Very insightful article:
America's Energy Crisis, A Self Imposed Dilemma.
Part 1 of 2
The average American is appalled at the ever escalating price of gasoline/transportation costs and the impact that these costs are having on the family budget. Further, as we're well aware, transportation costs ripple through the entire American economy on every essential commodity that we're required to purchase such as food. The latter being accentuated by an erroneous emphasis on an inefficient petroleum substitute, ethanol, which actually inhibits our attempts to achieve higher mileage standards. In an America with POTENTIALLY vast energy resources, why have we allowed ourselves to become willing victims of cartel energy piracy from highly unstable, unfriendly fanatical regimes, from whom we now import a substantial segment of our petroleum needs? Imports which continuously drain wealth from America in the form of an unfavorable balance of trade; and, conversely flow petro-dollars into the coffers of Islamofacists and others who would destroy America given the opportunity. Were it not for America's dependence on these Middle-East petroleum imports, we could conveniently extricate ourselves from this cauldron of fanaticism; and, allow the fanatics to wallow in their self imposed misery and virulent hatred for Western culture.
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To be certain, we CAN and we MUST achieve total energy independence; but, our Nation can only extricate ourselves from this self imposed dilemma by a broad-based, comprehensive NATIONAL ENERGY STRATEGY that BLENDS all of the elements of: conservation; major increases in transportation efficiencies, such as increased mileage standards; exploitation of our indigenous petroleum resources; fast-tracking of regulatory criteria; a significant expansion of our refinery facilities; major investments in nuclear energy; supplementation of our electrical grid with solar, wind, geo-thermal, and hydro technologies; and, a major investment in Research and Development to bring a Hydrogen and Fusion based economy to fruition. Unfortunately, to dig ourselves out of this self-created coffin-corner will require TIME. Time which simply means that, in the interim, we must protect our access to unstable Middle East suppliers until we bring our own assets on line. The latter exigency which could readily be scuttled by the Cut-And-Run crowd on Iraq. The regional chaos which would be precipitated by Iran subsequent to a precipitous American withdrawal from Iraq would make the current cost-escalation in energy supplies from the Middle East seem like the Golden Age of Yesteryear by comparison; and, most certainly would induce a much wider conflict/conflagration. The myopia of the Left on these circumstances is astounding. As history has repeatedly taught with grim consequences, PEACE and STABILITY are won only THRU STRENGTH; and, NOT THRU the nebulous psychosis of HOPE.
http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/mo....php?postid=30