"Not now, George. I got a headache from all that oil drilling."
I am certainly no expert on the subject of energy, but I do have some ideas on the subject. I have heard a lot of explanations as to why the price of gasoline is so high; the world-wide market, China and India, the speculators, the greedy oil companies, Bush and Cheney helping their oil buddies make big profits, etc. I don't know what to believe, but if I were in charge, here is what I would propose.
1 Start developing more of our own sources for oil. That means drilling in Anwar and off the coasts of California and Florida if necessary. In the case of Anwar, the majority of folks in Alaska are all for it. It will bring in jobs and help their economy.
2 Start building more nuclear power plants.
3 Start building more oil refineries.
Sounds simple, doesn't it? Why are we not doing that? The environmentalists, that's why. They oppose every way for America to develop our own sources of energy. And they wield a lot of clout-especially with the Democratic Party that is completely in the tank for the environmental lobby.
Back in the Clinton Administration in the 90s, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) stated that if we started drilling in Anwar, we wouldn't see a drop of oil for 10 years. Of course, Clinton was against Anwar as well and nothing was done. Today, we could have been off and running.
And what is the reason for not drilling in Anwar (in a remote region of Alaska about the size of a university campus)? The main reason according to the enviromentalists is that we should not disturb the mating habits of the caribou!! Wasn't that the same argument that was used against building the Alaska Pipeline? As it turned out, the warmth from the pipes actually attracted the animals, and mating increased!
In addition, how long has it been since any new nuclear power plants or oil refineries have been built? Three decades? Do you think the lack of sufficient oil refineries might just be connected to rising oil prices?
In addition, we in California are paying about 50 cents more per gallon because of the special blend that is required by the state in the name of reducing pollution. When I drove to Arizona a couple of weeks back, gas cost 40-50 cents less per gallon.
The only solution I hear from Democrats is to tax the oil companies on their "windfall profits". How about governent foregoing the taxes they attach to gas purchases? They don't want to do that.
It seems to me that this is a national security issue and worthy of urgent action. We cannot continue to depend on places like the Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Iraq), Venezuela, Mexico and Indonesia for our oil. These are unstable countries that, under a hostile government, could bring us to our knees. Not becoming energy-sufficient is unconscienceable.
What is more important, a few caribou in Alaska-or our national security?
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