It’s dangerous
The “fracking chemicals have never been found in drinking water” proclamation by the fossil fuel industry recently bit the dust. “Evaluating a groundwater supply contamination incident attributed to Marcellus Shale gas development,” a peer-reviewed scientific publication from the prestigious National Academy of Sciences published April 2, says otherwise.
This study found evidence of toxic fracking chemicals, including carcinogenic 2 butoxyethanol (2BE) in a drinking water aquifer in Pennsylvania, which mirrored fracking fluid injected into nearby natural gas wells that were subjected to high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF). This scientific study is the latest in a long series of publications alerting Americans to the health and environmental dangers of high-volume fracking.
Our drinking water is vastly more important than HVHF, especially when fossil fuels can be extracted in safer ways and by other means. Plus, such studies should push us to increase our efforts to obtain the majority of our future energy needs from sustainable sources.
— Jay Hanas
Edmond
Mansion meanies
I am a social liberal but a fiscal conservative. I want to help people, but not with borrowed money. I am aware that the Gazette is blatantly liberal, and I am OK with that. However, I do think there are enough real issues with the governor that you don’t have to use the repair of the mansion to attack her (Chicken-Fried News, “Moving out,” April 29, Oklahoma Gazette).
That was a real stretch.
— John Harris
Oklahoma City
Problem solved
Since the governor of Texas thinks the government is conspiring to take over Texas, why don’t we move all the military bases out of Texas and into Oklahoma?
We’ll take all the new jobs we can get here in the state.
— Elda Davis
Bethany
Show stopper?
Mastodon and Clutch played what I’m sure was an amazing show in Oklahoma City on May 6. But I wouldn’t know because there was a freakin’ tornado.
Why would the Diamond Ballroom risk people’s lives rather than cancel a concert? Money.
— Dustin Chapman
Moore
Pay attention
Yay! We’re No. 46! Or we will be on Nov. 1, when Oklahoma’s law banning texting while driving kicks in, making us the 46th state to pass such legislation.
But why wait? Avoid the rush. Stop texting now. We congratulate the Oklahoma Legislature for its wisdom in passing this much-needed law. It will cause more and more of us to think twice before picking up the phone as we drive.
Distracted drivers are a huge menace to themselves and others on the road. And it’s not just texting. The Oklahoma Highway Safety Office reports that in 2013, there were 1,712 Oklahoma drivers distracted by an electronic device who were involved in crashes.
But get this: There were another 5,776 drivers involved in crashes that year who were distracted by something other than an electronic device. These stats are based on drivers self-reporting the conditions that led to the crash, so they’re low.
The list of distractions ranges from putting on makeup to looking at other drivers and interacting with passengers.
Bottom line: Reduce all distractions and you will increase your chances of surviving driving.
— Chuck Mai, Vice President of Public Affairs for AAA Oklahoma
Oklahoma City
Correction
The photo that appeared in the article “Live free” (Life, Active, Mark Beutler, May 13, Oklahoma Gazette) was misidentified. It should have been labeled as Matt Goodwin from the Free to Live animal sanctuary.
This article appears in May 20-26, 2015.