Haven't I heard that we actually have more oil over here than what's in the Middle East, that their's is just cheaper to get to first? If that's true then dependency on their oil would eventually take care of itself.
Ron just like Jackee wants we are not alloud to even check for oil off the coast except for Texas , Louisiana , a couple blocks of Alabama and the couple of miles of Mississippi's coast.
Fla gulf coast no, the whole east coast no the whole west coast [ where proven fields lie untouched ] no.
All this banning of drilling came wayyy back in the sixties and early seventy's and was correct at the time.
Drilling was a messy business and little care was taken not to polute the enviornment.
Then came the clean water acts of 1973 and 1989 and suddenly everyone got Religion , or fined for their efforts.
As time went by technology fueled by demand improved and became SOP and LO and Behold Cheaper .
It's now accepted practice and the norm because of the obvious.
A. Fines
B Jail
C. Will not be alloud to remain in busines
Drilling changed and though not really Green , oil is still the best bang for the energy buck .
Drilling changed but no drilling in my backyard mentality leftover from the 50's and 60's is still the rule.
After Katrina Fla. was suddenly cut off from gasoline due to Refinery shutdowns and pipeline problems and I can tell you they were happy to see me arriving in Fort Walton Beach with a few million gallons of go juice.
Makes a fellow feel pretty good to help out that many folks!
This may be the reason for the Ethanol refinery's shutdown.
By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer
Fri Oct 26, 9:04 PM ET
UNITED NATIONS - A U.N. expert on Friday called the growing practice of converting food crops into biofuel "a crime against humanity," saying it is creating food shortages and price jumps that cause millions of poor people to go hungry.
ADVERTISEMENT
Jean Ziegler, who has been the United Nations' independent expert on the right to food since the position was established in 2000, called for a five-year moratorium on biofuel production to halt what he called a growing "catastrophe" for the poor.
Scientific research is progressing very quickly, he said, "and in five years it will be possible to make biofuel and biodiesel from agricultural waste" rather than wheat, corn, sugar cane and other food crops.
Using biofuel instead of gasoline in cars is generally considered to cut carbon dioxide emissions, which contribute to global warming, although some scientists say greenhouse gases released during the production of biofuel could offset those gains.
The use of crops for biofuel has being pursued especially in Brazil and the United States.
Last March, President Bush and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed an agreement committing their countries to boosting ethanol production. They said increasing use of alternative fuels would lead to more jobs, a cleaner environment and greater independence from the whims of the oil market.
Ziegler called their motives legitimate, but said that "the effect of transforming hundreds and hundreds of thousands of tons of maize, of wheat, of beans, of palm oil, into agricultural fuel is absolutely catastrophic for the hungry people."
The world price of wheat doubled in one year and the price of corn quadrupled, leaving poor countries, especially in Africa, unable to pay for the imported food needed to feed their people, he said. And poor people in those countries are unable to pay the soaring prices for the food that does come in, he added.
"So it's a crime against humanity" to devote agricultural land to biofuel production, Ziegler said a news conference. "What has to be stopped is ... the growing catastrophe of the massacre (by) hunger in the world," he said.
As an example, he said, it takes 510 pounds of corn to produce 13 gallons of ethanol. That much corn could feed a child in Zambia or Mexico for a year, he said.
Benjamin Chang, a spokesman for the U.S. mission to the United Nations, said the Bush administration didn't consider biofuel development a threat to the poor.
"It's clear we have a commitment to the development of biofuels," he said. "It's also clear that we are committed to combatting poverty and supporting economic development around the world as the leading contributor of overseas development assistance in the world."
Ziegler, a sociology professor at the University of Geneva and the University of the Sorbonne in Paris, presented a report Thursday to the U.N. General Assembly's human rights committee saying a five-year moratorium on biofuel production would allow time for new technologies for using agricultural byproducts instead of food itself.
Researchers are looking at crop residues such as corn cobs, rice husks and banana leaves, he said. "The cultivation of Jatropha Curcas, a shrub that produces large oil-bearing seeds, appears to offer a good solution as it can be grown in arid lands that are not normally suitable for food crops," he said.
Congress gets cudos for once again jumping through their Arse without thinking things through to the logical conclusion.
More demand brings shortages and higher prices.
I was wondering why corn prices are at such low rates.
Where does that leave us the public ?
We now need a new octaine additive really quick! I think.
Thanks Congress!
