I mean, why not? There's a long American tradition of ignoring treaties with the tribes. But this time it's playing out differently: Federal Judge sides with Osage Nation, Orders removal of 84 Wind Turbines:
The Osage Nation won a massive ruling in Tulsa federal court on Wednesday that requires Enel to dismantle a 150-megawatt wind project it built in Osage County despite the tribe’s repeated objections. The tribe’s fight against Rome-based Enel began in 2011 and is the longest-running legal battle over wind energy in American history.
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The decision by U.S. Court of International Trade Judge Jennifer Choe-Graves is the culmination of 12 years of litigation that pitted the tribe and federal authorities against Enel. During the construction of the project, the company illegally mined rock owned by the tribe, and it continued to do so even after being ordered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to stop. Instead of halting work, the company sped up construction. Enel must now remove the 84 turbines that it built on 8,400 acres of the Tallgrass Prairie located between Pawhuska and Fairfax. Removing the turbines will cost Enel some $300 million.
As you might expect, the Oklahoma State courts were corrupt - with the Chief Justice of the OK Supremes benefiting from the project. But the Federales were different, and ruled for the indians. It looks like there's very little chance of an appeal, as the US Supremes ruled on a very similar case in the not so distant past.
And this bit is spot on:
By thrashing Enel in court, the Osage tribe not only stands to collect millions of dollars in damages and the removal of the loathsome turbines, it also has handed Big Wind the biggest public relations debacle in its history. It’s not just that the wind industry lost; it lost to a Native American tribe. That’s a particularly bad look when it comes to the branding of wind energy as “clean,” “green,” “sustainable,” and, of course, “renewable.”
Chalk one up for the good guys.
11 comments:
no more of those eagle killing machines
Wind turbines are an environmental disaster and a corrupt taxpayer funded form of corporate welfare. Maybe this is the beggining of the end. Then on the other hand, the whole country is built on former Native American land and given the current state of affairs can be seen as a huge environmental disater and corrupt corporate welfare scheme.
About damned time!!!
Good to read.
Sometimes the good guys win. Environmentalism is a grift and a religion for stupid people.
I'm with Glen. Score one for the good guys, and a pox on the grifting judiciary that forced the fed to do something right (who'd ah thunk?). And based on the age of the turbines I'd bet the blades are of the non-recyclable variety.
Wanna bet how much this is covered in the MSM?
And will they even comply with the ruling? Note how well Slow Joe is obeying the Supremes over college loans!
This will probably be appealled, but I think that it is a good decision in itself, and may have a wider application in a future 14th Amendment / birthright citizenship case.
The 14th was passed in the late 1860s, but American Indians were not granted US Citizenship until 1924, with the Indian Citizenship Act. Before that, though they were born here, they were not US Citizens, but instead were citizens of their tribes, which they still are, in a form of dual citizenship.
It really does make you laugh but 12 years in the courts? That's a crime. I used to think Steyn's case was a one-off but all I see these days is one huge corrupt justice system hellbent on destroying those not in favor with the ruling class. Imagine that, me turning into Eugene Debs at my age...
Now try and convince me of all the wonderful things that the McGirt decision has done.
At the end of the day, it's going to take a moonless night and perhaps a man or two in a jeep driving from tower to tower with some beehive explosives to bring the damned things down because I'm sure the company will continue to litigate this until they have amortized the cost of the things and at that point they'll just walk away because just who is going to make them pay up and comply with the order of the court?
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