Is Offshore Oil the Answer?

Before we delve into this question, we must first understand the history of the mess we are in with regards to the oil price spike.

I was recently attending a discussion by a representative of the gas and oil industry who covered the topic of oil output versus price, and why the oil/gas price spike began.

He began by showing a chart, representing the fixed price of oil based on supply from US wells.

He then made a comment that has to be retold: After Katrina and Rita, we have not been able to open up our Gulf of Mexico wells.

That was the key. The oil industry's inability (or unwillingness) to open those wells due to fear of continued storms (and the low cost of oil at the time to cover any future losses) created the first artificial spike in the oil and gas prices. Since then, subsequent drop in oil production in the middle east and throughout the United States has driven the prices higher yet.

Now Congress is being asked by President Bush if they will allow continued exploration off the coasts of the United States.

I say, let them. They should not have been stopped in the first place... assuming they have adequate protection for marine life and against spills, especially in sensitive areas.

Not to mention that the very oil that the US is unable to drill due to Congress, China is drilling. That is right. China is drilling off the coast of the United States with the help from Cuba. China is tapping into the United State's oil fields while we sit by and do nothing. There is something wrong with that picture.

There is one other problem with the oil crisis that must be spoken. In watching congressional hearings on CSPAN (yeah, I am one of the few who actually watch that channel), I noticed that the oil executives had a common theme (let us develop). They wanted to be able to explore and build new refineries... that comment struck a chord with me. Are the oil monopolies holding Congresses feet to the fire by way of artificially high fuel prices to get access to these additional fields?

If so, this is criminal. You are putting the very life of the country in jeopardy for your own gain, which I amount to holding the US hostage for a ransom. If this is, in fact, the case, I hope to see a drastic hammer falling in favor of the US people.

Until such time that we can sort this mess out, let us open the capped wells in the gulf, and continue drilling in new offshore fields.

Electricity Killed the Petroleum Car

There was a time when an electric car had it's rightful place - On The Moon.

But here on earth, dwindling fuel reserves and increased fuel prices have driven the need for alternative energy sources for daily travel.

Toyota started the trend with the oddly shaped and eventually trademark "electric car", the Prius. Toyota set the standard before the fuel crisis began... but it hardly has the market cornered.

Tesla motors is creating a vehicle that makes the Prius look like a hippy-mobile, and will likely leave the Prius to the same fate that befell the VW Vanagon... A funny looking vehicle that sparks nostalgia in our Woodstock Friends. Tesla's Roadster is 100% electric, high performance (0-60 in 3.6), and gets over 200 miles to the charge. Unfortunately the cost makes the Roadster a playtoy for Playboys.

Meanwhile, the American Automaker, General Motors, has made an announcement that could signal the death of the Internal Combustion vehicle as we know it... at least for SUV's.

General Motors has announced that it will begin suspending production of their SUV's, selling off the Hummer division, and making the staple "American Made American Car" the Chevrolet Volt. The volt is an E85 / electric hybrid, with the potential for fuel cell upgrades as technologies advance. The primary power source is an electric motor, which can travel 40 miles before a charge is required. The internal combustion engine will run as a generator only, powering the charge of the batteries... it will not be used for propelling the vehicle directly.

GM is betting the bank on this move, and I think it will work!

I recently posted a blog about electric cars, and how solar cells on rooftops could be used to provide for the core of our national energy supply, if implemented properly. Electric cars need to also mean that we are getting off of oil and coal burning power sources. Unless we do this, we are still at the mercy of "Big Power".

The Internal combustion vehicle may be a thing of the past... But the future never looked so sweet!