Sandra Steingraber’s Big Gaffe at You Defend It Debate

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A few days ago we gave you our eyewitness account of a debate between John Holko, president of Lenape Resources and Sandra Steingraber, author, erstwhile biologist and Rachel Carson wannabe (see Fracking Debate at Binghamton U: Holko vs Steingraber). It was a good debate to illustrate the utter lack of credibility and facts used by anti-drillers like Steingraber. In writing up our review, we overlooked perhaps the most outrageous and silly thing Steingraber said Monday night. She was pressing home the point she believes it’s time, right now, for New York to flip the switch and end the use of all fossil fuels (yes, she’s that “out there”). Debate moderator Rob Kilmer was somewhat incredulous and asked her if/how we might accomplish such a feat. She responded there is historical precedence–that at one time in our country’s (evil, vile) history, we could not conceive of a national economy without slave labor–and in the same way we overcame that morally abhorrent practice, we can overcome using fossil fuels today–apparently something equally abhorrent for Steingraber. You read that right–she equated burning fossil fuels for energy (something every single person reading this does, including Steingraber) with the enslavement of Africans in our distant past. How twisted is that?

Our good friend Tom Shepstone from the must-read Natural Gas Now website brings us his view of the debate and recounts Steingraber’s “gilding of the lily” with her slavery comment…

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