Myth: We have so much oil here in US, if only we drilled for it, gas prices would come down.
If we have 100 years of oil underground and start drilling now, what happens in 100 yrs. assuming we still need oil for some things? Why not let Arab countries deplete their supplies first, then we will be in the driver’s seat. We talk about future generations straddled with debts of today… what do we tell them when we have no oil left because we wanted to have low gas prices today?
If a for-profit company drills oil here and can sell it for $150/barrel overseas, how much do you think they will sell it to the US for? Unless we nationalize oil production in the US, don’t look for prices to come down anytime in the near future whether we drill or not. Capitalism is a supply and demand business. The higher the demand, the higher the price. Don’t be fooled to think that just because BP or Exxon drill for oil here in the US that we will see low oil prices.
The only way out of the oil game is to come up with alternative sources of energy. To jump start this endeavor, there should be deep tax incentives for both the developers and users of alternative energy. There should be added incentives for homeowners in sunshine states to install solar panels. At current solar panel costs – with current rebates – there is a 15+ year payback (length of time to recoup your investment and start to see low electric bills not offset by solar panel payments). We need to get that payback time down to 5-7 yrs. We also need to have all new homes fitted with solar panels. If all new homes were required to have a minimum 30% of energy needs provided by solar panels, I guarantee you will see a huge increase in solar panel production with a decrease in per panel cost.
Unless the public is willing to pay the price today for alternative energy exploration and use, we will remain a slave to oil — whether it is drilled here or overseas. Do you agree?
I really like the idea of all new buildings being required to supply 30% solar energy. At my age I don’t think I could recoup my expenses for solar…it’s like lots of things in life, wish I had done it sooner. I think I’m like a lot of other people in that respect and that really is one of the reasons it’s so hard to move forward on these issues. . . basic procrastination.