It’s now clear that the McCain/Palin shout-outs for more domestic drilling were not, in fact, tawdry and childish pitches to get votes from jingoistic know-nothings. They were, in fact, calls for an energy policy that would lead this country into a future of responsibility, prosperity, and well-being.
The free market is speaking…
Comments
3 responses to “Drill Here Drill Now! Oh….Wait…”
There could be no better investment in America than to invest in America becoming energy independent! We need to utilize everything in out power to reduce our dependence on foreign oil including using our own natural resources. Create cheap clean energy, new badly needed green jobs and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.The high cost of fuel this past year seriously damaged our economy and society. The cost of fuel effects every facet of consumer goods from production to shipping costs. After a brief reprieve gas is inching back up.OPEC will continue to cut production until they achieve their desired 80-100. per barrel.If all gasoline cars, trucks, and SUV’s instead had plug-in electric drive trains the amount of electricity needed to replace gasoline is about equal to the estimated wind energy potential of the state of North Dakota.We have so much available to us such as wind and solar. Let’s spend some of those bail out billions and get busy harnessing this energy. Create cheap clean energy, badly needed new jobs and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. What a win-win situation that would be for our nation at large! There is a really good new book out by Jeff Wilson called The Manhattan Project of 2009 Energy Independence Now. http://www.themanhattanprojectof2009.com
Has anyone ever challenged a drill here, drill now advocate to present an argument on any level where oil/petro is a good choice as opposed to developing a renewable energy source?
For example: National security. If we didn’t have to rely on imported oil would we be so embroiled in the Middle East, wasting our treasury and troops? Would a Saudi King hold sway over our elected officials? If we developed renewable energy sources how quickly would Venezuela and Russia no longer have prominence on a world stage?
On any factor, health, environment, economy, pollution, etc. etc. oil always comes out the loser.
Sherry and Steve:
I could not agree with your more wholeheartedly. There’s an endless string of largely irrefutable and mutually-reinforcing arguments for America to reduce fossil fuel use.
I would amend some of the language, though, and propose two approaches that have not been discussed much, if at all.
Language: The issue is not, I think, dependence on “foreign oil” (that’s attractively jingoistic but not really to the point), but reducing our use of oil (and coal), period. It’s the fossil fuels, stupid. The huge bulk of our petroleum imports come from North America and other friendly countries. Since oil is fairly fungible and is priced at the margin, of course, small reductions in worldwide demand can cause large price drops. And *that* is what hurts the leaders (and unfortunately also the people to a greater or lesser extent) of unfriendly petrostates.
Approaches:
1. I pointed out in an earlier post:
http://www.asymptosis.com/gas-guzzler-tax-just-turn-it-on.html
That we already have the perfect vehicle on the books for increasing vehicle fuel efficiency: the Gas-Guzzler Tax. Problem is, as implemented it doesn’t tax gas-guzzlers. I’ll leave that earlier post to make the arguments for it.
2. Cofiring with biomass. Millions of tons of biomass rot on the ground every year. Refitting coal plants to burn the stuff is not that expensive. And (here’s my pet idea) algae farms could grow immense amounts of high-calorie biomass (some algaes are 50% lipids) using otherwise non-areable land in places like Baja where there’s lots of saltwater (some algaes love it) and sunlight (both for growing and drying the algae).
The energy required to convert biomass to other energy forms is prohibitive. Just burn the stuff!