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Show www.dailyutahchronicle.com 5 OPINION , MA*!,1 Tuesday, November 18,2008 Bush plan for drilling hurts Utah n Jan. 20, Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44th president of the JAMES United States, thus SEWELL ending what could be WILLUS BRANHAM/ffir Oaitf Utah Oironklt ' arguably the worst —— presidential tenure in the history of the country. affairs for the Independent Petroleum Association of Of course, as many have Mountain States. pointed out, that still gives "If you can't develop oil George W(orst president However, mining the area will cause tah is home to five national and natural gas in this part ever) Bush almost three serious damage. It would turn the surparks, the third most of any state of rural Utah, we might as months to wreak as much rounding area into something resemin the country. Utah is also home well concede the United havoc as possible before bling a scene from "Blade Runner," an to an estimated 12 to 19 billion barrels of States has lost all interest in turning in his keys and apocalyptic zone. It may just be borderBRIAN "tar sand" oil, the most of any state in energy security," Sgamma probably losing his cleaning ing acreage, but one bad house brings the nation. TRICK said. deposit. the entire neighborhood down. If it takes Recently, the Bureau of Land Managea company turning our national parks Since Bush isn't known for This is preposterous ment rezoned land bordering or adjacent into nothing more than New Jersey for being a faithful steward of hyperbole. If the United to three Utah national parks. The BLM us to take action and rally behind alterthe environment, perhaps we States was truly concerned will be auctioning this land on Dec. 19 to ent to Utahns, as a similar scenario in shouldn't be surprised that about energy security, and Capital Reef National Park was eventual- native fuels, then so be it. We deserve to interested investors in the newly profithis administration is moving evidence suggests not, we ly abandoned. Capital Reef is rich in coal see the destruction first-hand. able demand for tar sands. quickly on the issue of open- would be looking for ways The United States is facing an energy and tar sand oil. In i982,The National Tar sands, also known as oil sands, ing up almost 360,000 acres to produce energy that don't Park Service released an eerily foreshad- crisis much more difficult than any fiare a mixture of sand, water, clay and in our scenic state to the involve burning fossil fuels. owing statement regarding the resources nancial crisis, and it will only get worse. bitumen. Bitumen is a type of oil that is pjoking, prodding and polWe've been putting up with this crisis If Delicate Arch were of Capital Reef: excavated through strip mining. luting activity of oil and gas for years, and still no real effort is being shown to be sitting atop a "In today's market, none of these reRecently, a rejuvenated effort to mine companies. These companies huge reserve of oil or natural bitumen in Utah has put environmental- sources represents a commercial deposit; made to solve it. If it takes three Utah are seeking, once again, to national parks being strip mined and polgas, shortsighted fools such ists on edge, but this is not the first time yet, the growing pressure on our known take advantage of the public luted beyond recognition for the United as Sgamma and her associUtah has faced the prospect of stripping resources insures that any or all of them trust to pillage and plunder States to realize it has a problem, then ates wouldn't think twice will become significant in the future." the environment. the natural beauty of the so be it, but I'm selling my house now, about wrecking the site and The pressure is here, we all felt it this In the 1960s, the debate over what West for private gain. before the whole neighborhood goes. sucking up every last drop summer as gas prices soared past $4 a natural resources could be. extracted of revenue-generating fossil letters@chronicle.utah.edu The math behind this progallon. from national parks became very apparfuel. The profits from this posal is so half-baked and pillaging would benefit only illogical that it hardly bears the energy companies, as repeating; however, my editor prefers hard facts and well as permanently destroy figures to eloquent prose, so the grandeur of these areas, whose beauty is better here goes: Utah has 1.2 percaptured by Edward Abbey, cent of proved oil reserves friend's fault for posting tooeunions with those Internet safety expert Wallace Stegner and Ansel nationwide according to a personal information about only-kind-of friends Linda Criddle has found Adams than in this column. 2001 geological survey by you. Fortunately, that can rom high school are college is a critical time the Department of Natural be remedied by asking your Just imagine heading awkward. You get stuck in the to be circumspect with ANNE Resources; for natural gas, friends to keep the phone out to the desert for a few verbal dance of "That's good"s the information put on the number skyrockets to 2.5 days to escape civilizanumbers, addresses and posts and h?What have ydu been Up thesesites. ' ROPER percent. Sure, there could be tion, only to be greeted in ** about you all leaving for the to?"s+The conversation then "The reason it is so additional unproved and un- Moab by oil derricks and weekend off the Web. gets downright creepy when important for college known reserves, but why do other industrial accoutrebefore you even say what students to protect Being "Facebook stalked" we insist on draining every ments humming away and you've been doing the past themselves online is that onyour credit. is very real Ifs taken a while, last drop of oil, no matter generating fantastic profits few years, they already know. line records—ones they crebut I'vefinallyrealized how Scared yet? It gets worse. where it is (ANWR, the Gulf for energy companies, exposed my Facebook profile The long-lost acquaintance ate as well as ones created by Identities are "most freCoast, priceless sandstone while the air and water are left me, and how much I would quently stolen from people answers your puzzled expres- others—will impact the rest monuments, etc.) before we choked with pollution for of their lives," Criddle said. rather not know about other between the ages of 17 and sion with, "Oh, I Facebook even think about the oil-less everyone else's enjoyment. people, too. For example, my stalked you," followed by That might mean not being 27," Criddle said. future toward which we are Breathtaking, literally. sisters-in-law were disappointa giggle that doesn't fit the offered a job because a potenThe college age-group is hurtling? ed in me due to some pictures situation. tial employer was less than an ideal target "because you Luckily, there is some of an inside joke. I even found impressed with the picture haven't yet messed up your "Facebook stalk" is practiDrilling for oil and natural indication that Presidentout through a feed on Facebook your buddy posted of you credit and you aren't monically an everyday phrase elect Obama will attempt to gas in these areas, near that my boyfriend of four years taken when you'd both had, toring your credit reports," among my friends. But undo the Bush administraArches National Park, Cangot engaged to someone he'd oh, seven too many beers. It Criddle said. "Failing to recently it occurred to me: tion's decision, restoring yonlands National Park and check is playing roulette with only known for a couple of well, it's really not that funny. could also mean a destroyed the integrity of not only our Dinosaur National Monumonths. credit rating. your financial future." Predators and criminals can energy security policies, but ment, is not going to reduce access photos and as much our environmental policies our dependence on foreign Criddle said most people It would be bad enough to On second thought, it was information as you provide, oil and gas, despite contrary as well. Unlike oil, hope are only using one weak pass- be responsible for your own good to find that out. so it's important to keep tabs claims by Kathleen Sganuna, springs eternal. word. Once a criminal snags demise, imagine how frustratletters@ on your Facebook profile. that, they have free reign over ing it would be if it was your chronicle.utah.edu director of government letters@chronicle.utah,edu O Oil leases threaten nat'l parks U Facebook stalking isn't funny LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Top court Bible, gay agenda at odds has duty to undo Prop 8 Editor: Editor: f--*i The photo on Page 5 (Nov. 17) taken by Lennie Mahler states the view that I have a problem with. Yes, the people did vote on Proposition 8, and yes it did pass. But saying the Supreme Court has no right to intervene isridiculous.The great thing about this nation is that the people don't have final say on civilrights.The majority cannot be allowed to deny the rights of the minority and that is exactly what they have done. I am not gay and honestly cannot think of a single person in my family who is. This is not an issue of gay or not, married or not, this is an issue of people and their rights as human beings. I can't think of a single good reason why these people should be denied their rights. You are not fighting evil here, you are not on a mission from God to stop the path of Satan. You have no religious or secular justification to continue the support of this embarrassing proposition. Be glad the government steps in when needed, or only rich, literate, white males could vote. Stop your bigoted hate and let happiness and love prevail. Sam Walton, Sophomore, Anthropology who has voted against it. Then they pick one church out of the numerous churches that opI'm getting pretty tired of Eric Ething- pose their views, and blame it for everything. ton's "sleeping giant" comment ("Prop 8 What the gay community doesn't underprotests continue," Nov. 17). The Church stand is that churches stand for morals in the of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints awoke same way police officers stand up for laws. a sleeping giant as well—the majority of If the gay community expects churches to California voters. suddenly become okay with gay marriage, it If you enjoy the opportunities of democra- needs to find a way to change the Bible. Until cy, you must abide by laws that the democracy that happens, it shouldn't count on churches passes, end of story. What's sad to me is that to vote for the gay agenda. the outspoken gay community seems to force Braden Johnson, its view of marriage onto a body of people Freshman, Pre-Business Potential humans don't have rights Editor: Additionally, I would like to respond to Alison Parks' There have been several question ("Don't forget that letters responding to the title you too were once a collecof my letter ("Women's rights tion of cells," Nov. 17) asking trump those of.cells," Nov. how I would feel-if I had been 11). But the title was not writ- aborted. The obvious answer ten by me. In The Chronicle's is I would probably feel the defense, every letter I have same way I feel about my ever written to any newspa- time of non-existence before per has had the title changed, conception. The idea of exbut since people seem to be tending rights to "potential" caught up in the title rather human beings would mean than the letter, I feel it was that using contraceptives or important to clarify. even waiting until marriage would be equally unethical propositions. Potentially, Alison could be pregnant right now with a child that might develop a cure to cancer. That doesn't mean I think she should be forced to keep it. Human beings are to be valued, and they ought to be valuable in their own right, not because of any potential benefit or detriment to society. Scott Whitaker, Senior, English Teaching U's hatred of BYU disturbing Editor: As a U graduate, I was disturbed by the rampant hate for BYU in the edition of your paper distributed in the Deseret News this week. We have respected both schools and appreciate what is good about them. Having lived many years in the Midwest, we saw many intense rivalries in the Big Ten, but I never saw the degree of hate for another school that was manifested by those quoted in your paper against BYU. I attended the Utah-BYU game last year in Provo, and several Utah fans were weaving up and down the aisles yelling profanities and taunting the BYU fans. I have not seen such hate among any of the BYU fans I know for any other school, including Utah. A rivalry is one thing, but hate is another. Let's stop the hate! Evelyn Scott U Alumna Letters to the editor should be sent to letters@ chronicle.utah.edu. Letters should be fewer than 150 words and must include the writer's name. Letters from students should also include the writer's major and year in school. LettersfromU faculty and staff should include department and title. All other letters must include the sender's name. All letters become property of The Daily Utah Chronicle and may be edited for style, length, and content. |
