Rally for the coal industry: keep the lights on

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The first coal rally was held on Oct. 23 at the Carbon County fairgrounds. An estimated 4,500 people attended the event.
Chad Booth was the announcer for the event. Free food was given to all in attendance and games and activities were held for the kids including a spook alley. Many volunteers worked to put on the event.
Booth said everyone showing up at the rally was good and it will help bring people over to our side. He said Commissioner James Nelson from Emery County reminded him behind every light switch is a coal miner. He encouraged everyone to learn as much as they could so when people ask questions or present the coal industry negatively, you can challenge them with confidence. Booth said young people in particular need to be educated because in college all they hear is the negative about fossil fuels.
Conditions have improved so dramatically from the time everyone burned wood for fuel. Air pollution is way below what it was in the old days. Kids need to hear and learn the truth.
A video from Fox News was shown that reported the United States is importing more coal than it is exporting. With the higher costs to coal producers and all of the regulations, it’s cheaper to bring coal into the United States from other countries than to mine it here. The United States is pricing itself out of our own coal market. Russian coal is coming into New Hampshire. All the regulations and the costs leave the coal industry vulnerable. The pollution will be the same if the coal being burned is from Columbia or from America.
The guest speaker was Alex Epstein he is an innovator and champion of coal. He has written two books on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels improve the planet and the Moral Case for fossil fuels.
Epstein showed a video of himself at a rally in New York opposing fossil fuels. He was there to tell them the benefits of fossil fuel use. He was on the street at the fossil fuel march with his shirt on that says, “I love fossil fuels.” He told marchers how everything they have is from fossil fuels. “Your clothes were made from fracking,” he said.
Epstein thinks education is the key. People are ignorant to the benefits of using fossil fuels. “I live in Southern California. It’s not a coal hot bed. I always wear my I love fossil fuels shirt.”
“A girl from Green Peace came up to me in California. I told her fossil fuels are great and we should be using more of them. How was she going to respond to that? She though I was being paid off to stick up for fossil fuels. She said Germany is using all solar and wind. I told her no that Germany is building 12 new coal fired power plants. They can’t rely on solar and wind alone. She looked at me and said, “You must make a lot of money.” She thought I was getting rich. What does that say about the industry. It’s viewed as evil.”
We need to understand why people think that way. “Why are we allowing government to attack and destroy the industry of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels is a good solution to our problems. It’s a problem that’s only been solved in the last 200-300 years. What is it? We’re weak. Human beings are weak. I’m 34 years old. I likely wouldn’t have still been alive 200 years ago. I would be old. Human beings are weak, we have about as much energy as a 100 watt light bulb. We use our muscles, but we can’t do very much. With machines we are powerful. Machines use energy, like our bodies use calories. Machines do our work for us. They are our servants. Having machines work for you, is like having 186 people working for you. That is if they have power. It’s important to understand the machines only work if they have power. (gas, diesel, electricity, natural gas, etc.) Without power they die. In the 19th century, they used different sources of energy. They tried wind technology. But, it’s not consistent energy.
Epstein quoted a passage from a book that states how much better we are with coal, and this was written a long time ago. Coal stands above all other commodities. It’s a factor in all we do. They are finding new applications for coal all the time. We are better with coal than we would be without. Without coal, factories would be idle, machines would be worthless. We would miss coal as we would a limb. Every hour and every turn would remind you of the loss. That’s what would happen if coal dies. We need to do CPR on coal. It’s a life and death situation. If you can’t afford energy, you can’t have it.
Epstein told of a hospital in Africa that lost a full term baby, because they didn’t have the electricity for the sonnogram machine. They didn’t have the electricity for an incubator. Without energy, without electricity, many lives are lost. The staff members at that hospital, said in the forefront of their thoughts always is what things would be like with a reliable energy source. “I wish that Congress and Pres. Obama always had in the forefront of their thoughts a reliable energy source.
“Wind is not reliable. Most of the time it doesn’t work. As we traveled down here today, we passed these windmills. They weren’t working. They weren’t creating energy, they were just weird. They’re made with toxic substances. What would happen if Congress or Pres. Obama passed by them. They would say they were great. They would probably wait until the wind was blowing to drive by. Then we drove by a coal plant. It was working. It works 100 percent of the time. What was coming out of that plant? If you asked anyone that didn’t live around here, they would say pollution. But, it’s vapor, steam vapor. What have we come to. Wind is an unreliable employee. The air here is good. People have the image that coal is dirty. How have we come to the point that what’s good is labeled bad and what’s bad is labeled good. It’s ignorance. Ignorance can be cured. People think coal is a villain. Most people hear a coal plant is shutting down and they think it’s good. It’s their perspective, it’s the way they’ve been taught to think about it. They are deceiving everyone.
“President Bush once said we’re addicted to oil. How does addiction work. We might be doing something harmful that will affect us down the road.
They use three untruths to propagate why we shouldn’t use fossil fuels. Number one-Climate change, It might be OK, now, but in the future, we’re ruining the planet. Second-fossil fuels pollute and third-we’ll run out, resources will deplete. Every kid is exposed to those ideas. “We need to change the idea that it’s an addiction.” Pollution from the coal plants is very minimal, sources are plentiful, we aren’t going to run out of fossil fuels. The climate is always changing and has since its beginning.
“The coal industry is not clear on this. When they argue about coal, they argue about the jobs, That’s not a good argument. Does that mean we should keep the heroin industry going because it provides jobs. If people think something is destructive they aren’t going to support it. The coal industry isn’t destructive. It’s good and clean and healthy. It’s why we’re here. It’s a good choice a healthy choice. It’s not an addiction,” said Epstein.
Epstein said warmer homes, clean water, everything that energy does increases the health and life expectancy of the people. In countries without energy, life is tough. Think about what happens when the electricity goes out for even a short period of time.
Everything shuts down. No one can get their work done. America needs a reliable energy source and coal and fossil fuels provide that. It’s affordable. People need to believe that coal is a healthy choice.
You can’t allow someone else to define your industry as negative. Coal is amazingly good. Never allow someone else to define you. Someone who looks at the worst quality of the industry. Coal is good for life overall. It’s a healthy choice. Just like eating healthy food is a good choice. Coal is amazingly beneficial. Never feel guilty or reluctant to stick up for it. Coal has outperformed everything else. I believe in using the best option available. That’s why I have an I-phone, I think it’s best. So if the choice is between an I-phone and two cups and a string? Why not use what’s best. Why use something unreliable. Wind is the worse technology, why be proud of that. Be proud of the amazing technology that modern coal is. People are taught to think of it in the wrong way. We need to change the way we think and not be defined by negative. What the coal industry does is amazing. People need to know the facts.
Epstein told of a heckler at one of his lectures in 2009 and now the heckler has asked him for a copy of his latest book. He understands now and wants to share what he knows with others. Evidence shows in nations where fossil fuels are used, life expectancy goes up and infant mortality goes down, gross national product goes up.
New coal technologies are being introduced all the time to make it more useful. More efficient ways of fracking are being introduced. Technologies to take the heat out of the coal without igniting it are being explored. “I went to Duke University and I didn’t learn this at school. I learned this after college. The solution is to educate people with the whole truth. Learn it and teach it to other people,” said Epstein.
Epstein also wrote a letter he is sending to members of Congress with a piece of coal and a message.
Coal is the cheapest and most reliable energy source. Coal doesn’t let people down.
Epstein said if you text the word power to his phone number he will send you all the information he presented and more. The number is 949-421-8867. His email contact is alex@alexepstein.com
Senator David Hinkins and other rural representatives voiced their support of coal and the coal rally event.