Politics And Current Events

[columbia]

http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/0 ... cart_river

[columbia]

Pro-Hassan Rouhani Iranian editor defects while covering nuclear talks in Lausanne
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... sanne.html

[PFiDC]

Pro-Hassan Rouhani Iranian editor defects while covering nuclear talks in Lausanne
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... sanne.html

Read that this morning. What he's saying doesn't surprise me.

[Factorial]

I don't know if I buy that fracking is dangerous, but this is interesting.
http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania ... -drilling/

Two retirees from the Pennsylvania Department of Health say its employees were silenced on the issue of Marcellus Shale drilling.

One veteran employee says she was instructed not to return phone calls from residents who expressed health concerns about natural gas development.

“We were absolutely not allowed to talk to them,” said Tammi Stuck, who worked as a community health nurse in Fayette County for nearly 36 years.

True story: I delivered public comment recently before the MD judiciary subcommittee on a bill which would de facto ban drilling in the state, after having sat through an hour or so of "anti" comments questioning the safety of drilling, most of which was hyperbolic and horribly misinformed... I opened with, "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your time. My name is so-and-so, I am an operations manager for XYZ O&G services company, I am regularly on drilling locations, pads that are being 'fracked', etc., and based on what I've been hearing today, I guess I should be dead or dying!"

Got a hearty chuckle out of the pros, and a lot of awkward stares from the antis.

I'm neutral on the idea of fracking but is your position that there is no cause for concern at all? To workers, the water supply, the reports of earthquakes, etc? Or that safety procedures are in place that mitigate any cause for concern?

[Factorial]

Is the German plane disaster an act of terror? Why or why not?

No, it was suicide/mass murder without a political statement being made.

[PFiDC]

Is the German plane disaster an act of terror? Why or why not?

No, it was suicide/mass murder without a political statement being made.

So terrorism must include a political agenda?

[AuthorTony]

Is the German plane disaster an act of terror? Why or why not?

No, it was suicide/mass murder without a political statement being made.

So terrorism must include a political agenda?

I think it needs to have some sort of agenda, whether it be political, social, etc. Without a "cause", it's murder. I mean, was Son of Sam a terrorist or a serial killer? He certainly created terror, but there was no political or social cause behind it. Same with the Columbine killers. Were they terrorists? I don't think so.

[Craig]

When the entire operation behind the crime is eliminated as part of the act, i dont see how it could be terrorism.

[PFiDC]

For the record I think I agree with all of the above. I'm just interested in what others think as well.

[tifosi77]

Terrorism is violence as a mean to an end. Germanwings was an end unto itself.

[count2infinity]

I think terrorism definitely includes a bit of "do what we want, or else" behind it. From what I've read on this (not much) seems like straight up suicide and taking some people with him.

[PFiDC]

Any truth to the rumor that he was a white supremacist and had a manifesto?

[AuthorTony]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/pos ... omination/

Carly Fiorina, a former Hewlett-Packard chief executive, said her chances of running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 are “very high.”

Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” the 2010 California gubernatorial candidate said she is “higher than 90 percent” likely to enter the race, with an announcement coming in late April or early May.

[Freddy Rumsen]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/pos ... omination/

Carly Fiorina, a former Hewlett-Packard chief executive, said her chances of running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 are “very high.”

Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” the 2010 California gubernatorial candidate said she is “higher than 90 percent” likely to enter the race, with an announcement coming in late April or early May.

Regardless of her HP work, her back story is fairly interesting and her speech at CPAC was surprisingly good.

(Not that I would vote for her)

[tifosi77]

Fiorina often appears on lists with names like 'worst executive in U.S. history'. HP lost 50% of its share value on her watch.

[Guinness]

True story: I delivered public comment recently before the MD judiciary subcommittee on a bill which would de facto ban drilling in the state, after having sat through an hour or so of "anti" comments questioning the safety of drilling, most of which was hyperbolic and horribly misinformed... I opened with, "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your time. My name is so-and-so, I am an operations manager for XYZ O&G services company, I am regularly on drilling locations, pads that are being 'fracked', etc., and based on what I've been hearing today, I guess I should be dead or dying!"

Got a hearty chuckle out of the pros, and a lot of awkward stares from the antis.

I'm neutral on the idea of fracking but is your position that there is no cause for concern at all? To workers, the water supply, the reports of earthquakes, etc? Or that safety procedures are in place that mitigate any cause for concern?

No, that's not my position.

Any extraction of a natural resource is going to come with some measure of risk, and with risk we're rightly concerned. There are indeed many HS&E policies in place that are mandated and, with many credible operators, above and beyond what is mandated.

One minor example: I did a preliminary medical eval for a respirator fit test yesterday because an operator we're going to work for this week is drilling in Ohio, where there is a minimal chance that during the drilling process, hydrogen sulfide might be released from certain rock strata. You can't get on their location without it, and you must be clean shaven.

In terms of the water supply, I would say that drilling is less risky than even today's typical coal mining operations. Heck, I'd say that the average drilling pad of a responsible operator is less of an impact on clean water than the average strip mall parking lot. These pads are constructed with multiple layers of safeguards to prevent spills from impacting even ground water runoff. CNX has drilled dozens of wells within a few hundred feet of the Beaver Run reservoir in Westmoreland County quite safely.

In terms of the actual drilling process' impact on the ground water supply, there are numerous safeguards in place - all drilling down past the water table is done on "air", which is to say that no fluids of any kind are pumped down hole. Compressed air is used to make way for the bit, and return the cuttings to the surface. if the well is not making water, it is sometimes misted into the returns near the surface to keep them from billowing and spreading across the countryside. Once past the water table, frequently a biodegradable "soap" is used for viscosity. Throughout this phase of the drilling process, multiple, redundant layers of steel and concrete protect the surrounding earth from the wellbore, ranging in diameter from 30" to 9.5". These encased runs of steel casing are pressure tested after each section of drilling is completed, to ensure their integrity. Once the vertical section of the well is drilled, typically in a Marcellus well to about 7,500 LF, they often will switch to an oil based drilling fluid for the curve and lateral (note that the water table and the vast majority of private water wells are no deeper than 1,200 LF deep in extreme cases). the curve and lateral sections of the well are also sealed in steel and concrete.

During the "fracking" process, which occurs along the lateral sections of wells at a vertical depth ranging from 7,500 - 10,000 LF (and a total depth ranging from 8,000 to 22,000 LF), water, sand and a mixture of chemicals which can include substances such as sulfuric acid and some other nasty stuff, is pumped into fractures caused by an electric shot fired through the casing and into the surrounding rock. As a percent of solution, those chemicals are typically under 1% of the injection. The wellbore is, naturally, the path of least resistance along which any fluids and/or gases travel (obviously, or what would be the point). Thus the fear of "migration", especially at the depths we're considering (from 7,500' to 1,200'), is minimal.

"Fracking", to my knowledge and experience, has never been associated with any noteworthy seismic activity. "Injection wells", which are not unique to the horizontal drilling process, have anecdotally been implicated in minor events. In my opinion, injection wells (basically the process of drilling a deep vertical well with the intention of discarding contaminated water), are a very bad idea and a poor practice which should be discarded.

Residents of western Pennsylvania will remember a time when many of the surrounding streams and creeks would run yellow due to acid mine drainage. I bid numerous AMD abatement projects in my former role as an excavation project manager. Though there is always the risk of accidents and/or negligence on the part of some, I'm confident that the procedures the majority of E&Ps implement will result in a far, far less impactful natural resource extraction that is to the benefit of local residents, farmers, landowners, the unemployed and the population in general.

[columbia]

For the libertarian lonely hearts....

http://thelibertarianrepublic.com/7-rea ... rlfriends/

[Freddy Rumsen]

Oops

[columbia]

Further proof that those BLS stats are forged.
#EPP

[Sam's Drunk Dog]

Can someone explain how Indiana's law differs from the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993?

[columbia]

In general, it's just as terrible.

[Sam's Drunk Dog]

I guess times change, because it was introduced by a Democrat, it was passed almost unanimously by congress, and signed by Bill Clinton.

[columbia]

Yes, thankfully, times have changed...for some.

[Factorial]

True story: I delivered public comment recently before the MD judiciary subcommittee on a bill which would de facto ban drilling in the state, after having sat through an hour or so of "anti" comments questioning the safety of drilling, most of which was hyperbolic and horribly misinformed... I opened with, "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your time. My name is so-and-so, I am an operations manager for XYZ O&G services company, I am regularly on drilling locations, pads that are being 'fracked', etc., and based on what I've been hearing today, I guess I should be dead or dying!"

Got a hearty chuckle out of the pros, and a lot of awkward stares from the antis.

I'm neutral on the idea of fracking but is your position that there is no cause for concern at all? To workers, the water supply, the reports of earthquakes, etc? Or that safety procedures are in place that mitigate any cause for concern?

No, that's not my position.

Any extraction of a natural resource is going to come with some measure of risk, and with risk we're rightly concerned. There are indeed many HS&E policies in place that are mandated and, with many credible operators, above and beyond what is mandated.

One minor example: I did a preliminary medical eval for a respirator fit test yesterday because an operator we're going to work for this week is drilling in Ohio, where there is a minimal chance that during the drilling process, hydrogen sulfide might be released from certain rock strata. You can't get on their location without it, and you must be clean shaven.

In terms of the water supply, I would say that drilling is less risky than even today's typical coal mining operations. Heck, I'd say that the average drilling pad of a responsible operator is less of an impact on clean water than the average strip mall parking lot. These pads are constructed with multiple layers of safeguards to prevent spills from impacting even ground water runoff. CNX has drilled dozens of wells within a few hundred feet of the Beaver Run reservoir in Westmoreland County quite safely.

In terms of the actual drilling process' impact on the ground water supply, there are numerous safeguards in place - all drilling down past the water table is done on "air", which is to say that no fluids of any kind are pumped down hole. Compressed air is used to make way for the bit, and return the cuttings to the surface. if the well is not making water, it is sometimes misted into the returns near the surface to keep them from billowing and spreading across the countryside. Once past the water table, frequently a biodegradable "soap" is used for viscosity. Throughout this phase of the drilling process, multiple, redundant layers of steel and concrete protect the surrounding earth from the wellbore, ranging in diameter from 30" to 9.5". These encased runs of steel casing are pressure tested after each section of drilling is completed, to ensure their integrity. Once the vertical section of the well is drilled, typically in a Marcellus well to about 7,500 LF, they often will switch to an oil based drilling fluid for the curve and lateral (note that the water table and the vast majority of private water wells are no deeper than 1,200 LF deep in extreme cases). the curve and lateral sections of the well are also sealed in steel and concrete.

During the "fracking" process, which occurs along the lateral sections of wells at a vertical depth ranging from 7,500 - 10,000 LF (and a total depth ranging from 8,000 to 22,000 LF), water, sand and a mixture of chemicals which can include substances such as sulfuric acid and some other nasty stuff, is pumped into fractures caused by an electric shot fired through the casing and into the surrounding rock. As a percent of solution, those chemicals are typically under 1% of the injection. The wellbore is, naturally, the path of least resistance along which any fluids and/or gases travel (obviously, or what would be the point). Thus the fear of "migration", especially at the depths we're considering (from 7,500' to 1,200'), is minimal.

"Fracking", to my knowledge and experience, has never been associated with any noteworthy seismic activity. "Injection wells", which are not unique to the horizontal drilling process, have anecdotally been implicated in minor events. In my opinion, injection wells (basically the process of drilling a deep vertical well with the intention of discarding contaminated water), are a very bad idea and a poor practice which should be discarded.

Residents of western Pennsylvania will remember a time when many of the surrounding streams and creeks would run yellow due to acid mine drainage. I bid numerous AMD abatement projects in my former role as an excavation project manager. Though there is always the risk of accidents and/or negligence on the part of some, I'm confident that the procedures the majority of E&Ps implement will result in a far, far less impactful natural resource extraction that is to the benefit of local residents, farmers, landowners, the unemployed and the population in general.

I never doubted that it is "to the benefit of local residents, farmers, landowners, the unemployed and the population in general." and I hope it is done in a responsible, safe manner.

[Factorial]

Yes, thankfully, times have changed...for some.

Thankfully, the Democrats are not afraid to oppose this garbage now.