Meanwhile, many people across the globe, in addition to most U.S. citizens, are totally fed up with brute military force being used to obtain geo-political control of regions with the remaining resources. At the same time, you are, undoubtedly, concerned over the implications of dwindling supplies, as is substantiated by our nation's offshore drilling arrangement with Brazil, as well our continued fixation on fossil fuel supplies in Iraq, Venezuela, Iran, Afghanistan, Haitian waters and other locations. Therefore, it would behoove you to consider about alternatives that, actually, do make us energy-safe -- alternatives such as the ones discussed in Thomas Friedman's "Flush With Energy". [2]
Further, it's common knowledge that the single biggest user of oil in the world is the Pentagon at the same time that "more than 151 members of Congress have up to $195 million invested in major defense contractors that are earning profits from the US military occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan." [3] Likewise, it's generally recognized that there will be no end to wars, nor the freedom fighter (AKA terrorist) counterattacks that they create, as long as resources are chased for energy security rather than security built in the homeland by helping society transition away from heavy dependence on fossil fuels.
Besides, it's guaranteed that, at some point in the fairly near future, oil will exorbitantly jack up in price and, eventually, run out. Then what will happen if a sufficient portion of it were not used early-on to help develop, manufacture and put in place alternatives before it, essentially, disappears and prices for transported goods, including food and medical supplies, have skyrocketed on account?
Are the millions of people across the U.S.A. expected to suddenly overnight learn all on their own about ways to eke out a living off of local indigenous resources? In relation, how do you plan to handle the shift to labor intensive agriculture away from the oil dependent, mechanized version currently practiced, along with bypass herbicides, pesticides and fertilizer, that are reliant on a petroleum base for their formation? How will you help communities adjust at the eleventh hour? Do you plan to leave such conundrums for future legislators to thrash out? What sort of future do we owe subsequent generations? What would you want for your potential grandchildren?
This backdrop in mind, imagine were the incredible amount of funds used for war and the preparations for war to be largely provided to set up social, energy and agricultural conversions. Picture the sweeping long term benefits both in the U.S.A. and abroad were such an innovative plan initiated. Envision, too, the added advantage of returning troops still being provided with incomes through the creation of permanent jobs from this type of endeavor while being safely back on homeland soil and with their families.
At the same time, please keep in mind Ramà ³n-Luis Acuà ±a's following perspective and its undeniable ramifications for our country:
"If a government is more concerned with strategic security than with that of its citizens and gives priority to military spending to the detriment of social expenditure, the result is human misery. Which two countries had the highest ratio of military to health and education spending in 1980? In descending order they were Iraq (8 to 1) and Somalia (5 to 1). How effective is Unesco in trying to reverse these priorities?" Mr. Obama, how effective are you?
Further, contemplate about the folly of instigating ever more sweeping resource wars for economic superiority when petroleum products are ultimately affiliated with uncontrollable climate change effects. Is there not some harebrained inherent contradiction when one's actions, actually, lead to results that are opposite to the ones that he is trying to achieve? With climate change factors in the mix and their being related to fossil fuel use, how can any ongoing oil use possibly be expected to create durable economic improvements? How can they possibly check the global financial crisis?
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