes. One of the best days of my mother’s life was the day she got her first natural gas clothes dryer. If you like using your electric or natural gas clothes dryer, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER.
- If you like fighting ISIS and succeeding without putting our brave men and women into battle, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. ISIS’ biggest source of revenue is from selling the oil they captured on the black market. Thanks to US oil production world oil prices are now below $50 a barrel. This hurts the oil and gas industry and has caused layoffs. The oil and gas industry doesn’t like the current prices but ISIS likes it less since ISIS oil revenues have been cut by over 50%. Just imagine what ISIS might do if they had a lot more money to recruit and fight with. This oil price cut has also hurt Russia and OPEC. The link between Russian money and some of our environmental groups’ funding is becoming clearer as per recent articles in Forbes and the Washington Beacon. It is a smart move on Putin’s part. More regulations on US oil and gas like the impending ozone regulations, recent “fracking” regulations and moratoriums lead to less US wells drilled, lower US production and higher world oil prices. The question we need to ask the EPA is, “Whose side are you on?” If these groups win even the environment loses since some of EPA’s regulations have actually encouraged overseas manufacturing over US manufacturing thus hurting the planet.
- If you like your freedoms, especially freedom of speech, THANK A DRILLER, THANK A FRACKER. Our military runs on petroleum. You can’t run a fighter jet on wind or a tank on solar power. One of the scariest things I can think of is asking Mr. Putin to sell us a little oil so we can run our military. Lack of fuel in World War 2 led to the defeat of Germany. My uncle marched by German tanks in World War II that had run out of fuel on his way to Berlin. Our military keeps us free and they need petroleum.
I probably missed a few things but I think you get the picture. Sadly many people do not know or understand most of this. It is important for Americans to know where their energy and many of the common products we use every day come from. One of the first questions I get on my radio interviews around the country is, “Mr. Kozera our gasoline price is $2__ per gallon. Does that have anything at all to do with fracking?” The answer of course is “yes” since we are now the #2 oil producer in the world thanks to horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. OUR oil production has driven oil prices down. We have dramatically reduced our oil imports.
As Americans we are the masters of our destiny. Freedom is never free. We need to fight for it and work hard to maintain it. We need to make good decisions in Washington and at the local level. Good decisions are always based on good science, sound engineering principals and truth. Passion is important in a love relationship but not in government. I believe that it was Benjamin Franklin who said that passion never governs wisely. When it comes to “fracking” I hear far more passion than facts from the “antis”. If we like our modern life style and our freedom we need to understand the truth about energy and the importance of petrochemicals to our modern lifestyle. We get to choose what kind of world our children and grandchildren get to live in. My wife and daughter don’t want to go back to wash boards and hanging their wash outside. I like my forced air heat and air conditioning.
Sometimes we don’t know what we have until we don’t have it anymore. Thank a driller, thank a fracker. We may look more like a developing country without them.