Holding Science on the Floor and Beating It With a Stick
Welcome to Texas, where “Despite Scientific Evidence” has become our state motto.
The Texas Railroad Commission is unconvinced that underground injections of fracking wastewater is triggering earthquakes in the state, despite a study by scientists from the US Geological Survey, Southern Methodist University and the University of Texas.
The Texas Railroad Commission has diddle squat to do with railroads. They regulate oil and gas in Texas. It is referred to by most as The Greasy and Sleazy Commission.
Craig Pearson, the Railroad Commission’s staff seismologist, says he’s not convinced that fracking is causing earthquakes and the relationship between where fracking occurs and where earthquake occur is just one of those mysteries of life things.
“While we remain concerned about seismic activity in the state, we still haven’t had a hearing where we’ve had a definite case made that a specific operator is associated with any specific earthquake activity.”
Translation: This is Texas, fer gawd’s sake. What’s a few little earthquakes when stockholders need more money?
Hey, no finger pointing – it’s probably not much better in your state.
And until a specific weatherman (cause we don’t listen to girls) tells me specifically to the minute when that Force 5 hurricane is going to come down my specific street, I ain’t doin’ diddlysquat to get ready for it.
Do these folks have any idea why the sun comes up every morning, or is their science knowledge at about the pre-K level?
1And,of course,earthquakes don’t change the confines of aquifers and don’t open large cracks in the ground and cause pipelines to break or bridges/buildings to collapse. That is all Obama’s fault. You can always drink natural gas.
2We needed more disasters.
3FORGET FRACKING!! Ask yourself this: Why, if they don’t regulate railroads are they still called the Texas Railroad Commission? Sheesh Texas, can’t you get ANYTHING right? CHANGE THE DAMN NAME!! Is that so hard?
(Sorry for shouting.)
4We don’t frack in Oregon, and there are enough progressives in the state government that ARE scientists, that any attempt to defy science at any level will be met with determined laughter.
And yes, microbrews WILL be consumed!
5The term “fracking” has become synonymous with the word “f**king” in some circles. As in, “We don’t need no fracking f**king.” or ” We don’t need no f**king fracking.”
6Or, “Don’t frack us over” and “Don’t f**k us over.
And WTF uses both versions as well.
And if the Repugs take the White House, we’re all fracked!
Virginia does not allow fracking despite the fact that one of most humongous plays of natural gas (the Marcellus Shale) extends into the Appalachian backbone of the state. For one thing, thats where there are a lot of coal mines, an industry that all too often has this state by the throat. Virginia has been for about the last decade or so on a tear to advertise itself as the high tech state. They figure that some day the coal seams will play out and there’s gotta be a back up somewhere to keep everything going.
7“Craig Pearson, the Railroad Commission’s staff seismologist, says he’s not convinced that fracking is causing earthquakes”
A Bing search on ” Craig Pearson seismologist ” turns up lots of interesting things:
http://www.bing.com/search?q=Craig+Pearson+seismologist&qs=n&form=QBLH&pq=craig+pearson+seismologist
Dr. David Craig Pearson was just specifically hired by the RRC back in March to “investigate” this fraccing-injection well-earthquake topic.
It appears he is an SMU grad.
Nobody should suspect anything but absolute integrity here…/snark.
And for those of you looking for a rough and ready type Chris Cristie, have a look here:
http://www.geology.smu.edu/~vineyard/pearson.html
“Staff Seismologist, Los Alamos National Laboratories ”
(No, you can’t unsee that either…and I’m having a hard time not making any ‘microearthquake while walking’ comments, let alone bringing up tacos, burritos, and donuts…I are evile…)
8@maryelle, I don’t know how influential it was, but “frack” was the allowable word for “f**k” on the recent TV series “Battlestar Galactica”.
Words are oddities– “crap” is vulgar, but more acceptable than “s**t,” which everyone knows is the same thing.
A woman asked Lady Bird Johnson, “Can’t you get Lyndon to stop using the word ‘manure’?” Lady Bird’s reply: “Do you know how long it’s taken me to get him to say ‘manure’?”
9The Godsent Flag motto;
Don’t Frack On Me!
10Sorry Rhea, but it was Harry Truman who said “manure”, and the rejoinder came from his wife, Bess. But who the frack really cares?
11We seem to be in our own Dark Ages, where superstition trumps science and witch-burning is all the rage.
12Any wonder Molly Ivins called TRNCC “Trainwreck”?
13The really, really dangerous side of all this is that science IS reality, and reality can’t be ignored forever.
14“Hey, no finger pointing – it’s probably
not much better in your state.”
No finger pointing here. I’m in Florida where our governor is doing his best to criminalize owning solar panels. In the Sunshine State. Yep, scientific ignorance at its finest.
15How they think they gonna prove it? Crawl down into the earth a mile with a flaShlight and a hearing aid and see if the dirt falls in on them when the earth quake happens?
16“Hey, no finger pointing – it’s probably not much better in your state.”
you’re absolutely correct. that’s why I put more faith in federal agencies than state ones, the federal agencies generally don’t have an agenda, other than actual science.
17No finger pointing, but my state has banned fracking temporarily, and we’re working on our representatives to make the ban permanent.
18The thing about scientific research is that before one can agree with a theory they must disprove the theory. There are hundreds of scientists who have accepted the theory/reality. Everybody else is just lying.
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