It's Time to Kick Our Foreign Oil Dependency!

Americans seem most of the time not paying attention. Our country, the greatest nation ever on earth, is at a crossroads of history. We have it in our ability, as we always have, to make the future for our children and their children an easier and more affordable world to live in. We also have it in our capabilities to make it a better, more livable place. All we have to do is act. It is that easy. Most importantly, it is logical and rational. Hopefully someone will read this and begin to do what is necessary to change the direction our country has been going in and bring about real change, not like the kind that politicians talk about. This is what is happening and this is what we can and must do.

First of all, prices in oil are still going up. They are increasing and thus the economy itself is being threatened. The very suggestion of a recession should send a message to all average citizens that there is something very wrong with the overall picture. The fact is that no one seems to know the real reason why, but it is simple economics: supply and demand are being manipulated before our very eyes and we are not doing anything about it. Think about this; the economy lives and dies from supply and demand of products and services and their popularity. If a product or service is not popular, the price of that product or service goes down. If the product or service is popular, price will gradually go up. Until demand reaches a high and then decreases, the price will stay as it is, sometimes even going up further if demand does not change drastically. There is also a law of marketing and business called the "elasticity of demand" which is based on the changing of prices and their effects on demand. It is said that a product is an inelastic demand product if the change in price does not effect in some way the demand for it. Oil seems to be the most obvious example of that. Even though prices have been increasing constantly, the demand of that product has not really changed. The opposite of this is elastic demand product, which is a product that price does change the demand for. An example of this might be, say, a head of cabbage. If the price of a head of cabbage goes up to four dollars, many people may not buy it and will try some other food source to take its place. So, what does this all mean? If we are not willing or able to change our demand for oil, it will keep increasing until either we do change or most of us cannot afford it. Scary, isn't it?

Oil affects everything else in business. A product being made is more expensive because it costs more in fuel to get its raw materials to the factory. The product that is finished is more expensive to deliver to the store because the truck or plane taking it has to pay more for gas. The truck driver or airplane company charges more to the retail company to deliver the product so that the retailer raises its price for that product to recoup the losses of higher delivery costs. The person buying the product is not just paying more for gas to drive to the store to purchase that product, they are paying more for the product itself. This is a vicious circle that will not end, and name another such product that affects every other. I don't think you will be able to. So oil prices are influencing the economy in an adverse way because a family having to pay more for basic staple and necessary items, including food and gas, will not be able to spend money on other things that keep the economy going and keep businesses paying employees to work. And yet Americans have the capability to stop this dead in its tracks. All we have to do is demand it.

Two things have to happen to save our economy from the ruining effects of oil consumption. We have rational reasons to do so. Why does America want to be dependent on foreign oil in the first place? Why do we not insist on changing where we get our oil and how much we pay for it. The oil market is a strange and twisted universe. Receipts from around the world show that plenty of oil is being drilled, and plenty of oil is being shipped. Two sources have pointed to the lack of oil refineries in this country as an ongoing concern. If we were to build new refineries, we could supply plenty of gas to the pumps. However, WE have to demand that this be done. Do you think that our politicians are going to take this action on their own? Most of them, as we all suspect, are earning revenue from stocks they hold in oil companies, so why should they? If you are alarmed at the gasoline prices you are paying, and the fact that it isn't going to get much better, than why not speak up? Our elected officials only act when we tell them they better. If we all send them messages that we are tired of what we believe is price gauging and record profit-making on the part of "big oil", then say so. The advantages of doing so are unbelievably positive and massive.

First of all, we stop paying high prices for oil so we can get back to doing what we do best: earning and spending, and hopefully saving, money. Second of all, we send a message to foreign countries and companies that we can do without their oil. Thirdly, we get off our dependency on those countries that, much of the time, are slamming us publicly and contributing to the funds of terrorists. Another point is that we can finally leave those countries alone who want us to do their dirty work, risking the lives of Americans who are fighting and dying for this country. What more motivation do we need?

The second thing that needs to happen is that Americans need to starting taking an interest in energy supply and our future. It is already possible to create alternative fuel sources and to produce vehicles that use them. In the second World War, I have already mentioned that the German Navy used hydrogen peroxide in their newer u-boats to generate energy. We have other sources as well. We also have enough oil in this country to run this nation's gas tanks for many decades, if we can find a way to drill for it and satisfy the environmentalists. The greatest country in the world and we can't find a way? This would be a disappointing failure on our part if this was true. We have sent shuttles into space, are able to cram a huge amount of memory into a pinhead, and yet we are not able to drill safely for oil? We can and we will do it. Once again, if Americans instigate action.

None of our problems with consuming and being dependent on oil are rational. We have every reason to want to do something that will be our benefit. Let's face it, even if you believe in the global warming thing, why would you not want an alternative and cleaner source of fuel or energy? Doesn't it make sense all the way around that we need to do something NOW! We as Americans owe it to both our ancestors and our descendants to keep this nation strong and independent from foreign governments. Imagine what would happen if some foreign ruler decided to cut our oil off altogether. I don't want to even consider it.

One other thing; some day in the far future oil will no longer be available. I know that the experts say it is a long way off, but why wait? We can be, as the remaining superpower on the globe and the leader of the world, the first to move to better and more efficient sources of energy. One product can make or break our pocketbooks and we have the power to do something about it. We also can remove the threat of oil shortages and speculative pricing on the market as factors in how well or how poorly our economy functions. The world use to depend on us to lead the way, now we seem to depend on them. All of us can really make a difference. Get on the phone or on your computer, get in touch with your local representatives or public officials, and do some complaining, before it gets worse. The future will thank you. Through doing this we will stay the greatest nation in the world, and we can kick our oil dependency on foreign countries.