In The Duel, 24 hours columnists David Eby and Kathryn Marshall battle over the issues of the day. Who's the winner this week? Fire us an email at van24feedback@sunmedia.ca. 150 words or less please.

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC - Premier Clark's stance on the pipeline.

Last week, Premier Christy Clark finally came out with a position on Enbridge's pipeline to export Alberta's oil to Asia via the B.C. Coast. Well, sort of.

She wants to shakedown Alberta for B.C.'s "fair share" of the economic benefits - even though she won't tell us what that means.

Besides this stunt being called unconstitutional and a barrier to interprovincial trade, it opens up a whole series of questions about the Premier's approach to dealing with energy - not just future energy projects, but ones already in existence.

If Alberta has to pay B.C. for oil that goes through Enbridge's pipeline, what about the oil that is flowing from Alberta to Burnaby through Kinder Morgan's pipeline? What about oil that comes to B.C. from Cherry Point in Washington state? Or sometimes B.C. actually sends oil through a pipeline into the U.S. - does Christy Clark think should we write a cheque to the Americans?

Read Dave Eby's column

I suppose we have to wait for the press release to find out.

David seems to think pipelines and ships are not acceptable ways to transport Alberta's oil. Does he think we should also shut down the pipelines that bring oil to the Lower Mainland? How does he think we will get oil to Vancouver?

And if we can't bring oil in by ship, what does that leave? Tanker truck? Donkey train? Airplane?

Whether you take the bus, carpool or drive your own car, you use oil. Some people have electric cars, but whether Christy Clark or David like it or not, our whole economy runs on oil. Around the world, the facts are clear - pipelines are the safest way to transport oil.

The Premier needs to make a choice. Do we embrace our economic future, sell ethical Canadian oil to Asia and help develop northern B.C.? Or do we take a stand that could scare away jobs and investment for B.C.'s resource sector?

David talks about his concerns for the people of B.C.'s north, but I can tell you: people, many of whom live in B.C.'s poorest communities, want jobs and new opportunities. Shut down pipelines and the message it sends to other projects, from new mines to hydro development, is that B.C. is closed for business. When that happens, the people who pay the price are the ones in the towns and villages of the north looking hard for good jobs and opportunities.