Finally after nearly 8 years, Bush as actually committed to the reality that we need to get away from our dependance on OIL. Why did it take almost 8 years for him to realize this? The priority of the next president should be focused solely on getting off of our dependance on foreign oil. Doing that will solve almost every issue we have facing our economy, the war and morality in the US. Do your part. Try walking or riding a bike to work at least one day a week, or at the very least car pooling. Buy more fuel efficient vehicles. If you own a gas guzzling SUV, get rid of it. Buy something more sensible. Do your part! The war on terror ends when we stop using terrorist fuel.
Good advice, but I've seen many Americans laughing at the Smart cars when they come to Canada. I don't think the average Joe is ready to give up of big cars&trucks
May be his friends have made enough money on the high price of oil, no that can not be it, it is never enough. May be his presidency is ending and he knows that he doesn't need to actually do anything that upsets his friends.
Politicians do the same thing all the time. Bush has had plenty of time, but he doesn't really care. Just like he doesn't care about the U.S. border. Don't listen to what they say, but watch what they do. Nobody wanted to believe the economy was anything but great until they were told it's not by "offical sources," i.e., the TV.
I don't care for Bush on a lot of things, but I have seen him say this a few years ago - the part about getting off of our dependence on foriegn oil. But being that it is election time the comment you show about the next president would be more timely now than before.
Bush has been saying this for years. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11110276/ But as my dad says, "Thinking and shitting are two different things."
Black Gold Good points, oil is a very crucial part of what keeps society moving. The only problem is when we start coming out with alternative fuels, how much damage do you think they will cause?
Thanks guys.. I just do not remember hearing him say it. Too bad no one in the federal government is doing anything about it. I'd gladly pay $10 a gallon starting immediately if it means we stop using foreign oil. I figure it would only take a few days if we imposed a week long embargo before oil producing nations would act and cut prices. Curbing demand is the only way to reduce the price of oil.
Finally, I agree with Mia. Well said! We would have little reason to be in the MiddleEast or worrying about oil in the Arctic region if we were no longer using oil. It's a long way off, but we, as Americans should be doing much more to move away from oil as a resource. <edit> Have you taken a look at his Ranch? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_Chapel_Ranch Bush's Home Far More Eco-Friendly Than Gore's He's so backwards, I just don't get it.
He has needed 8 years because he's not very smart. But as said, average Joe will not get rid off his SUV anytime soon...If you go in the deep America, they still ask if they can vote for Reagan, each time a Reagan B/W movie passed on their 1960's TV...
This is a complicated topic, but I am against the government doing anything about oil. The market has to decide based on supply and demand, what oil is worth. Just jacking up the prices via a tax or heavy regulation, will hurt middle and lower class Americans rather than terrorists. The one area the government could help diversify the energy supply, would be to get out of the way. Get out of the way of nuclear. Allow drilling in the Arctic, off the coast of Florida. We have loads of our own oil, but we don't drill it due to regulatory issues. Trust me, if oil goes to $5 or $6 a gallon, it will be cost effective to drill domestically. Will the government allow it?
It was cost effective all the time. It will be cost effective to use vegetable oil instead of diesel.
I think we need to keep in mind the environmental costs. Even if one doesn't care about the environment, they should probably care about the effect it (and other things) would have on the fish stock, air and water quality, etc, as they may effect jobs and the fishing industry. I personally care about taking care of the environment for many other reasons than just jobs and business interests. I don't believe that industries and local municipalities will necessarily do what is best because of self-interest. They often think of the short term gains and little picture, while the bigger picture and long term gains are ignored.
I didn't know that about Bush's home being so loaded with solar energy resources. I wonder if he took advantage of tax breaks or tax credits to install them? Here is something else about Bush. As governor of Texas he okayed the widepsread development of wind turbines for generating electricity through wind power. yet when he came into office one of the first things that happened was the Energy policy chaired by Cheney that kept the country moving ahead in the same direction sucking up oil and disregarding either conservation or alternative energy methods. Frankly, I agree with Mia. It should be a priority. Drilling for oil in the US or in the gulf might be a nice thing to speak about but it shouldn't be a priority by any stretch of the imagination. The US has something like 3% of oil reserves yet is by far the largest user of oil. Essentially our ability to add native oil to our usage is so small as to be utterly without merit and detracts from dealing with the cost and strategic issues. Concentrating on further drilling is misleading as to responding with a sense of purpose or urgency. As to Mr. Guerilla know it all about everything...when I brought up this issue in November '07 his response here stunned me. Supporting the status quo equates to supporting terrorism. It is a major consideration for American involvement in the middle east. In fact approximately 60 years of American foreign policy have included the concept of protecting the free flow of oil throughout the world. If anythng describes our involvement in the middle east...that is where it stems from. As a nation the smartest, most protective thing we could do would be to move off our dependance on oil. Ya know what's wierd....imagine if we moved off of oil. I bet the Chinese, the Russians, and India would rush into the middle east like crazy to snap up that commodity. They could start shooting up one another while we wouldn't have to be involved. It would be a relief.
Nice site, thanks! I do find it interesting how price controls have pretty much been a large part of the problem with the rise in cost per barrel. It would have them shitting their pants rather quickly. I've often found that quite interesting. Beyond that, I remember the Oscars last year where they were pimping Gore out with posthumous awards, etc. all the while touting how green the oscars were, yet they were not using any fluorescent lights in the theater.