Now that the Oscars are over, Hollywood is turning its attention to the controversial Keystone XL pipeline.
A slate of actors and musicians, including Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, Robert Redford, Willie Nelson, and Neil Young called on President Obama on Tuesday to put an end to the oil-sands project once and for all, according to
“Rejecting Keystone XL is the kind of the principled choice leaders need to make. There is no way to reconcile this pipeline with a serious climate policy,” the high-profile activists wrote in a letter to the White House signed by more than 100 environmentalists, elected officials, and progressive leaders.
The cadre of celebrities has a history of opposing the pipeline. But the latest Hollywood push arrives ahead of an expected presidential veto of legislation approved by the GOP Congress to build Keystone XL, a pipeline that would haul crude oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast.
Obama’s veto could land as early as Tuesday, after Republicans send the bill to the White House.
Here’s a little short and sweet. The link here is to a cut-down version of a film produced by Lawrence Carota through the NFB (National Film Board of Canada). It speaks to many of the issues under discussion here. It’s not easy to digest but it is right on the money:
Crude Sacrifice
I keep looking for indie films that shed a good light on the tar pit. Something produced by someone other that CAPP (Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers) or the Big Oil companies directly. So far it’s been very hard to find anything from independent sources. And the stuff produced by CAPP and Big Oil reminds me too much of the crap the tobacco industry spin machine flooded onto the marketplace when they were trying to convince us that smoking was a good thing.
Crude Sacrifice is the title of the film.
Onward The Passenger
More videos about this subect:
To the Last Drop: Canada’s Dirty Oil Sands
Residents of one Canadian town are engaged in a David and Goliath-style battle over the dirtiest oil project ever known.
– Part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61X4IQqnmd0
Once pristine wilderness, Alberta is now a world of poisoned water, polluted air, and rare cancer. VICE travels to the oil sands of Canada to investigate the impact of digging for this previously unobtainable oil.
This is from CBC.ca, an exclusive interview Jian Ghomeshi does with Neil before the latest Massey Hall show. Neil Young talks about his Honour the Treaties tour — a series of benefit concerts raising money to fight an expansion project at the oilsands in northern Alberta. Neil talks about the First Nations, the oil sands in Fort McMurray, being political as a musician, freedom of speech…
Short clip:
Audio of the full interview (aired on CBC TV this Wednesday):
I was amazed to find that Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada, my home country, has his head stuck in the tar sands of Alberta and has forgotten about his responsibilities to Canadians. Trans Canada, a company he backs, is actively pursuing the goal of crossing the United States with the Keystone Pipeline, a money maker for a chosen few that will cause incredible environmental damage. If it goes through it will be the shame of Canada, an environmental disaster that could have been stopped by responsibility and wisdom. It will not benefit America with energy or new jobs. The oil is for China and the world market, not the USA. With only 35 permanent jobs the added US employment is so small as to not even count.
In light of the United Nations concluding that Climate Change is definitely a result of man’s activities, I think it’s a good idea to learn as much as I can about it. One thing I did was visit http://www.keystonetruth.com/ to learn about the Keystone Pipeline and its direct relationship to Climate change. It’s very informative. If you are on the edge and might want to know more, then it’s a great place to go.
“I come down from the misty mountain I got lost on the human highway. ” by -- Neil Young
Neil Young on Tour
Sugar Mountain setlists
Tom Hambleton provides BNB with setlists, thankfully. His website is the most comprehensive searchable archives on the Internets about anything Neil Young related setlists. Goto Sugar Mountain.