There's just way too much going on to delay this post any longer. My final thoughts on RiverFest 2011 follow in random order:
- I have no regrets about protesting the RiverFest Committee's decision to accept money from Williams and Chesapeake. And as one of their senior members lied to me about whether either of these companies would have a presence at the event, I feel doubly justified.
- The well-intentioned lady with the bullhorn was inappropriately directing comments at the paddlers below as they passed under the bridge. I apologize for that. It was not my doing, I did not support her actions in any way, and I asked her to stop shortly after she began. There is a time and place for everything; but barking at the paddlers passing below for a decision made by others was flat out wrong.
- Thanks to Sue Henry of WILK and Elizabeth Skrapits of The Citizen's Voice for an excellent job of helping me get the word out and reporting on my protest. I really hate being misquoted; so I prefer live ( albeit significantly delayed ) radio, and if every reporter was as diligent about accuracy as Elizabeth, I'd deal with the mainstream media more often. The "other" local paper will never hear from me again, as they published comments and/or positions I never said or took.
- Thanks to the ~40 or so people that joined us during the ~3 hours on the bridge. We definitely had significant media coverage, and the traffic on the bridge that day - with their honks and waves - seemed to be very supportive of our actions and message.
- Equally, with one exception, the reaction from many of the paddlers passing was positive.
- I cannot understand how the Wyoming Valley RiverFest Committee believed that accepting money directly from two of the biggest players in the Marcellus Shale play would pass unnoticed or go uncontested. I hope they not only remember the reaction in 2011, but they recognize what will happen in 2012 if they choose to accept sponsorship $ from NG companies again.
- Thanks to everyone who sent e-mails in support of my request to refund the money donated by Chesapeake and Williams. I stopped forwarding them at some point, as the numbers became overwhelming and I think Mr. Cotrone and others got the message many times over.
- Many thanks to my annual RiverFest paddling partner Mark Cour and his grandson Zach for joining me on my solo, fog-shrouded paddle, our exploration of the now infamous Dinosaur Island, and during the long & hot protest later on the bridge.
- Thanks to the folks who decided not to support RiverFest financially in response, and publicly communicated that decision to the media.
- It's been suggested that I be invited to participate in RiverFest 2012's planning. No need. My only request is that no $ be accepted from any natural gas company and no $ be accepted from any member of the Marcellus Shale Coalition next year. If the decision is otherwise, alea iacta est.
- As I offered all along, I did not intend to interfere with or diminish the RiverFest experience for the folks on the river. I have participated - at many levels - in every RiverFest paddling event except 2005 due to my daughter's graduation. I have nominated the Susquehanna to American Rivers' annual Most Endangered Report several times; attaining the #1 spot in 2005 and again in 2011. Many believe, in whole or in part, that I played a key role in stopping the proposed inflatable dam on the Susquehanna. After all I've done over the past decade ++, to be criticized by many of the folks who are well aware of my commitment to protecting the Susquehanna for my decision to protest accepting money from the company responsible for contaminating the river - and yes, methane bubbling out of the bottom of the river is contamination no matter how you twist or avoid the issue - and dozens of private wells in the watershed upstream was disappointing, at best. However, it has deepened my resolve even further - provided that's even possible.
- With one exception that I'll address below, RiverFest 2011 is now history for me.
In closing, there were numerous comments online and in the mainstream media about my decision to organize a protest at this year's RiverFest. I'd like to respond to one in particular that was brought to my attention:
The Riverfest protest reminds me a lot of those protests at the funerals of our serviceman...
As the son of a front-line Korean War veteran, and son-in-law of a WWII and Korean War veteran, and having posted many times over the years of my respect for their service and the service of others, I was enraged by this attempt to somehow connect and equate my actions to be similar to those low-lifes - and that's how I view them - who choose to protest at the funerals of men and women who served our country.
The comment was ill-advised and about as low as it gets. However, in considering the source, I decided to let it pass - for now. As I stated earlier in this post, there is a time and a place for everything.
I will choose both.
