Opinion

My name is Monty Stanley. Keith Snow worked for my companies for approximately 20 years. He managed day to day operations, for our disposal company. Keith had responsibilities of dealing with public officials on a ongoing basis. He also worked for one our other companies doing highway construction. I would like to formally endorse Keith Snow for mayor of Hollister. I feel he would be a great asset to the community due to the fact that above all, he is a VERY HONEST INDIVIDUAL. You could trust Keith Snow with the lives of your family and your last dollar – and when you came back it would still be there. He would not be your typical politician. He would not be the person to sit there and lie directly to your face. Keith Snow always believed that if you watch your pennies your dollars would watch themselves. With this new Ebola outbreak going on, Keith would be the perfect person to watch out for your families' well-being in this time of crisis in our country. He also has shared with us many ideas as to literally get a double bang for the buck in city expenditures. He often says that he can go to a Costco and negotiate a price down where the masses would be happy to pay price listed. It is common knowledge that the city's current staff does not shop for the best bang for the buck. Keith feels, when he was spending our companies money, he would protect it like it was his own.

Enhanced oil and gas exploration has resulted in a huge number of jobs for Americans, inexpensive natural gas, and cheaper gasoline than would be possible without EOE. Additionally, every dollar spent on domestic oil and gas is a dollar that will not go to fund terrorists.

While I am not a resident of San Benito County, I am concerned about the potential for fracking in your area. My friend lives in a very seismically stable area in Oklahoma that rarely experienced earthquakes. Since fracking began in her region, they routinely get quakes in the 3 - 4 range, and sometimes into the 5's. Her concrete kitchen floor has cracked so badly from all the earth movement that it must be replaced. I can't image how fracking would impact an already seismically unstable area. Do you really want injection wells lubricating your fault system?

Measure J on the current November ballot will prohibit “enhanced oil production” in San Benito County. In effect it will essentially stop oil production and future oil exploration in San Benito County. The impact will be marginal to most residents – a marginal, albeit very marginal, price increase in gasoline – but significant impact on those that currently own and operate oil production facilities since they will be out of business. However, San Benito County Taxpayers might have to reimburse them for their losses if Measure J does pass. The real intent of Measure J is to ban oil by outlawing the use of hydraulic fracturing or “Fracking” here as well as the rest of California. A win here by the anti-fracking, anti-oil group, is part of their strategy to eliminate petroleum as an energy source. The best way to do that is to make oil so expensive that no one other than the major backers of Measure J can afford to drive from their homes in Silicon Valley to their ranches in South County. To accomplish this, they have to ban fracking. The simple reason is that without fracking, gasoline would be probably double what we are paying today. Measure J states that banning fracking will protect their way of life-which is exactly opposite of the truth. How would residents of San Benito County “protect their way of life” who essentially rely 100% on the automobile for transportation with gasoline at $8.00/gallon?

Sick fact! Those who take oil deep in the soil are exempt from the clean water act! Meaning anything goes, deadly chemicals they don't have to expose, no wonder why several nearby had a serious bloody nose and ignited fire out of the hose!  Trillions of gallons have been used and abused of not just hot water, prepare for a great slaughter.  

Measure J , the controversial anti-petroleum production initiative on the county-wide November ballot, is based on fear, ignorance, hatred, elitism and egregious, counterproductive land-use planning principles.

I strongly oppose Measure J because it is a bait and switch initiative based on junk science and it’s bad public policy that could open the county to millions of dollars in lawsuits and payments.

The “NO on J Campaign” has tossed around a lot of misconceptions during this campaign cycle.