Smarter Than The Average Prof

[Towntalk]

Couldn't agree more my friend ... that is precisely why I do not speak well of folks like Free ... by nature, I'm a sentamental gentle soul that loves little puppies ... and get weapy at sad movies ... but then there is my other side, the side that I turn on when running into insufferable fools and then it can get pretty ugly, (fortunately no one on ths web site falls under that catagory).

Fortunately my "ugly self" prefers to deal with the insufferable souls with overwhelming logic based on well documented evidence that is beyond their capacity to understand.

[Youngstownshrimp]

Rick has again explained a sad issue.
My explanation is basic.  We Americans are spoiled, not rich spoiled, entitled spoiled.  You show me a Fractivist and I will show you an unproductive person, a subsidized person.  Any takers?

[Rick Rowlands]

I have a big problem with many environmentalists because they are so irrational in their beliefs.  They seem to want all of the niceties of living in America without doing what needs to be done to secure those niceties. They think their position is unassailable and are hostile to anyone who challenges them.  On the topic of global warming, their collective decision to say "the debate is over" is a sure fire way to make enemies.  That is not the scientific method.  All science needs is one person to prove the "consensus" wrong.  At one point the "consensus" said the earth was flat. But a very small group of people, lets call them "flat earth deniers", thought it was round.  Of course we know that the small group was right.  But "flat earth deniers" were ostracized and sometimes even put to death because they dared question the "consensus".  So when someone takes such a hard line on a matter pertaining to science it is a huge red flag that it is not science but something else driving the issue.   

On fracking, I notice some of the same type of groupthink going on.  The antifrackers will scream and yell that fracking is bad, but will not debate rationally and are quick to insult and threaten anyone who presents facts and observations that don't support their beliefs.  I recently did some research on fracking fluids which I posted to this forum, and basically concluded that the chemicals in fracking fluids are of such low concentrations as to not be harmful. Now if I showed up at  Frack Free Mahoning Valley meeting with my data do you think they would breathe a collective sigh of relief or would they start insulting me and throw me out of the meeting? 

What also is of concern is that the global warming people think that CO2 is warming the atmosphere, and that CO2 emissions must be drastically curtailed.  But they do not give any alternatives to produce the same amount of power without making CO2.  Well of course windmills and solar panels are trotted out, but they are not capable of producing the amount of energy needed.  But then we found all this natural gas and almost by accident the US CO2 emissions dropped considerably.  So you would think that the environmentalists would be happy that fracking is making it possible to dramatically cut our CO2 emissions, but you would be wrong.  They don't want coal, they don't want oil, they don't want gas, they don't want hydro.  They want NO energy production other than solar and windmills and think that if the US govt. just spent more money on renewable energies that the holy grail will be discovered to power everything with no environmental impact whatsoever. 

As a rational, intelligent thinking person I have to scream when I try to rationalize the often contradictory environmentalist goals.  I look at what they want and the only conclusion that i see is that humans would either have to cease to exist or about 2/3 of the human population would have to die to bring the population down to the level at which their preferred methods of energy production can provide all of their needs. 

So basically if the environmentalists would take "real world" positions they might find that more people would support them.  But you must realize Billy that environmentalism isn't strictly about a better environment, it is a political movement that uses environmental issues as a vehicle to promote their broader political goals. 

IF there is one thing that you should take away from this post is that you should be skeptical about everything, never believe what you see or hear without independently verifying it, and always, ALWAYS question the motives of those who are telling you something.  An the more passionate they are about something, the more you should question it, especially political issues.

[Towntalk]

How so Ron? While we might disagree, it's a civil discussion as opposed to name calling.

Some of the visitors to this site aren't familiar with the folks that engaged in name calling, and hopefully they will not have to experience that.

You, I, Rick, and Sarge see things one way, and others take a different approach, but in the end, we would all enjoy sitting down together over a good hot cup of coffee and a plate of custered filled doughnuts as we contemplate the future of the valley and bemoan the cost of gasolene at the pumps.

[Youngstownshrimp]

This site used to be hijacked by the extreme left, now it is obvious it is more libertarian now.
A lot of fighting resulted in this.

[Billy Mumphrey]

Towntalk: Neat! Thanks!

[Towntalk]

http://reporters.notebook.tripod.com/index.html

Mr. Ryan and I were long time personal personal friends, and I was his unofficial show prep person and supplied him with daily newsletters on current events which he used daily.WKBN gave it their blessing and that blessing extended to Dan Rivers. I gave up the newsletter when my health no longer permitted me to keep crazy hours pouring over hundreds of newspapers and gleaning out topical articles and combining them into a newsletter that averaged 20 pages seven days a week.

The newsletters would be faxed to the station by 4:00 A.M. each day.

[Billy Mumphrey]

Towntalk, what is your web-site? I remember listening to Dan Ryan when he was on WBBW when I was a kid. My dad liked when Dan used to go after all the crooked politicians. My dad used to say "Dan Ryan is the only brave person in Youngstown to call out the crooks!"

[Towntalk]

Glad that you listen to WKBN Billy, and Dan Rivers would certainly welcome calls from you. If you ever visited my web site, you will note that not only is it dedecated to one of WKBN's former talk hosts, Dan Ryan, but WKBN links to the web site.

In doing personal research, I know that you would find the web site very helpful since it is geared for talk show hosts, and does not contain undocumented and questionable info, nor does it cater to any one personal view, so that the user can get both sides of issues in an unbiased way. ... Oh, and it is not a blog where any Tom, Dick or Harry can post personal views.

[Billy Mumphrey]

Thank you Towntalk.  I was born in Youngstown and have finally moved back into the area. Since I spend most of my mornings now listening to Dan Rivers on WKBN I've noticed a somewhat negative attitude towards those opposed to the fracking movement. I have tried to study both sides of the issue, and I get the sense that some of those opposed to fracking are not against jobs, just the current procedures which may cause some environmental problems. I believe both sides have merit but I get upset when I hear and read really negative comments regarding the environmentalists who oppose fracking. I believe they simply want a very safe and clean procedure in place, that's all.

[Towntalk]

Billy, did you even read the article at the heart of this thread? YSU students are simply bringing out the pros of shale exploration, and they are doing it free as opposed to the con groups that charge $50.00 and $100.00 admission charges. More importantly they are education fellow students.

These students realize that as with any industry there are problems ... there isn't an industry on the face of this earth that does not confront problems ... but they also realize that with training ... such as the training they will get at the college level ... many of these problems are mitagated ... and with research such as the research they can get whether at YSU or MIT even better techniques are developed.

YSU is a research university, and a very good one at that, and with our position is the Utica Shale area, it is in the position to do cutting edge research, just as it was at the cutting edgewhen Youngstown was a major steel producing area.

This is also about their future, not the future of the older generation, and they are not going to just sit back and be robbed of that future.

[Billy Mumphrey]

I don't understand.

[Why?Town]

Towntalk, again, I am confused on some of your comments. Are you saying the anti-frackers are wrong on every safety and environmental concern they bring up in regards to fracking?

Billy,

Where do you come up with these "all or nothing" scenarios?

You are beginning to remind me of someone that recently quit posting here. Hmmm...

[Youngstownshrimp]

Slowly but surely, the citizens of the Valley are concluding that the naysayers are comprised mostly of the "taker" class, the non producers of society.  The new generation is beginning to see their future in high tech energy.

[Billy Mumphrey]

Towntalk, again, I am confused on some of your comments. Are you saying the anti-frackers are wrong on every safety and environmental concern they bring up in regards to fracking?