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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Down To Earth

“Varieties of death due to solar and wind could well go through the roof”


Coal: It's the safest energy there is.

This is Onion worthy. Did you hear about Peabody Coal's unconscionable new site, Coalcares.org? It's bad. Real bad. They're offering Dora the Explorer and Justin Bieber-branded inhalers to kids living near coal plants.  There's even a "Kidz Koal Korner" with tcartoon characters called "Puff" and "Ash," and they say clean energy will kill you. Why? They want to make kids think asthma is cool because coal pollution causes asthma. I thought it was a spoof site.  

Gotcha!

It's a hoax! The site is a project of the Yes Men. The Coalcares.org domain is registerd to one Harold Schweppes, who also owns theyesmenfixtheworld.com.

Here are some of highlights:

 

  • "At least one thing is clear: although sheer numbers of deaths associated with coal may be larger, the varieties of death due to solar and wind could well go through the roof."
  • "If everyone can collect and distribute energy, there is no guarantee of that energy’s quality. Would you trust your neighbor’s four-year-old child to operate on your kidney -- or even on a potentially malignant skin mole? Surely not."
  • "Every science student has heard of the so-called 'butterfly effect' from aptly-named 'Chaos Theory': namely, that the flapping of a butterfly’s wings in the wilds of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, can set off a massive, community-shattering tornado in Bunker Hill Village, Texas. If, as scientists state, a mere butterfly can cause a tornado so many thousands of miles away, imagine what a hill-full of wind turbines can do."
  • "What do Ludwig von Beethoven, Elizabeth Taylor, Orson Welles, and John F. Kennedy have in common? They all suffered from asthma -- yet were still rich and famous. Conversely, revolutionary Che Guevara and Russian Czar Peter the Great were also noted asthmatics, though it did little to stem their blood lust."


Down To Earth

The DTE blog is committed to reporting and sharing environmental news and sustainability information from across the Inland Northwest.