Some people apparently thinks drilling for oil on American soil is foolish. And there are those who claim that in the short term drilling will only benefit oil companies. Our oil companies make huge profits because energy is a huge part of our economy. That $34 billion pales in comparison to the $130 billion plus that Tech companies have as cash on hand. Apple has more billions in cash alone yet we considered Steve Jobs a hero not a pirate.
No business in America uses less energy. Energy conservation helps but is no substitute for drilling. We turned from cathode ray tubes to LED technology but did we reduce energy consumption? No. We made bigger televisions. What industry uses less energy than it did 50 years ago? Our local poultry industry is an example of a high energy-cost industry which once used very little energy.
The hunt for oil goes and and we are far from exhausting the world’s supply. Should we stop buying oil from the world? No. Otherwise we risk running out here, while the rest of the world continues on, but that is a future event decades away, if not centuries.
In the late 1970s domestic drilling increased our supply dramatically. By the mid-80s quotas by OPEC members were ignored as we imported less. In response, the Saudis dropped the price and opened the tap. American enjoyed a 20 year period of cheap energy prices and a booming economy due to pressure created by domestic drilling.
The energy of the future will come from the ground. In the long term it will probably be in geothermal, hydrogen, nuclear, and biomass energy as we transition from fossil fuels. Solar and wind will remain minor players. The slaughter of birds by the wind industry, in particular, is a disgrace.
Until the day we have an alternative, it is drill baby drill or our economy will crash under the weight of impossibly high imports. If you would like to learn more about energy then I invite you to attend the National Association of Royalty Owners conventions or join that group. They are a group which supports the industry yet also opposes the larger companies and their heavy handed tactics.
Those who oppose the industry should put their money where their mouth is and sell their SUV, stop using fossil fuel powered buses, and live off the grid with a wind generator with wooden blades or solar panels not made from mined lithium.