Oily Questions

Since I've found another productive way to put my Obama obsession into action through our volunteer program, one topic that I will start focusing on here will be all things oil: geopolitics, conservation and alternative energy (namely, the cottage veggie oil industry I've been learning about for the past two months). Before I get into telling tales from the underworld of Chinese restaurant refuse, though, let's begin a multi-part series exposing a few of the fallacies being pumped out of the well-oiled bullshit trough by the right-wing regarding oil:

1. If we can find more oil here in the U.S., we can become less dependent on "foreign oil."

I have yet to hear anyone in the press challenge a politician on the details of what they mean exactly by this goal of "Oil Independence." Do members of the media not understand that we don't have a nationalized oil program in this country? WE don't get ANY of our nation's oil - multinational energy conglomerates do!

Shell can sell as much Alaskan crude to the Chinese as they damn well please and there's nothing that our beloved free market economy, as presently comprised, can do to prevent this. Sure, Alaskans might get some tax revenue kick-backs but the whole concept of not being beholden to the Saudis if we can pump enough oil out of Alaska or North Dakota is absurd. Is this so complicated that Americans can't wrap their brains around it? Oil markets will undoubtedly respond to any new, significant oil discoveries on U.S. soil but it's not like the oil will be ours to burn.

If anyone out there sees, hears or reads someone in the media informing the public about this reality, please let me know.