Eliminate Dependence on Foreign Oil Now

Dan Abbett

At some point, it becomes necessary to cut through the politics, the nuance, the posturing and get to the point. The point is, we are essentially hostage to the cesspool that is the Middle East and the hatred that region fosters for one reason, oil. The other point that must be addressed is that we have oil resources within our own borders to supply our energy needs well into the future. There is no reason to continue to wallow in the subjugation of Mideast totalitarianism.

Two factors are responsible for our continued dependence on oil from Middle Eastern nations. The first is the risk to the financial investment our oil industry has made in that region and the second is environmental idiocy. It is feasible to envision a gradual divestment of domestic involvement in the Middle East, coupled with expanded exploitation of the untapped reserves available under our own soil. It is much harder to imagine that politicians will develop the courage to overrule the environmental lobby blocking that pursuit.

The rise of oil to fuel technology, commerce, exploration and the explosion of industries that resulted from the use of oil as an energy source, began in this nation. That resource remains in ample supply in our nation still, and given our technology to contain any risk to the environment, there is no reason to consign it to the whims of those who declare “death to our nation.”

The expertise, technology and experience developed by the oil and natural gas industries, makes risk to the environment of a catastrophic disaster from exploration extremely low. Additionally, even if we were to declare today, that we will eliminate oil as a source of energy and switch to an alternative source for our energy needs, it will take decades to implement. We simply cannot continue to rely on Middle Eastern oil during that phase in period. Moreover, there is no way in Hell that oil will be replaced in the near term.

With the exception of nuclear power, no other energy source is yet at a potential to meet the demands of industry, transportation, private businesses and homes. This un-debatable fact is not sufficient for the environmental lobby however; both nuclear technology and energy from oil are not on their list of acceptable energy sources. It is time to stop being shackled by this useless, un-compromising, pie in the sky ideology. We either move immediately to tap domestic sources of energy or forever resign ourselves to an eternity of fighting fanatics in the Middle East.

Consider the juxtaposition of Iran developing nuclear capability with an almost certain intention to use it to destroy nations and the most technologically advanced nation on the planet, afraid to use nuclear technology to serve its nations’ greater good. While the “Enviros” whine about the possible dangers of nuclear power, Iran’s intentions for that same power is a clear and certain danger.

It is imperative to the continued well-being of this nation to end our dependence on foreign sources of oil. It is not acceptable however, to insist on energy independence on one hand, and rule out the solution to the problem on the other, specifically, exploiting our own natural resources. The single greatest reason we find ourselves now joined in the hatred, deceit and eternal tribal wars that have raged in the Middle East for millennia, is oil. To refuse to resolve this problem and continue to allow politicians to use it as a political football must not be allowed to continue.

It is time to take this issue out of the hands of the politicians and put it in the hands of the voters. If in fact we vote to power our air conditioners with windmills, then we deserve our fate. However, “we” need the opportunity to make that decision and not leave it up to the self-serving politicians to seal our fate for us. If the “Enviros” squawk, we can always use their bellowing to power their sacred windmills.

Either we pay the price for domestic exploration and processing or we pay the price of extortion and terrorism for foreign product. My vote is for, “made in the USA.”

Email: danabbett1@charter.net