California Offshore Oil Drilling is Not the Solution to Rising Gas Prices

Gas prices locally have reached $4.50 a gallon for regular unleaded gasoline, and no end is in sight. With the pressure on government administration to find a solution, President George W. Bush has gone back to what he knows best. Oil.

Recently the President proposed lifting the ban on oil drilling off the coast of California.

Thankfully, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger pointedly refused to even consider lifting the ban saying, "California's coastline is an international treasure. I do not support lifting this moratorium on new oil drilling off our coast."

It's often surprising how much better a governor Schwarzenegger is than Gray Davis was.

Similar responses to the President's statement came from the state's senators, Sen. Barbara Boxer who said all Bush wants to do is "drill, drill, drill," and Sen. Dianne Feinstein who aptly stated that the President has returned to his "mantra of drilling."

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. The two things Bush focused on before September 2001 were oil and education. With Afghanistan perpetually on the back burner, Iraq being the fiasco that it is, and general disinterest this administration has shown for the actual hotspots around the globe; it's obvious why Bush has returned to the things he knows best.

Even with President Bush and even Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (Arizona) pushing for the lift of the 1981 ban on offshore oil drilling, Californians (and indeed, Americans) should follow the examples set by the state government and tell Bush and McCain to back the hell off.

Contrary to what you may initially believe, this is not coming from an environmentalist. Granted I have been to such landmarks on the coast such as Point Reyes and seen magnificent pictures of Big Sur. However, my stance is from a practical and economical standpoint.

If the ban on offshore oil drilling were lifted, not only could currently unused oil platforms be used for renewed drilling, but new platforms could be constructed as well. The naïve observer might say that this directly allows for more crude to be pumped, which increases supply to meet demand, and thus keeps prices stable.

That's true, but it takes 2 - 4 years to construct an offshore oilrig. Consumers are looking for an immediate fix, and whereas oil companies and Mr. Bush want you to believe that lifting the ban on offshore drilling is an immediate solution, it really isn't. Direct benefits of renewed offshore drilling would be seen only seven to ten years down the road, definitely not an immediate fix.

Also, President Bush himself once stated that America is "addicted to oil." From what I've seen, feeding an addiction only makes it worse. So then why is Bush advocating more oil drilling? It's quite simple; he's sticking to what he knows.

This November, Americans can help keep California coastline pristine by voting for someone who thinks before acting, someone whose last name isn't McCain.