Shocking irresponsibility
Those who argue against an urgent expansion of oil exploration because it would not have an impact for many years are unwittingly making an argument to drill now. The US imports nearly 70% of its oil, and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve holds a mere 35 days of US oil needs. That is a dangerous situation for a so-called superpower to be in. Taking swift steps towards greater energy independence is not just a sensible economic policy, but should be a critical military and strategic priority for the nation and all Americans, regardless of political party.
For example, if the Strait of Hormuz were shut for any extended period of time, the US economy, and the warmaking capability of the US could be crippled. (What would happen if the Persian Gulf were irradiated or the largest Saudi fields disabled, for example?) Such a disaster would be far less likely to happen if our dependence on foreigners for energy were relatively modest, but that is not the case.
The opponents of offshore and ANWR drilling argue that the US cannot materially increase its conventional energy supplies in the short term. That means that the Congress’s failure to act now to increase supplies over the longer term is an act of irresponsibility and gross negligence of stunning proportions. America’s dependence on foreigners who wish us harm will only get worse if current trends continue. If Middle East oil supplies are disrupted at some point, certainly a plausible scenario given Iran’s nuclear program, the inquiry into Pearl Harbor would look like a picnic by comparison.
The price of gas makes drilling a popular policy today, according to all the polls. That is fortunate, since it provides an excuse for Congress to act on a usually latent matter of the utmost strategic importance. This problem may have been invisible when oil was $60 a barrel, but it is not invisible now. Not to act today would likely come to be seen as the greatest act of political negligence in our lifetimes if one of the disruptions above actually occurs.