Blogger problems, blogging consequences

By Michael J.W. Stickings

As some of you know, Blogger was down for an extended period of time. Blogs including this one could still be seen, but we couldn't post anything. And, what's more, for some of that time all posts beginning at some point on Wednesday weren't there anymore. They had simply vanished. Thankfully, Blogger finally fixed whatever it was that was ailing the system and restored the posts, which brings us to now, the very-early-morning hours of Saturday.

We haven't had any new content since Thursday, but I assure you we'll be back at it later today. So keep checking back.

Now I'm going to get back to watching Gasland, the outstanding Oscar-nominated documentary about hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," the extraction of natural gas from shale rock deep under the Earth's surface, a process used throughout the United States thanks to Dick Cheney, Halliburton, various other energy companies, and Bush's 2005 Energy Policy Act, legislation formulated largely by the oil and gas industry at Cheney's behest.

These wells are everywhere, it seems, from Wyoming to West Virginia, California to Georgia, contaminating drinking water (which can be flammable!), polluting the environment, uprooting the landscape, and poisoning the people and animals who live near them.

Gasland is enraging and terrifying -- and exceptional. I highly recommend it.

More posts on their way later. Have a good night.