Our friend Jason Spiess, the publisher of The Crude Life and ESG University put up a wonderful op-ed post regarding farming and mining that deserves to be shared widely, because it is equally applicable to coal mining, uranium mining, and oil and gas development.
I visited a Trona mine in Wyoming about ten years ago. While walking through the parking lot I saw dozens of bumper stickers that were seven words all very descriptive and true(A National Mining Association phrase): “IF IT ISN’T GROWN, IT IS MINED”
Worthwhile writing begging to protect the only way to live rationally - don't ignore the stuff you don't like. I see the easy dismissal of rural America as ad hominem attack on folks who aren't one dimensional stick figures, but fully formed people doing their best and sometimes not best like everyone else. But they always always carry the brunt of responsibility for providing food, power, materials and often finished goods for middle and upper class suburbanites and urbanites who point at them and hiss. Racists! Climate deniers! Xenophobes! Christians (?), Patriarchy! Ugh.
I worked for GM in the 80’s to develop battery powered light trucks. We tried various battery technologies, but got most of work done with lead acid batteries. Turns out there is a lot of lead available in the U.S. At the time, GM research was developing nickel zinc batteries, but we thought it unwise to depend on minerals that were in limited supply from the US(mostly came from SE Asia at the time). How much times have changed!
I visited a Trona mine in Wyoming about ten years ago. While walking through the parking lot I saw dozens of bumper stickers that were seven words all very descriptive and true(A National Mining Association phrase): “IF IT ISN’T GROWN, IT IS MINED”
That sort of smacked me in the face. I need one of those.
Worthwhile writing begging to protect the only way to live rationally - don't ignore the stuff you don't like. I see the easy dismissal of rural America as ad hominem attack on folks who aren't one dimensional stick figures, but fully formed people doing their best and sometimes not best like everyone else. But they always always carry the brunt of responsibility for providing food, power, materials and often finished goods for middle and upper class suburbanites and urbanites who point at them and hiss. Racists! Climate deniers! Xenophobes! Christians (?), Patriarchy! Ugh.
I worked for GM in the 80’s to develop battery powered light trucks. We tried various battery technologies, but got most of work done with lead acid batteries. Turns out there is a lot of lead available in the U.S. At the time, GM research was developing nickel zinc batteries, but we thought it unwise to depend on minerals that were in limited supply from the US(mostly came from SE Asia at the time). How much times have changed!