The End

After 6 years of political calculation, Gov Coumo ruled that domestic energy production through hydraulic fracturing wasn't happening in New York State.

Funnily, the guy in charge of the ultimate decision summarized his conclusion by saying 'would I feel safe having my children living close to a well? I certainly would not'.  I guess extending that logic to a simple end and we would need to close landfills, airports, shopping malls, highways, salt mines, prisons, army bases, town highway department, oil wells, mobile home park, train tracks and the million other places one wouldn't want to raise a child that make modern life possible.

NY Times Joe Nocera's Critique of NY.

This brings to a conclusion a friend versus friend, neighbor vs neighbor debate that started slowly in 2008 and metamorphisized into one of the more energized and ultimately successful grass roots movements ever seen, reminiscent in local impact as to gandhi's India and MLK's civil rights were globally.

And it started here, in Sullivan County (SuCo), with bent teeth land men going door to door, signing leases and scaring the bejesus out of just about everyone.

The debate also monopolized all elections, conversations, dinner parties, newspapers and social media.  For a guy in my business of selling bucolic ruralness, it permeated every waking thought I had for years in terms of how to react and strategize about what could be literally a landscape changing development (good pun, right?)

I feel a little funny as I make an extra $1500 a week due to low energy prices - a result of the rest of the country's participation to the decades old dream of energy independence - but I'm certainly glad it's over and we now have resolution.  The uncertainty was hard to deal with, personally and professionally.

I also pray that all the lives of the fractivists still have meaning now that this all-consuming exercise of nimbyism is over.

Lord knows there isn't a person or family - poor rich black white young old - who isn't benefiting from the new world order provided by shale oil and gas.

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