Lying to kids about fossil fuels to protect fuel sources

[Political Junky]

McCaffrey: Protecting Wyoming's most valuable resource

What is Wyoming’s most valuable resource? It’s tempting to cite energy: After all, the state is second only to Texas in its total energy production, and first by far in its coal production, outstripping West Virginia by a factor of four. But really Wyoming’s most valuable resource is its children.

About 90,000 of these children attend Wyoming’s public schools. Each of them deserves the chance to become scientifically literate. Despite the efforts of their dedicated science teachers, however, they have not been well served by their state’s science education standards.

These standards provide guidelines about what knowledge and abilities students are supposed to acquire through the course of their science education. Historically, Wyoming’s standards have been less than ideal, receiving the grade of F in national evaluations of the quality of state science standards.
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[Old Rocks]

Given the huge geothermal and lithium source in the brine just discovered in Wyoming, the huge resource in wind energy there, Wyoming should have enough income from these sources in the near future to ensure every student with the capability a first class scientific education. However, Wyoming is a very conservative state, and the new kind of conservative does not like science or education.

 

[Mr. H.]

Why did the Legislature take its hasty decision? Rep. Matt Teeters, R-Lingle, who crafted the footnote to the budget that defunded the standards, acknowledged that he feared that adopting state science standards that &#8220;handle global warming as settled science&#8221; would &#8220;wreck Wyoming&#8217;s economy.&#8221;

It&#8217;s true that the standards incorporate global climate change. Middle schoolers are expected to learn, for example, that &#8220;[h]uman activities, such as the release of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels, are major factors in the current rise in Earth&#8217;s mean surface temperature (global warming).&#8221;

Today's students should be well-versed in the benefits and advantages of hydrocarbons. The world's hydrocarbon society is the only way to ensure continued crop production, a sound manufacturing base, and job creation.