What is the solution?

BAC'sMom wrote: As most of you know President Bush urged Congress today to end a federal ban on offshore oil drilling and open a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil exploration. He also urged Congress to approve the extraction of oil from shale on federal lands and to speed the approval process for building new refineries.

Too little to late in my opinion. The world in going to h-e double hockey sticks in a hand basket. And I do not see things getting better. Our children's future is looking very bleak. So if you were in charge what would you do to get gas prices down and to improve our economy?

PrairieMom replied: I am no expert, but It is my belief that it isn't the lack of places to drill oil that is the issue, its the lack of refineries to process it. If you can't process it you can drill anywhere you would like, and it wouldn't do a bit of good.

I think the only way things can really change would be if the people with the power to make change stop profiting from the people that need to do the changing. Its not just oil that has this issue either.

TANNER'S MOM replied: Well I think their needs to be a cap on how profit the BIG oil companies should be allowed to make. I mean I know they are paying 135 a barrel, yet CEO's are making millions of dollars a year. I mean how is their profit margin still so high? I understand they are in business to make profit, but I think right now their profit needs to be a lot more RESEASONABLE!

One thing I heard on the news was that America was to oil dependent. We didn't need to do anything, except make us less dependent on oil. Well that is great for some. But not for me. I don't live in a metro area. I have no public transportation. I have no other option except drive to work. I have no other option except drive for food. Not everyone has the OPTION to be less dependent on oil. But I don't guess I should expect a person who drives a car that my taxpayers dollars are paying for to understand that.

I wish I had all the answers but I don't. I know one thing we are fighting a war to free a country and make them a democracy, but we couldn't have asked for a BREAK in the price of oil to help them? To cover the cost we are spending or have spent and will continue to spend on their country and their future? I mean I am discussing why we are there, or if we should be their? But we are there, you know what I mean.

moped replied:
Mel, you are right. EVERYONE is dependant on oil for more than just driving......we are dependant and I can't see that changing. We need it for almost everything in our everyday lives.

Now the big oil companies profits, well that is my industry, so if they don't make as much I might not have a job -

redchief replied:
And yet, that's the only way we'll get the oil companies to trim profits and cut prices. It's simple economics. The only other alternative is government price controls, but I despise that kind of government interference.

Hillbilly Housewife replied:
Well, for one, I would acknowledge that although our "world" runs on money... there are more important things than money, and I would force the petrol industry to release the patents on motors running on corn oil and water. Oil is used in so many other things, and the people in charge are just lining their pockets with the profits...not everyone is going to convert to another method of running their vehicles... oil will still be used in all the other places. I mean, seriously - if we're running out of places to drill... there's obviously a problem somewhere.

MommyToAshley replied: You are probably tired of hearing me say this, but the answer is alternative fuel sources. We need to get away from oil completely -- we have a good start with technology now that is just not put to use, we just need to invest the time and resources into developing other methods of fuel... methods that are more environmentally friendly as well. Can you honestly say that we can send a person to the moon, a rover to mars, yet we can't figure out a different way to fuel our cars and homes?

Domestic drilling is a short term answer -- I agree we should open up drilling in Alaska but at the same time we need to think long term.

my2monkeyboys replied: I say drill now while working on other means of fueling everything.
If the government would allow or offer incentives to companies to expand refineries (not sure what the reason is why there hasn't been any real expansions), that would help a great deal. I have no problem with the profits the oil companies make - that's what they are there for. If you want someone to cut back, I say let the govt give tax breaks at the pumps. They waste 80% of our money anyway.
If we had started drilling 10 years ago we would have another functioning oil well by now, but the EPA has been standing in our way for years.

grapfruit replied: What do we need to do? Get smart.

First of all corn ethanol is NOT efficent. There are BETTER things to make ethanol out of. So we can make it CHEAPER. Yes, this means you have to make a small (usually couple $100) conversion to use it, but if it's LOTS cheaper, and burns cleaner, wouldn't you?

Look at this Scientific America Article. It talks about how Switchgrass, a native North American perennial makes a much more effiecent ethanol. You get about 13.1 megajoules of energy for every 1 megajoules of petrolum used to grow and harvest it (tractors etc).



How about we get together w/our neighbors and produce some of our own energy from methane using our garbage? Here's a How To article

Ok, that's long, I can go on and on too. Biodisel, wind power, solar power. Doing dishes and laundry on off peak hours, growing what you can, etc etc...

luvbug00 replied: where the enviorment is going is awful. the thought of my grandbabies not knowing what a polor bear is makes me physically ill. The fact that oil tycoons are not regulated in proffits is stuiped. The fact that we are worried more about gay marriage then were to find other fuel resorces is silly. The fact that hummers are still on the roads as well as many other "showy"gas guzzlers shows the world how vain we are. In europe the mph is soo much better then here and pubilc transportation more efficent and widespread. uhh the whole this is a mess.

grapfruit replied: I was going to add.

I wonder if it wouldn't of been money better spent if the gov't would of converted our cars for us instead of giving us an "advance" on our next year's tax return.

First of all, if they gave a voucher for it, and everyone went an converted, think of the work it'd create?? Second, people would be able to use Ethanol and since it's already about $50 cheaper/gal (at least around here) then they'd probably start using it. Which would in turn, cause more stations to install Ethanol pumps. Which means more work for some people. <---and I think the gov't should give some sort of tax break or something to the stations that make that installation.

Cece00 replied: There isnt one answer...a bunch of things need to happen.

Open up ANWR & the coasts for drilling & green light the oil shale (did you know that we dont drill off our coasts but OTHER countries to...yes, thats right, other countries get oil from OUR coast and sell it TO US...

>>From ANWR to off-shore development such as Lease Area 181 in the Gulf of Mexico, we have identified oil and natural gas reserves that can be developed and used responsibly. Yet time and time again efforts to increase supply, and reduce prices, are blocked. For instance, ten years ago President Clinton vetoed development in ANWR.

For decades, the minority party has blocked one effort after another to responsibly develop the energy resources our country possesses, transforming vast areas of opportunity into "The No Zone."

Because of current U.S. policy, U.S. companies are prohibited from developing oil fields that lie in Cuban waters and come within 50 miles of Florida.

However, Cuba is exploring and potentially developing these oil fields, estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey to possess more oil than the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge, and Cuba is partnering with China and other countries, such as Spain, France, and Canada.

Now, as we sit idly by, worried about development 100 miles from Florida, China is actively exploring oil fields 50 miles from Key West, Florida. U.S. companies are barred from working in this area because of U.S. policy . So, instead of allowing the most environmentally responsible companies to operate there and increase our domestic supply, China, who has a dismal environmental record, is sucking close, lucrative oil reserves dry.


Build more refineries...more oil does no good without the refineries to process it.

Work on alt. fuel sources to cut down on our natural gas consumption (you cant stop using natural gas 100%, even with other technologies)- also encourage people ALL OVER THE WORLD (its not just the US who needs to cut down on the consumption) to cut down on consumption....an alt fuel source isnt going to happen overnight, which is why we still need to get oil from the coasts/ANWR/shale...

Govt should not FORCE oil companies to set profit limits but they should really really really put pressure on them to keep prices down (they should be doing this with the drug companies, too, for that matter)

STOP MAKING ETHANOL from CORN. Its pointless, it was a HORRIBLE idea that has backfired by NOT lowering gas prices, and actually USING more gas, and has now made the cost of food go up. They need to stop with this corn ethanol business literally this minute. You can make it from a TON of different plants, including kudzu, which is an annoying plant anyway....go use that or something...stop using corn.

my2monkeyboys replied: 100% agreed, Cece.