The lawsuit by the Bucks County Commissioners against “Big Oil” (“Bucks County sues Exxon Mobil, Chevron, others over climate change,” March 28) is an outrageous waste of taxpayer money and a glaring example of cheap political posturing.
What result did they expect?
Should the fossil fuel industry immediately shut down all their oil and gas wells and close all gas stations? (Will the commissioners walk to work?)
Should the power industry immediately shut down all fossil fuel power plants? (All future commissioners meetings to be held in the daylight?)
Should all those who drive gasoline-powered cars (and this includes the county commissioners) turn in their car keys and ride bikes?
Maybe the commissioners want to have their cake and eat it too: quietly drive their cars, run their heaters and air conditioners, have late night meetings in lighted chambers and, at the same time lay guilt trips on Big Oil?
Cold hard facts show that we developed the highest standard of living in the world using fossil fuels. That we now have to wean ourselves from them as we have recently learned we are hurting ourselves and the environment does not change the past.
All of us, then and now, happily and joyfully participated in the wonderful benefits fossil fuels have given us. Big Oil owes no one any apologies for doing nothing more than what we wanted them to do.
That they are not immediately shutting down all of their operations is a tribute to common sense. Another is realizing the world is simply not set up to suddenly live without fossil fuels. We need those fuels now and we need them in sufficient quantity to help us transition to a new energy world. We are still so dependent on fossil fuels that suddenly eliminating them would create disasters.
My message to the county commissioners is to stop the useless virtue signaling and the wasting of taxpayer money.
If money is available, spend it on putting in charging stations, solar-powered streetlights, EVs for public works employees, etc.
Just don’t try to shut down the gas stations as we need to be able to get to work each day.
W.F. Trainer lives in Washington Crossing.
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