A slightly out of the box solution to our gasoline/energy problem

Imagine a policy where the US drastically cut defense expenditures, increased our dependence on foreign oil, withdrew and stopped entering wars to protect or prop up the petrodollar and pay higher consuming costs not only at the pump and grocery store but everywhere else and in between. Would you believe it? Would you even accept this as remotely possible without destroying our economy? I know it sounds crazy and no, this isn’t a page out of the Obama playbook. This would be the policy going forward if I was sitting at the top of the elitist pyramid. It's not ideal but you have to play the hand that is dealt.

I know there are “greenies” or “tree-huggers” that are reading this and smiling. I hate to disappoint but it’s not a green agenda. No, this is a strategy that would keep America not only at the top of the neocolonial power structure; it would vastly strengthen its grip. How do you suppose this is possible? First and foremost it’s a strategy centered on oil.

We have all experienced the rising gas prices. We have seen the rising prices in commodities. We have felt the gouge in the pocketbook, as trips to the grocery store have become ever increasingly more expensive. The volatile relationship of humans and fuel has taken center stage as the issue of 2012. Emerging economies cannot grow without fuel and established markets crumble if they lose the access.

If it affects everyone, then everyone has an opinion on what to do about our dependency on fossil fuels. Some say, drive the prices sky high so we can jump-start innovation for green tech. While others say “drill baby drill” using our own resources to offset rising costs. Then there are those of us in the middle. While I can see the logic behind the green push and the tapping of our resources, the reality of the situation, unfortunately, is not so pragmatic.

Oil as we know is a global commodity traded around the world. What is traded and receives the most attention is crude oil. Crude oil is by far the most lucrative oil for its producers and the most inexpensive for the consumer. Its diverse applications make in the most valued of all fuels. As far as we go here in the states, it is true; we do have vast reserves of oil, but how much of it is crude oil is a big question mark.

 

The amount of crude oil we have here in the in proven reserves (as you can see above) is nothing like they have in the Middle East. This is why the Middle East remains so vital to the entire world. Just ask Dick, before he became "Vice Dick" back in 1999 while he was CEO at Haliburton.

 “The Middle East with two thirds of the world’s oil and the lowest cost, is still where the prize ultimately lies, even though companies are anxious for greater access there, progress continues to be slow” - Dick Cheney

 
 However, there are people like Harold Hamm, CEO of Continental Resources, who say the US has billions of untapped crude reserves, just waiting to be put into production. According to Hamm and his exploration and production company, the Bakken region alone has 20 billion barrels of crude. That would equal the entire US total in proven crude reserves according to the EPA numbers. And that is just in North Dakota and Montana. 

Texas, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, California, Alaska and off shore are all seeing a new oil boom. The amount of oil we have in reserves is rivaled by no other nation in the world. Again, how much of it is crude, is open for debate, there is no denying the vast supply of fuels however.

With crude being the most lucrative and easiest to refine, it will remain the preferred fuel until the time comes when supply of it is vastly outstripped by demand creating equilibrium amongst other types of oil. If you look at the crude oil rich Middle East (who supplies over sixty percent of the world’s oil demands), its crystal clear what kind of clout you receive having the breadbasket of energy in your backyard. 

That region is home to some of the most backwards societies on the planet; yet our President will bow to their king, because he knows how vital they are. Now superimpose that type of power to the US, who already runs the petrodollar scam. So it doesn’t matter really what our reserves are made from. When the supply of crude becomes so depleted you will have all types of oil becoming economically viable. At that point, all oil will be worth not only pursuing but manufacturing and refining as well. 

So, it stands to reason, in a Machiavellian-esque outlook, the US should do all it can to pump the world of its crude, as quickly as possible. This of course will be painful in the short terms but the reality is that the price of oil isn’t going down anymore. The days of cheap gas are gone. 

The US dollar is nothing more then a mirage, its no more valuable then the paper it’s printed on. We are trading paper backed in confidence for tangible assets from other nations that have to invest in our nation just to get oil 66% of the time. Then those nations who take the dollars reinvest them back into this country, yes, that as you know is the short version of the petrodollar recycling process but I think its important to understand the significance of this and the opportunity that lies within it. That’s about as good as a scam as one can devise. If you did it, it would be called counterfeit.

When the Middle East and OPEC lose their stranglehold, the dollar dies. We have accumulated too much debt since OPEC agreed to trade oil for dollars in the early 1970's. The recoil from that action will have a dramatic impact on not only our market but the entire world market.

 

So, I say NO to: “drill baby drill”. 

I say YES, take a hatchet to defense spending and reinvest that money towards balancing the budget or subsidize gas prices for the American consumer (further pushing up consumption).

I say YES to further litigation and regulation, stifling American companies from extracting oil in the US. Bring on Green Peace and bring on the environmentalists.

I say NO to consuming 1.oz of the 695.9 million barrels we have as a nation in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve

Do whatever it takes to use up the rest of the world’s fuels, trading worthless paper for them in the process. The ends justify the means.