Brian Crossman is a partner in Estevan-based Independent Well Servicing. The opinions expressed in this column are the opinions of the author and not necessarily the opinions of Independent Well Servicing.
A Tesla Cybertruck spotted on Estevan’s 4th Street on July 14. Photo by Brian Zinchuk
I was on the internet the other evening. (I know, not always a good idea) It was the usual, scrolling through a mix of reels, some comedic, some inspirational, and a little educational content before I went to sleep. It was then I came across a post by an acquaintance of mine. It was regarding a post made by a conservative party MLA from Saskatchewan. The MLA posted that “banning gas and diesel cars punishes the 99 per cent who can’t afford the switch.” He finished with “Lets keep the choice on the road!”
My acquaintance posted this for a reply. “Do conservatives just oppose every new technology that comes along?” “Do they just hate change?” “99 per cent of people used candles for lighting at one point in time.”
How about we do a deep dive on these statements? The defense of fossil-fueled vehicles is a common theme with many of the “older vintage” and of course, oilfield workers. The pro-EV crowd of course come from a different position, often reasonable, but as is true with both sides of any argument, there are always extreme views from each.
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0093 Estevan OTS 20250093 Estevan OTS 2025
- 0101 VP Energy Road to adventure0101 VP Energy Road to adventure
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0076 Latus only0076 Latus only
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0006 JK Junior
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
In my mind, the post about keeping choice on the road seems like a reasonable statement. The MLA was not against EV’s or any other new technology. He also didn’t mention that there are a plethora of other problems with the switch to EVs. He did not say electric cars were crap, nor did he say no to the technology. I am certain that the point being made wasn’t about being a Luddite or an unwillingness to change. It is about choice, or more accurately choice being taken away from everyday people. Also note the cost factor for everyday people, they are not exactly a bargain these days, but honestly, what new car is?
Now on to the post criticizing the first statement. My acquaintance is a self-admitted socialist, which is fine, as that is his choice, as I am a conservative which is my choice. Electric vehicles are hardly new technology. They are on the way, and every year they are improving the technology, so there is no doubt they are a big part of the future. And as far as electric lights are concerned, the first example, a carbon arc lamp and was created in the early 1800’s by Humphry Davey. Edison patented the incandescent in 1879, which over time their use became prevalent by the late 1940’s. So, after many years they did eliminate the need for candles, which amazingly enough is still a booming business. I dare you to go home and count how many scented candles are in your dwelling. If you have a spouse, I guarantee your significant other will have more candles than you can count, and they will all have a wonderful scent. Me personally, I do not see (smell?) the attraction, but I ain’t gonna argue.
Crossman isn’t kidding about candles. This one is “peach.” Photo by Brian Zinchuk
The reason we use electric lights instead of candles is because they WORK BETTER. They were not mandated or forced upon the public by the government, nor was the sale candles banned. The statement that conservatives oppose technology is ludicrous. It would no different than saying a member of the liberal party was against computers or the internet.
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0093 Estevan OTS 20250093 Estevan OTS 2025
- 0101 VP Energy Road to adventure0101 VP Energy Road to adventure
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0076 Latus only0076 Latus only
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0006 JK Junior
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Banning anything is rarely a good idea. History has shown that banning anything is rarely the solution. Books, movies, music and television shows have been banned by politicians and people of all stripes. This also applies to thoughts and ideas as well. As soon as we walk down this path, it can only lead to problems. Cancel culture is along these same lines.
All reasonable people have been the constant endorsers of positive change. Me personally, I have no problems with electric vehicles. They are becoming more popular and as the technology advances the numbers and popularity of them will grow. Unlike the incandescent light bulb, the technology has a long way to go before there will be nothing but electric cars and trucks. Infrastructure is also one of the important points that often goes unmentioned. The current state of the power grid dictates that we are many billions of dollars and decades away from being able to facilitate the required energy to charge that number of EVs. Not to mention the power necessary for everyday living and the continuous building of “data centres” that use an incredible amount of electricity. The future requires tremendous amounts of reliable base-load energy, and adding more energy hungry machines will compound the problems.
By the way, candles sure come in handy when the “electric power” is out. Just like fossil-fueled vehicles will when the grid is down as well. Remember kids, choice is freedom, and freedom is choice. Just remember, whether it is in discussion with friends and colleagues, (or that damn internet) what you spend your hard-earned cash on or deciding at the ballot box, it should be (needs to be) your choice. So, choose wisely my friends.
Brian Crossman is a partner with Independent Well servicing based in Estevan. Please note, if you think just because he works in the oilpatch makes him is anti-EV, he wrote a column about them in 2022. And he sung their praises (well, flying electric cars anyway)
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0093 Estevan OTS 20250093 Estevan OTS 2025
- 0101 VP Energy Road to adventure0101 VP Energy Road to adventure
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion0087 Lori Carr Coal Expansion
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0076 Latus only0076 Latus only
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0006 JK Junior
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001