All For the Want of a Horseshoe Nail
The last pristine wilderness in the United States is in danger--and for no good reason.
Last week, the US Senate voted 51-49 to allow oil-drilling in the Arctic National Wilderness. The oil companies pooh-pooh concerns that this last untouched corner of nature will be endangered by their presence--and, anyway, they only want to use a little piece of it.
Our President cheered the vote, as well he should. His budget needs the projected $5 billion dollars the oil companies will pay for the privilege of invasion. Of course, that's not the reason he gives. He says letting them go there will alleviate our dependence on foreign oil sources, hinting that those $2-plus prices at the pump will disappear once Exxon/Mobil and their ilk get their way.
Only problem: our crude oil reserves are higher right now than they've ever been. Those high prices aren't because of shortages but because (1)oil speculators have been driving the price per barrel higher and higher for no reason other than panic and (2)the oil companies like making all that money.
There is no way oil drillers admitted into the Arctic National Wilderness can leave it in the same condition they found it. These aren't Boy Scouts. Even if they actual do try to minimize the impact the delicate ecosystem will be altered.
One voice may not seem like much, but remember the nursery rhyme about the horseshoe nail:
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the war was lost.
All for the want of a horseshoe nail.
Make no mistake--this is a war. It's a war against the mindset that has prevailed in the US and elsewhere since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the mindset that the earth is here for us to exploit. The mindset that has poisoned our air, our water, our soil and our bodies, and now is trying to convince us it was for our own good.
Saving the Arctic National Wilderness isn't going to change that. What it will do is provide an opportunity for those who understand you can't keep withdrawing from nature's bank and never making a deposit to become horseshoe nails.
The question of oil-drilling in the Arctic National Wilderness now goes before the House of Representatives. Unless we put sufficient pressure on those folks, they'll turn over the keys to the vault without a murmur. It doesn't matter who you voted for last November--this issue transcends politics, at least for those of us who give a damn whether our children and grandchildren will be able to do more than just survive.
So, start petitions. Mail and phone your Congressmen and Congresswomen. Yell loudly and long. Make liars out of those who say the American people are no more than mindless consumers who'll approve anything they're told will keep them living in the style to which they've become accustomed.
Last week, the US Senate voted 51-49 to allow oil-drilling in the Arctic National Wilderness. The oil companies pooh-pooh concerns that this last untouched corner of nature will be endangered by their presence--and, anyway, they only want to use a little piece of it.
Our President cheered the vote, as well he should. His budget needs the projected $5 billion dollars the oil companies will pay for the privilege of invasion. Of course, that's not the reason he gives. He says letting them go there will alleviate our dependence on foreign oil sources, hinting that those $2-plus prices at the pump will disappear once Exxon/Mobil and their ilk get their way.
Only problem: our crude oil reserves are higher right now than they've ever been. Those high prices aren't because of shortages but because (1)oil speculators have been driving the price per barrel higher and higher for no reason other than panic and (2)the oil companies like making all that money.
There is no way oil drillers admitted into the Arctic National Wilderness can leave it in the same condition they found it. These aren't Boy Scouts. Even if they actual do try to minimize the impact the delicate ecosystem will be altered.
One voice may not seem like much, but remember the nursery rhyme about the horseshoe nail:
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the war was lost.
All for the want of a horseshoe nail.
Make no mistake--this is a war. It's a war against the mindset that has prevailed in the US and elsewhere since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the mindset that the earth is here for us to exploit. The mindset that has poisoned our air, our water, our soil and our bodies, and now is trying to convince us it was for our own good.
Saving the Arctic National Wilderness isn't going to change that. What it will do is provide an opportunity for those who understand you can't keep withdrawing from nature's bank and never making a deposit to become horseshoe nails.
The question of oil-drilling in the Arctic National Wilderness now goes before the House of Representatives. Unless we put sufficient pressure on those folks, they'll turn over the keys to the vault without a murmur. It doesn't matter who you voted for last November--this issue transcends politics, at least for those of us who give a damn whether our children and grandchildren will be able to do more than just survive.
So, start petitions. Mail and phone your Congressmen and Congresswomen. Yell loudly and long. Make liars out of those who say the American people are no more than mindless consumers who'll approve anything they're told will keep them living in the style to which they've become accustomed.
posted by Elizabeth K. Burton | 12:30 PM
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1 comments
