THE GREAT ENERGY DECEPTION

Dear readers, are you ready for another ride on the energy roller-coaster?  Unfortunately, we are currently shackled to the vagaries of Middle East politics; and, accordingly, the rise and decline of oil prices for the U.S. is largely dictated by events outside this country.

Sad but true, if you happen to be planning a trip, your plans might be affected by what is about to take place in Syria.  Summer is winding down, and students are back in their classrooms.  However, that post-Labor Day price of $3.25 a gallon just might be on the verge of heading north.

Americans, more than ever, are being affected by the rising costs of energy.  With real wages falling precipitously in comparison with those of a decade ago, family budgets increasingly show greater proportions going to the cost of energy.

In a recent pontification, our president averred that the U.S. possesses only 2% of the world's oil reserves, but consumes 20% of output.  That's nothing short of scary! But it was also dancing around the truth. It might be a good time, then, to ask why our president is not being straight forward with us

It seems that the 2% figure only includes reserves that are presently being exploited.  And that accounts for a mere fraction of total American oil reserves.  For example, although Texas is the number 1 oil-producing state with 7 billion barrels of reserves recognized by the federal government, that doesn't tell the real story.

THE EAGLE FORD FORMATION

Have you been through Carrizo Springs, Kennedy, Karnes or Beeville lately?  These locations were formerly on my list of shortcuts of going and coming in Texas But, no more!  Those formerly sleepy backwaters are now abuzz with all sorts of traffic, owing to the boom coming out of the Eagle Ford Shale Formation, which extends through 24 counties from South Texas into East Texas.  That boom is expected to get larger and larger, further enhancing the output of "Texas tea."

So, let's examine that 2% figure more closely.  The 2% referred to in no way includes the more than 400 billion barrels of technically recoverable crude oil.  Neither does it take in more than 800 billion barrels of oil shale.  Included in these totals would be 86 billion barrels in the outer continental shelf, 48 billion in Alaska's North Slope, 12 billion in ANWR and 19 billion in Utah's tar sands.  It does not include billions of barrels in southwest Wyoming, where the surface management is under the control of our federal government.  When all of these recoverable energy resources are totaled, they come to 60 times more than the numbers recited by the president.  In fact, if we went about developing these reserves, they are more than enough to make this country oil-independent for the next 200 years.  Just imagine what that independence could do for us.  We would be relieved from much of Middle East instability, we would not be sending money to people who hate us, and we could be developing "green" energy sources at the same time.

A good case in point with regard to pursuing energy independence is a quick look at oil prices over the last several decades.  Obviously, the trend is for prices to continue their upward spiral.  Given that fact of life, is it reasonable to continue to subsidize authoritarian regimes which could at any time wreak economic havoc on the U.S. and its citizens?

                                          Furthermore, a perusal of a list of the top 6 foreign oil suppliers to the U.S. reveals 4 that we might very well wish to curtail doing business with. I could do without, for example, forwarding U.S. dollars to further the sybaritic lifestyles of the more than 5,000 royal princes in Saudi Arabia. Then, there is Nigeria, which is subject to all sorts of internal turmoil, which more often than not affects the country's oil fields.  As for Iraq, despite the billions and billions of American dollars wasted, Iraq will eventually slide into a Shia vs. Sunni civil war. Furthermore, Iraqis will never be grateful for the expenditure of American blood and treasure.  Turning to Venezuela, that oil-rich country seems perpetually trapped in the late Hugo Chavez's "Bolivarian Revolution."  Let's stop dealing with that pack of leftist blockheads!  And that would leave us with our neighbors, Mexico and Canada. Surely, between ourselves and the resources coming from our neighbors, we can head toward energy independence. So, let's get on with it!  The security of future generations depends on it!  And, above all, we cannot afford to continue allowing this country's leaders to obscure the total energy reserves that we are blessed with.  And neither can we continue to place ourselves in jeopardy over energy.

I recall a time when presidents were not afraid to reveal the truth, regardless of the political consequences that the truth might portend.  In particular, I recall a man from Missouri who was not afraid to take the heat. His name was Harry S Truman, and he had a saying which every chief executive should keep in mind:  "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen."   In the last 5 years, we have been repeatedly duped by leaders who prefer obfuscation to clarification.  And that is particularly true when it comes to energy.  Let's set about changing that!  And, if they can't stand the heat, then by all means they should vacate that kitchen.