I'm a simple man. And as such I have a lot of simple solutions to problems others seem intent on making so complicated they can't possibly work... and then don't work.
Right now there's three things Congress is fiddling over, each of which I figure could be solved on a single sheet of one of those legal yellow notepads:
- Offshore oil drilling - America's reoccurring financial crisis' - The so-called "war on terror."
Let's take them in that order.
Offshore Drilling
Republicans want to open more offshore tracts for drilling. Democrats want to move away from our dependence on oil and encourage development of clean, renewable energy sources.
If only Republicans (and their oil company supporters) get their way, the price of oil could fall again thereby making alternatives, like solar and wind, uncompetitive once again, thereby once again killing those babies in their cribs.
(NOTE: I don't buy GOP claims that opening more offshore areas to drilling could or would actually reduce the price of gas at the pump any time soon. But I also understand that Exxon and the Saudis can lower the price of gas anytime they figure it's serves their purposes. And under "purposes" read, "competition from alternative energy sources.")
But here's how both sides can get what they want. and the nation needs, while also insuring that ten years from now we are not having this same discussion again:
1) Lease the oil companies all the offshore tracts they can stomach -- excepting, of course, areas designated as sensitive marine sanctuaries.
2) But, as part of this legislation Congress must set a firm price floor under oil that does not allow the price of gas at the pump to fall below $3.50 a gallon. If the price of oil goes up the price of gas can go up with it. But, if the price of oil goes down resulting in lower market prices for gasoline, gasoline at the pump cannot fall below $3.50 a gallon.
(WHY: Without such a price floor, oil producing countries and big oil companies will, as they have so many times before, temporarily flood the market with cheap oil, thereby smoothering still-fragile clean, renewable sources of energy, such as wind and solar. They've done it before, and they'll do it again, unless a floor is set for oil that keeps gasoline at levels that encourage both conservation and forces changes in consumer preferences for transportation.)
3) If, at some point, oil and gas prices fall due to increased production -- as Republicans claim they would -- the price of gasoline would still not fall below below $3.50. For example, say oil prices decline enough to force the price of gasoline at the pump down to $2.99 a gallon. In that case consumers would continue paying $3.50 gallon at the pump. But the difference, 51 cents/gallon, wouldn't go to oil companies but rather into a new Federal Alternative Energy Fund. That money would be used to for clean/renewable R&D and to temporarily subsidize emerging energy alternatives such as solar and wind.
Republicans will diss this price floor as a "tax on consumers," and Democrats will scream bloody murder about offshore drilling. Both of them need to put a sock in it and realize that there really is no free lunch. First , consumers are already paying that tax, but they are paying it to Exxon, and not getting a thing back in return for it. At least with the Federal Alternative Energy Fund consumers will get some news, clean energy to run their consumer products on down the road.
And as for the additional oil that can be recovered offshore, well, however all this plays out over time, we will conitnue to need oil for the foreseeable future. Some folks don't seem to realize that oil doesn't just fuel cars, it goes into all kinds things, including fertilizers for growing food. We can eventually cut our need for the stuff down to a trickle, but we'll always need that trickle. So developing offshore sources will pay dividends a decade or two downt the road. And by then we won't have to buy the stuff from the Saudis. America can stop sending $700 billion a year to countries run by people who like to fly commercial airliners into our skyscrapers and treat their women like livestock.
Bubbles and Financial Meltdowns
No, you're not imagining things. We really do seem to have a full-scale financial meltdown about every 8- to 10-years. And every time one of these financial bubbles burst you hear the same noises out of Washington;
"Where were the regulators?" And, "Where were the accountants?"
Well I know where the were -- and still are.
Federal regulators have been knee-capped by Congress and whoever was (is) in the White House at the time, at the "request" of their well-helled financial services contributors. Those contributors don't like to have to show their books to humorless, picky, green-eye-shaded federal regulators.
Stephen Pizzo has been published everywhere from The New York Times to Mother Jones magazine. His book, Inside Job: The Looting of America's Savings and Loans, was nominated for a Pulitzer.
Let's slow down and look closely--that's even more simple
The thing that would bring about the most immediate relief would be to emphasize conservation. If it weren't for government inertia, we could save millions of barrels of oil right now not several years down the pike. And since it will take so long to exploit these hypothetical oil reserves off shore and in the Artic Wildlife Refuge, what is the big hurry? It isn't going anywhere and it will only become more valueable the longer it stays where it is. Could it be that the oil companies and their minions want to ram through a deal while they still have a friendly political atmosphere rather than wait until the public is even more fed up with the oil tycoons than they already are? If I were King instead of George Bush, I would say slow the whole thing down and let there be a full and public hearing over leases and make sure that taxpayers receive just compensation rather than the fire sale deals that the oil companies got for the leases in the past.
by
vidiot (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 262 comments)
on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 4:49:05 PM
Slowing down moves towards real solutions in favor of conservation can't work by itself. That's why we need a floor under gas prices. Because neither politicians nor American consumers will conserve if gas prices fall back into a comfort range they figure they can live with. We know this from past experience. If it doesn't hurt we will keep on keeping on...
by
Stephen Pizzo (105 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 34 comments)
on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 5:13:24 PM
For my part, I think that conservation IS the best solution at the moment. There are an awful lot of simple things that we could do immediately that would save a lot of BTU's, but architects, engineers, manufacturers, marketers, and consumers have never made it a priority. It will be a painful experience and I guess the real question is how much is politically tolerable.
by
vidiot (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 262 comments)
on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 10:24:00 PM
While I agree with much of your premise and while I also agree that problems must be solved one at a time,...little that we do will have meaningful impact until such time that the U.S. abandons the impossible notion that we can grow our way out of this.
Exponential growth combined with infinite consumption of finite resources as a basis for a sustainable economy, are subject to such problems as running out of those finite resources. For instance, crude.
We must at some point realize that debt-based-growth-capitalism has limitations and we have just encountered a couple of the thousands that will eventually rear their ugly heads.
Solving the fuel problem without solving sustainability on a much greater level simply gets us to the scene of the accident much quicker.
by
Mike Folkerth (120 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 566 comments)
on Friday, August 1, 2008 at 11:48:22 AM
Growth has an easy way to overwhelm problems in the past rather than fixing them. But now, with 6.5 billion folks on earth growth is the enemy, not our savior. Sustainability will be the next "growth" potion. And the nations that adopt all things sustainable will be the ones that will be around after the dust settles.
Steve
by
Stephen Pizzo (105 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 34 comments)
on Friday, August 1, 2008 at 11:59:20 AM
Energy: We have the means to give every person on this planet free, pollution free energy - so considering we do have this technology there is only one conclusion, greedy, ruthless automatrons can squeeze us till we bleed.
Economy: Dissolve Federal Reserve Bank - it's illegal and controlled by international bankers that cause 99.99% of the strife, wars, depressions and just about any other disaster we've had.
War on Terror: Have a complete independent criminal investigation and follow it to where ever it leads and we will clear out a large part of the real terrorists in this world.
by
Mr M (4 articles, 0 quicklinks, 51 diaries, 2028 comments)
on Friday, August 1, 2008 at 12:17:48 PM
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