Many Americans are not enthusiastic about drilling in rural areas like the Rocky Mountain Front (“The Rocky Mountain Front blues,” HCN, 6/24/13). Unfortunately, we are also not happy with the cost of energy and our dependence on politically unstable areas such as the Middle East. We want solar power and wind generators, but those also have impacts on threatened and endangered species in the “worthless” desert, and cannot provide the constant supply of power our culture demands. Sorry, gang: You cannot have it all. There are just too many of us with too many demands for power and other natural resources. The only solution for these issues is fewer people, and that ain’t gonna happen.
William Phillips
San Diego, California
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline You can’t have your gas and burn it, too.
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