Ernie Goss Spreads Tarsands Fairy Dust

The economic data Ernie Goss used for his joke of a report comes directly from TransCanada. Clearly, TransCanada is shaking in their boots thinking they are about to get denied a second time on this risky pipeline or they would not keep spending millions in TV and newspaper ads as well as paying for headlines with phony reports.

I am actually shocked TransCanada keeps trying to use the numbers that have widely been slammed down by journalists, experts and universities.

• Politifact called TransCanada's economic numbers "false."
• Washington Post gave TransCanada's economic numbers "two Pinocchios."
• Media Matters broke down how Fox News, Members of Congress (R/D-Big Oil) and other industry allies keep inflating the numbers every time they open their mouth.
• Cornell University tore the TransCanada numbers apart back in 2011.
• Council on Foreign Relations called the economic numbers "dead wrong."
• University of Nebraska asks key questions in a paper they issued on the economic numbers.

And yet, here we go again.

Now it's Ernie Goss (using his title at Creighton University but we are pretty sure he got paid as a private contractor) spreading his fairy Tarsands dust hoping this time we believe the ridiculously false numbers.

I'm sure at very least Consumer Energy Alliance is hoping it can get some headlines which in turn TransCanada and the other front group Nebraskans for Jobs and Energy Independence will use in more mailings and TV ads to try and sell us on the "benefits."

We hope the US State Department conducts an accurate economic analysis on the risks and benefits in their new EIS report.

As Nebraskans we can just look at TransCanada's first pipeline already in the ground and ask if over 4,000 people were employed and if we got $1.8 billion in economic activity.

Spoiler alert, we didn't.

In fact, even the local property taxes TransCanada promised to counties came up short. Real short. Instead of the $5 million promised it was more like $2.3 million. TransCanada is now promising the tax bill will be over $12 million.

TransCanada has the same 30 or so employees in Omaha they did before this proposal of a project and they have a few now in Norfolk to keep up appearances. Really, all that does is give landowners an easy place to show their disapproval of a project that risks more to our economy than any report can promise will benefit our state and our family farms and ranches.