WESTBROOK, Minnesota (STPNS) -- Just the other day President Obama said no to the highly touted Keystone Pipeline.

    This has drawn significant ire from many conservatives on the hill, as well as a number of liberals.

    Webster says, “a keystone is a wedge shaped piece at the crown of an arch that locks the other pieces in place.” I am not quite sure why officials  of the project used that for a name. I suppose it would be because the pipeline would lock the Alberta tar sands to refineries in Texas.



    As most of my friends know I tend to line up as a social liberal, but I also lean towards conservative on fiscal issues.

    While reading various media blogs on the internet, it is really hard to discern whether or not the Keystone Pipeline benefits outweigh the concerns of environmentalists.

    For months we have been told by Keystone supporters that the project will bring thousands of good paying construction  jobs and many long term jobs.

    The problem is proponents of the project are claiming the project will create 20 to 30 thousand jobs over the course of construction and 250,000 jobs over the next 25 years.

    The Obama administration says those figures are highly inflated and that it would only create six or seven thousand jobs for the two years of construction, and far fewer jobs in the long term.

    There is virtually tons of blogs and news reports to be read on the pros and cons of the project.

    From the environmentalists side, they say the pipeline could cause irreparable damage to the environment, possibly polluting major aquifers in Nebraska. They also say the impact of the project in terms of reducing our dependence on foreign oil would be minimal.

    Meanwhile, proponents of the project claim it could have a significant impact on reducing our dependence on foreign oil.

    Obviously politics has a great deal to do with this. I really understand why the conservatives are lining up in favor of this because it tends to look like a win win for the country.

    On the other hand, if the environmental problems touted by the opponents are true, then one also has to weigh that into the equation.

    In the end I find myself leaning more to the right on this issue. I guess only time will tell  on this one. However, I really find it hard to see where this can be a good political strategy for the president.

Have a good week and do good!