Jon Stewart gives Oklahoma two cheers for embracing science on fracking
Wednesday was Earth Day, and on Thursday's Daily Show, Jon Stewart used the occasion to make fun of Uranus and deconstruct two unrelated stories. The second, about a sometimes creepy NSA recycling campaign, is mostly entertainment, but the first one has some meat. On Tuesday, Oklahoma's state Geological Survey said that pumping oil and gas wastewater into deep underground wells is the cause of the state's sharp rise in earthquakes. The conservative state government signed on to the findings.
"You've accepted scientific evidence?" Stewart asked Oklahoma, rhetorically and with some bemused shock. "That right there is the real earthquake." The Sooner State didn't get Stewart's full three cheers, though, because the very next day the state legislature passed a law barring counties and municipalities from doing anything to limit the drilling that's causing the earthquakes. Oh well, maybe next Earth Day. —Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Fed cuts rates half a point, hinting victory on inflation
Speed Read This is the Fed's first cut in two years
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Lebanon hit again with exploding devices
Speed Read 20 people were killed and over 450 injured after Hezbollah-issued walkie-talkies detonated in second attack attributed to Israel
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Teamsters decline to endorse Trump or Harris
Speed Read The 1.3-million-member labor union broke three decades of precedent by choosing not to endorse a candidate
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homes
Speed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'
Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bid
Speed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Disney and DeSantis reach detente
Speed Read The Florida governor and Disney settle a yearslong litigation over control of the tourism district
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Visa and Mastercard agree to lower swipe fees
Speed Read The companies will cap the fees they charge businesses when customers use their credit cards
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billion
Speed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?
speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Feds cap credit card late fees at $8
speed read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to save households an estimated $10 billion a year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published