Letterman passes fracking torch, Colbert blows it up. SB1132 Blogathon gets comic relief!

David Letterman on Fracking:

Ladies and Gentlemen, We're Screwed!

Stephen Colbert, aka The Fracker:

Come on, we're trying to throw a fracking party here, and these people are ruining it with their suffering.

As David Letterman is getting ready to pass the Late Show torch to Stephen Colbert, it's worth noting that when it comes to fracking, it's a hilariously explosive one.

Who could forget Dave's epic rant? I thought it was worth reposting for the occasion of this week's California Fracking Moratorium Blogathon.

He starts in his usual self-deprecating way

Let's talk about fracking. I'm not smart enough to understand it.

Before showing that he knows quite a bit about it.

Here's what I know about fracking:

The greedy oil and gas companies of this country have decided that they can squeeze every last little ounce of oil and gas out of previously pumped wells by injecting the substrata of our planet with highly toxic, carcinogenic chemicals, which then seep into the aquifer and hence into the water supply of Americans.

Then he lists the states where this is happening. If all goes well and we all do our part California will no longer be one of them, and as goes California, so goes the nation.

The Delaware water gap has been ruined, the Hudson Valley has been ruined. Most of Pennsylvania has been ruined. Virginia, West Virginia has been ruined. Colorado has been ruined. New Mexico has been ruined.

I'm no expert on fracking history and regulations, but this sounds like a typical "compromise" working in the extractor's favor.

They're poisoning our drinking water and the EPA said, "You know what? You no longer have to comply with EPA standards for stuff you put into the water." So the greedy oil and gas companies said, "Great, let's go crazy," (Paul Shaffer: "Of course!") and then some states are saying, "No, we have transparency laws, so the oil and gas companies say, "Okay, we'll tell you everything but 2 percent of what we're putting into your tap water."

And that's supposed to make us feel better.

Then of course, the verdict.

Ladies and gentlemen, we're screwed!

Dave's got a personal anecdote to drive home how bad this practice really is.

I've seen people set fire to their tap water. "Can I get you an ice water? Ka-Boom! (Paul Shaffer: "Oh Boy!")

I've seen people set fire to their toilets! (Paul Shaffer: "Haha, that's a different story.")
That was in college, I don't think they still do that.

And then some gallows humor to bring it all home.

So, from now on: Vodka.

Thanks Dave, I'm so glad you're venturing more and more into controversial political territory. Having a child must have had something to do with it.

But wait! It gets better.

A couple months later, Dave's successor at the Late Show grabs the fracking torch and runs it back to the fossil companies.

All the Colbert hilarity you'll need to cheer you up a little bit on a less than funny subject below the toppled orange fracking drill.

But first a message from your most excellent California Fracking Moratorium Blogathon Team. If you haven't yet called one of the lawmakers below to urge them to pass California Senate Bill 1132, pick up the phone now and dial the number. I swear, watching Colbert is even better after having made that call.

California Fracking Moratorium Blogathon May 20-May 23, 2014 Key votes will be held this week on California Senate Bill 1132, which imposes a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking as it commonly known. The fracking process poses many unacceptable public policy risks. These include contaminating water supplies; degrading public health; disproportionately affecting low income families and communities of color; using scarce water supplies in drought-stricken states; causing earthquakes; and harming wildlife and habitat fragmentation. If the bill fails, the legislative process toward moratorium must restart next January. Please join us for a blogathon May 19-23 in a campaign to tell lawmakers to support this bill. This is a coordinated effort with a coalition of more than a dozen NGOs, including Earth Works, Sierra Club, and Center for Race, Poverty and the Environment. And please call key lawmakers, ASAP. Tell them YES on SB 1132! Sen. Darrell Steinberg: (916) 651-4006 Sen. Kevin De Leon: (916) 651-4022 Sen. Ricardo Lara: (916) 651-4033 Sen. Ed Hernandez: (916) 651-4024 Sen. Cathleen Galgiani: (916) 651-4005 Sen. Ben Hueso: (916) 651-4040 Sen. Lou Correa: (916) 651-4034 Sen. Carol Liu: (916) 651-4025 Sen. Richard Roth: (916) 651-4031 Sen. Norma Torres: (916) 651-4032 Please Help Pass a Moratorium on Fracking in California! More details are in this announcement diary by boatsie.

California Fracking Moratorium Blogathon: May 20-May 23, 2014 Diaries Through Today, Wednesday, May 21st. Monday, May 19 5:00 pm: Blogathon announcement diary - CA Fracking Moratorium Blogathon: SB 1132 in Suspense! by boatsie. Tuesday, May 20 1:00 pm:If Texans can't live with fracking, Californians can't either by Txsharon and Jhon Arbelaez. 2:00 pm:SB 1132 Blogathon — Letters, Comments, Talking Points, Environmental Wisdom, and Music by WarrenS. 3:00 pm:Fight Back, Don't Frack! by Senator Holly J. Mitchell (D-Los Angeles/CA). 5:00 pm:A fracking ban might just have to start at home by Daniel Kessler. Wednesday, May 21 1:00 pm:citisven. 3:00 pm:Steve Horn. 5 pm:Environmental Action. Please tweet all diaries posted during the day, adding the hashtag #SB1132. Feel free to link to your Facebook pages, and remember to republish each diary to your DK Groups. You can also follow all postings by clicking this link for the Climate Change SOS Blogathon Group. Then, click 'Follow' and that will make all postings show up in 'My Stream' of your Daily Kos page. Graphic Credit: 350.org.