It feels to me like we’re getting close to
the endgame on Keystone XL.
Last week the Canadian government sent a
letter to President Obama offering vague promises of reducing carbon emissions
from the tar sands in return for the right to build the pipeline. Scientists and
energy analysts quickly pointed out that this was nonsense -- it’s as if you
were to begin your diet with two dozen jelly doughnuts, or plan to quit smoking
by buying another carton or two of cigarettes.
I think this means the Canadians are
getting a little desperate. They know the tide has turned against this pipeline
in the U.S.
We only arrived at this point because of the
heroic work you've put in -- a point that is made quite well by this video that
I hope you’ll share around. It shows the beautiful work everyone has
done for the past two years, and it's an excellent energizer for this critical
stage of the fight:
Bill McKibben: On Sept. 21st, Draw the Line on Keystone XL
An article in The New Yorker magazine this
week called the fight over Keystone XL “the most prominent environmental cause
in America.” The article also pointed out that now there are TV ads airing
around the country telling the truth: that this is an export pipeline that will
threaten every town it passes with ugly spills.
Just two years ago everyone told us this
was a done deal. Now we’ve clearly got a chance.
The Canadian government is going all-out right
now, and we need to do so as well. September 21st is the day -- that's when we
will Draw the Line to oppose the pipeline and the tar sands it would
carry. The President has made his promises, and now he needs to keep
them. That means stopping the pipeline, and stopping it now.
Click here to find an event near you to Draw
the Line on Keystone XL: act.350.org/event/draw_the_line/search/
Extra innings, overtime, at the buzzer: pick
your sports cliché, but now’s the moment. Stopping Keystone XL won’t
stop global warming -- but it would keep a huge pool of carbon in the ground,
and perhaps begin to turn the tide against the relentless greed of the fossil
fuel industry. That would be a big deal indeed.
With fingers crossed, and fist
clenched,
Bill McKibben
P.S. Here's a link to that New Yorker
article, it's quite good: www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/09/16/130916fa_fact_lizza
Sources:
"Canada Offers a Worthless Bargaining Chip
in the Fight Over Keystone XL" The New Republic, Sept. 9 2013
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