Celebrities Fighting Fracking - Is It Selfish or Selfless?

As John Lennon's son sees his article against fracking published in the New York Times opinion page, an article on Townhall.com calls out celebrities for their selfishness in fighting fracking.

From Lennon's op-ed in the New York Times:
Though my father died when I was 5, I have always felt lucky to live on land he loved dearly; land in an area that is now on the verge of being destroyed. When the gas companies showed up in our backyard, I felt I needed to do some research. I looked into Pennsylvania, where hundreds of families have been left with ruined drinking water, toxic fumes in the air, industrialized landscapes, thousands of trucks and new roads crosshatching the wilderness, and a devastating and irreversible decline in property value.
Natural gas has been sold as clean energy. But when the gas comes from fracturing bedrock with about five million gallons of toxic water per well, the word “clean” takes on a disturbingly Orwellian tone. Don’t be fooled. Fracking for shale gas is in truth dirty energy. It inevitably leaks toxic chemicals into the air and water. Industry studies show that 5 percent of wells can leak immediately, and 60 percent over 30 years. There is no such thing as pipes and concrete that won’t eventually break down. It releases a cocktail of chemicals from a menu of more than 600 toxic substances, climate-changing methane, radium and, of course, uranium.
Read the rest of the article here.

And from Townhall comes the opposing viewpoint:
The usual suspects of concerned celebrities are raising their voices in an attempt to intimidate New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Paul McCartney, Lady Gaga, Alec Baldwin, Jeff Koons, Bonnie Raitt, Liv Tyler and many more say potential harm to the environment is too much to risk. Jeff Koons and Paul McCartney are maybe the richest artist and singer alive, but they couldn't make up one year of economic benefit that this same Marcellus shale formation has delivered in Pennsylvania. 

These celebrities are asking people to give up not only economic security but also the sense of pride that comes from achievement. They get to hole up in private jets, exclusive enclaves, and exotic beaches when they need to find that creative touch. A man in New York shouldn't be denied the ability to provide for his family because of a bogus claim that drinking water will be destroyed. Instead, this caring 1 percentile would rather see a God send go begging. 
Read the rest of that article here.

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