Fracking Fraud

            Scientific American reported what is the first case to be proven by a government agency, the EPA, of water contamination being linked to hydraulic fracturing. This was a mass study, but the positive correlation came from Pavillion, Wyoming.The contaminated water source contained 10 compounds that are known to be used in the fracking process, indicating that the fluids from the fracking most likely leaked into this underground water source. This had long been suspected, but never had there been a study conducted by a government agency that linked the two together. The report from the EPA contradicts statements put out by the drilling industry of why fracking is safe. This seems to me like that they knew the problems all along, but were more determined to make a profit than worry about the safety of citizens and the environment. The contaminated water is used for bathing and drinking in Pavillion. A study on water samples from Pavillion in 2008 showed contaminants in the water. Another study in 2010 resulted in the EPA and federal health officials telling citizens to not drink the water and ventilate during bathing to prevent explosions from built up methane. The companies drilling combated these studies by claiming that the contamination was naturally caused and has no relation to their fracking operation. Some politicians are even siding with the fracking companies going as far as Senator James Inhofe calling the studies “offensive”. It seems hard to believe that someone would call a study that is to benefit the health of the public offensive. A situation like this will really start to go downhill when it becomes up for debate. This study will hopefully convince the public that fracking does cause harm to the land and people and that this is not an opinion. The real difficult part will be to try to convince a public that fracking is not worth the damage in the long run.

Common Theme in Turtle Island

In Gary Snyder's Turtle Island you begin to get a picture of the man who is writing these poems. When reading Snyder's poems, one starts to realize how distant from modern American society he is. In "I Went into the Maverick Bar" Snyder mentions he "left the earring in the car" and thus making him fit in more in the bar. He is an alien to this social setting and probably feels uncomfortable. It is not just his looks, but the perspective he views things that set him apart. In "Steak", he describes how he sees a sign with a "smiling Disney cow" and dissects the artificiality of it. While this sign was intended to attract people and make them crave the meat, it does quite the opposite to Snyder. He is in a different realm with opposing values, beliefs, and desires than most Americans. When in a conversation with two men in "Two Immortals", he seems to be more introverted than the men. The way the conversation goes seems to make them loom over Snyder as some sort of example of what American men should be while he is a foreigner. This is why Snyder started to identify himself more with Eastern mentalities than the Western ones he was born into.