By Frosty Wooldridge
America squirms toward an unprecedented juncture in 2008 with the coming change of leadership in the White House. As citizens, our civilization cannot survive another presidency led by reaction, retort or inept responses. We cannot continue without a “National Strategic Plan” for our future.
We must raise our voices toward a sustainable future by engaging our next president with a mandate for creating a new energy source. We demand a national energy policy, conservation policy, viable immigration-population policy and water usage policy—before harsh realities pound down around our ears.
The “Age of Oil” as our energy slave--vanishes in the rearview mirrors at the astounding global rate of 84 million barrels burned 24/7, month in and month out, year in and year out. How many barrels does that equal? According to Dr. John Tanton, www.thesocialcontract.com , one barrel measures 20 inches in diameter. If you place 84 million barrels side by side—they reach around the world at the equator some 25,000 miles. Each day, we light them on fire and burn them up. We repeat that burning every single day of the year! Little wonder historians sharpen their quills with the realization that gasoline cannot last forever.
This week, Brian Williams at NBC reported gas prices in Europe range from $9.00 to $9.50 a gallon. Can the U.S. be far behind? Such prices portend sweeping changes for the American way of life!
“As we go from this happy hydrocarbon bubble we have reached now to a renewable energy resource economy, which we must do in this century, will the “civil” part of civilization survive? As we both know there is no way that alternative energy sources can supply the amount of per capita energy we enjoy now, much less for the 9 billion humans expected by 2050. And energy is what keeps this game going. We are involved in a Faustian bargain—selling our economic souls for the luxurious life of the moment, but sooner or later the price has to be paid.” Walter Youngquist
With that understanding, I spoke with former U.S. Naval officer Richard McPherson concerning America’s prospects in the coming years.
“America is at war,” McPherson said. “A war we must win. World War I was not won ─ people quit fighting, thereby leading to World War II; it was won! Combined--World War I and World War II took 110 million lives. To win requires a tremendous amount of energy, plus the leadership America needs to prosecute the war and win.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).