There is so much to be said about the proposed Keystone XL
tar sands pipeline, but at the end of the day it comes down to the idea of
justice. Justice, because the
companies that stand to profit from the project are destroying our climate and
that of our children in the process.
Fast
Company just posted an article that listed the Alberta Tar Sands as one of
the 14 Carbon Bomb projects, that if exploited, would lead to disastrous
long-term temperature increases.
Even the
Dalai
Lama and Nobel Peace Laureates are against this thing.
Yes, we use oil everyday. But stopping the Keystone XL is a
crucial first step to creating a safe future for all of us. It will send a strong signal to oil,
coal, and gas companies around the world that people are pissed off at their
reckless strong-arming of our energy policy and are prepared to take true
action that will cure us of our fossil fuel addiction. We are already capable of doing this
through existing renewable energy technologies and smart energy efficiency
policies
. And if it's jobs you're worried about - research from Cornell shows that the project would
"kill more jobs than it creates by reducing investment in the clean energy economy."
On Sunday thousands of people will convene on Washington
D.C. for the largest climate rally in this nation’s history. I’m going, because this is one of those
moments where we, as everyday citizens, have power. By showing up in massive numbers, the media will take notice
and that will give Obama and the State Department license to reject the
pipeline. This could actually
work, people.
The Sierra Club is arranging for free buses and cars to take
people from all over the country.
You
should consider going. You
won’t be alone.
Here are some tunes that try to put this exciting moment in history into perspective. I imagine masses of people of all ages marching around the White House in slow motion, with no sound, but this music. Then there would be cuts to shots of
tar sands extraction and oil executives watching the protest on the news.
These are two runner's up:
And here are some reliable links that will explain the situation:
Coverage of previous pipeline oil spills:
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