After the modern Republican Party, nothing gets my dander up more than NIMBY's. Now I am not referring to all things here; as even I will agree that a nuclear power plant 30 miles from 12 mm people does not make sense and even I will agree that the environment needs to be looked after. I am an environmentalist. But we need energy and we need economic development. Without either, we do not have employment opportunities for those who need work.
This means we need to drill for energy, not say no to everything as some do. Just make sure they drill cleanly and safely. Responsible drillers do that. If you take the highest royalty check from some no name outfit, you have only yourself to blame for not dealing with a reputable firm.
We need pipelines to transport that energy, not say no to a pipeline that will be underground somewhere near you. Oh boo hoo to the family somewhere in upstate New York where their bucolic horse pasture was going to have a gas pipeline buried underneath it. Move the bloody horses during construction, make them replant grass, and move the horses back and get over it. You are being paid for your trouble.
You can not be against drilling and pipelines and against wind farms on ridges or solar panels in your neighborhood. Some greens are against all of this. What do they want to do? Ride horses and live by candle light at night huddled around a wood fire in the fireplace for warmth in the winter. That economy ceased to exit 100 years ago and there is no going back. If you want that, buy a farm and live however you want to.
Finally, what set this off today. There is a closed golf course in White Plains, NY. Like all Westchester golf courses, it is a lovely natural setting that the local wild life can frolic on. The golf course failed because the economy for golf courses changed and no wanted to buy it as a golf course. The City of White Plains thought about it, but a minority of its citizens golf and there is already a county owned golf course in White Plains, so it was not seen as a pressing need for city expenditure. Particularly, when the French American School of New York wants to buy the land, build their school needs on it and preserve the rest as open space. Now some people want the city to buy the land and build a park. It would be nice to have this as a park, but the City really doesn't have the money to buy the land and the owners would like to get what they can for the land and the FASNY is offering a nice sum for the land.
Yes, fans of this blog, some residents of White Plains do not want the FASNY to get this land and operate their school on this fabulous property for a school. Who in their right mind would not want something like FASNY to take over a vast property and maintain most of it as green space? The alternative is a developer buying it and building estates on 1 to 2 acres. That would add to the property taxes (which every municipality needs), but the green space would be eliminated. These NIMBY's are not being realistic and they should be. We all need to be realistic.
Go FASNY and Boo to the No FASNY sign holders.
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