Time to wake up and smell the oil

Oil, oil rules!

I recall hearing our Montana politicians, during their campaign speeches, promise to  make the welfare of Montana and its citizens their No. 1 priority when elected to office.  

I admonish them to examine the front page of the Daily Inter Lake of Thursday, Jan. 22, and find a picture of two senior citizens from Glendive, Montana, loading water into their car because their drinking water supply has been contaminated by a broken pipeline and crude oil spill into the Yellowstone River.  

Sen. Jon Tester, Democrat; Sen. Steve Daines, Republican; and Rep. Ryan Zinke, Republican, have openly supported the Keystone pipeline, which will be another disaster waiting to happen.

In 2011 an Exxon Mobil pipeline break spilled 63,000 gallons of oil into the Yellowstone River killing fish and contaminating miles of the Yellowstone shoreline. I ask the question — who are these politicians really supporting and what are their rewards? They hide behind the story that jobs will be created and energy independence will be enhanced. The jobs created will be temporary and the energy independence can be attained in other ways but the pipeline will be forever.

One of the routes for the proposed pipeline was the Northern Gateway pipeline to Kitimat on the coast of British Columbia. In May of 2013 the government of British Columbia, Canada, formally opposed the plan, largely because of fears of oil spills and damage to the environment. Many of the First Nations people, whose land it would cross opposed it for the same reason. Why should Canada permit a Canadian oil pipeline to be run through the Canadian Rockies and beautiful British Columbia when it can be run the entire width of the U.S. to Texas refineries where the product will be sold to the highest bidder, possibly China and other countries of the world?

 Homo sapiens is one of few animals on the planet that fouls its own nest and environment. As the world population explodes and unnecessary wars continue and huge corporations, oil, munitions and pharmaceuticals, to mention a few, rule our nation and control our politicians, we will continue down the path toward an unhealthy and polluted environment.  

It remains a very sad legacy for our children and future generations. Remember, big companies rule; now watch the digging begin.  Thanks Tester, Daines and Zinke for nothing. —Jerry Reckin, Kalispell