High Stakes in Niagara Falls

According to the US Air Force (or Chair Force as some of my students that have sold their lives to other branches of the military call them) the proposed windmill project in Lake Ontario is a “high stakes” situation for the military base.

The communities of Somerset and Yates aren't buying into the project either. Sad to say that.

The Air Force is concerned that the windmills will interfere with the flight paths of the C-130s and the killer drones that fly from the base.

According to APEX, the company behind the windmill project, the windmills will be just under 4 miles away from training flight areas. (3.8 miles to be exact.) Also the windmills will be between 495 and 550 feet high. Any aircraft flying in that are are (right now) supposed to be flying over 4000 feet.

So, what's the problem?

Windmills being a little ugly and unsightly? Agreed. They are. And they generate electricity that we won't need to from fossil fuels. Know that global warming situation that keeps coming up in the news? And the refugee crisis that is starting to happen because of global warming and climate change? Earlier adoption of this and solar technology would have slowed that down big time. Who knows. Perhaps the adoption of this technology in the 1960's and 1970's would have been able to stop this crisis from blowing up the way it has.

There's always that NORAD base down in Dansville. I never knew it was there. That makes me feel real safe now. A prime terrorist target is in a small rural community that has next to no major military infrastructure anywhere near it for protection. Niagara Falls is two hours away by car or bus. Much faster by flight except that the Dansville Airport isn't big enough to support C-130s. Chinook helicopters it could handle. But those are slower and carry less than a C-130. And the Syracuse Marine Reserve unit … Reserve says it all. It's not a full blown unit. Neither are the Army – National Guard units in Buffalo and Rochester. And again, they are too far away to be of any use should something happen to the site.

The wars that we are fighting in Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Bahrain, and other oil rich areas for control over their oil and mineral supplies? Yes, blowing 60% of our discretionary spending and numerous other budget bills added on later in the year because we don't have the money to fund the government because we are wasting so much money on unneeded wars… That's making us safe. And more in debt to whoever is willing to buy our debt. Like China. But if foreign nations refused to buy our bonds, then what? There goes out fiscal security.

And then the climate change issue – the hotter summers, lower rainfall amounts (or torrential storms that wash away the topsoil), the wacky winters – and all the chaos that comes from that. We had at least two major frosts in the south towns in May alone. And farmers haven't even had a good chance to do any serious planting. I've already heard some concerns about rain and crop failure this year. (There goes your food bill. And discretionary spending money that is necessary to keep the capitalist economy afloat.)

And then those drones – the Reapers – which rain death from the sky. How soon before some terrorist organization decides to make WNY a target because of the Niagara Falls base? Way too many schools, shopping malls, and other soft targets for any nut job to choose from. (I have a friend that does security analysis. I asked them about WNY. They asked if I had any migraine medication.)

So what are these risks that the Air Force is concerned about?

Training flights or civilian lives?

Seems to me that the planes and flight paths can be adjusted to meet our energy needs.

And the sooner we liberate ourselves from fossil fuels the more safe we will be from the high stakes of terrorist threats and foreign wars.

Seems to me to be an easy decision.