Brent Hardy

Social Problems

Trigg

April 29, 2003

 

The Price We Pay for Foreign Oil

            As is apparent to those who watch the news, America is facing a tremendous problem in the energy crisis.  Since the advent of the fuel injection engine, Americans have relied upon fossil fuels.  Unfortunately, fossil fuels take an extremely long time to form, and at the present time cartels control the world’s supply.  What America most needs is a source of alternative fuel to reduce its dependence on foreign oil, help preserve the environment, and preserve fossil fuels for other needs.

            The oil fields are running short.  We are polluting our atmosphere at an incredible rate with the combustion of fossil fuels, but that will not last for long because there will come a time when there are no more fossil fuels for us to burn.  What will we do then?  We could turn to our government, the leaders we elect to help us out of such problems, but they seem more interested in lining their own pockets than easing the burden on all Americans.  The mandate of the people is that we stop consuming so much foreign oil, but that would make this country into a place where we could get by without oil altogether, an occurrence that does not sit well with the Bush administration, who are part of what some people are now calling the “axis of oil”[1].

            We have been aware that fossil fuels are a finite resource, yet we do absolutely nothing to hold off their rapid consumption.  The global population is swelling; more people need an energy source to carry on their everyday lives.  So what do we do?  Let’s burn more coal!  It’s there, and it’s burnable, so why not use it all?

            One of the main reasons we do not switch to other fuel sources is because the media represents them all as impractical.  Solar cells and windmills cost a lot of money, but with an increased demand for such technology the price will plummet.  All technology is expensive in its infancy, but as more research is made into making it more efficient, the cost goes down.  The media is in the pocket of those who want things to stay the way they are now, though, and an increase in the use of alternative energy sources means that all those Iraqi oil fields we fought to confiscate -I mean, liberate- would go to waste.

            Recently, President Bush II gave several billion dollars to the production of an alternative fuel source.  He received applause; people thought it was a good idea.  However, did anybody look into what he donated the money to?  The money was not given to a source of energy that is almost available for use, such as solar power or hydrogen cells; he gave the money to some form of alternative energy that I’ve never even heard of.  It’s ok, though, because we can always drill up the National Parklands in Alaska to get more oil.

            This is mostly America’s problem.  Americans consume 19,649 thousand barrels of petroleum per day[2].  That is about 25% of the total world consumption for about 4.6% of the world’s population[3].  It’s like we’re addicted and cannot cope with reality without our daily fix of petrol. 

            America, and the rest of the world, would do much better if we started prioritizing and eliminated wastes of our tax dollars, like unpopular wars, and used that money for a better purpose.  If we changed the way America runs we could cut all dependency on foreign oil and use fuel sources that, along with not destroying the environment, are cheaper than the exorbitant prices we are paying to fill up our cars (and just think about what it will be when consumption catches up with the ability to produce and refine the oil).  The United States is on a downward spiral and the end result may be the cessation of all industrial capability if we do not wake up and smell the petroleum.