If Oil crosses $200 per Barrel, People Will Be Screaming to Drill ANWR and off the East Coast

[JCMach1]

especially off of Florida.

What will the Dems do then? Come down on the side of popular opinion, or vote their conscience?

Will it be an issue this Fall?

Imagine another decent-sized Gulf hurricane that causes significant supply disruption. $175-200 would not be outside of the realm of possibility between now and November.

What do we do about the 300lb Oil Gorilla in the room?

[tekisui]

1. The Pukes have been screaming that for some time.

I am not so sure the People will be. If they understand that it will do nothing to affect the price at the pump, they won't raise hell about it.

[bunkerbuster1]

6. Agreed; I think this is a stir-up-the-base issue

They love to go on about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (note that I always spell it out on first usage, since GOP lackeys hate to acknowledge that it's a Wildlife Refuge and would rather make it sound like "war") and how those crazy tree-hugging DemonCrapz want to protect some "frozen wasteland" that "isn't good for anything anyway".

The truth is, it's a pain in the ass to drill there, oil companies need significant subsidies to make this even remotely profitable, and the supposed benefit to our energy independence doesn't go away if we choose to put off drilling there for another decade (when, presumably, new discoveries about oil extraction may make the process less nasty to wildlife, if drill we must.)

BTW, I'm kind of an agnostic on this; I'd be willing to sell out on the Refuge in exchange for truly tough belt-tightening conservation measures in exchange, that would take place BEFORE we ever drilled there. It'd have to be the mother of all deals, but I'm willing to go there. After all, it's not like you can drill anywhere without having some kind of detrimental environmental impact, whether in Alaska or in Saudi Arabia.

[EstimatedProphet]

24. You just revealed the driving force

oil companies need significant subsidies to make this even remotely profitable

The real reason that Big Oil wants to drill there - milk the government cash cow for subsidies. If they could find a way, they'd try to make the government subsidize them for no production whatsoever.

[babylonsister]

2. Recognize that drilling in ANWR will produce a whopping 75 cent

per barrel savings. This is not mentioned often enough IMO. It sure would take the wind out of some sails.

2008 Govt study: Drilling ANWR would save .75¢ a barrel (Dearborn)
Date: 2008-06-09, 11:08AM EDT


•• WASHINGTON — If Congress were to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, crude oil prices would probably drop by an average of only 75 cents a barrel, according to Department of Energy projections issued Thursday.

The report, which was requested in December by Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, found that oil production in the refuge "is not projected to have a large impact on world oil prices."••

http://detroit.craigslist.org/pol/713350581.html

As for drilling off the coast of FL, the GOP is running with another lie:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=3431736

[EstimatedProphet]

22. And in addition, we won't get but a few months worth of oil at our rate of consumption

[niceypoo]

3. There is no shortage

Speculators are driving the price up, exactly what happened in California when Enron manipulated energy prices. It will all come crashing down.

[JCMach1]

5. You may be proven right, but WHEN will the bubble burst?

[ToeBot]

27. My guess? 30 seconds after the Republicans get their filthy hands on ANWR.

Yes, I really believe they are that petty and vindictive.

[JCMach1]

34. LOL- You are probably right

[Xenotime]

8. You are correct.

[Terry_M]

4. The thing is, that the oil prices have already risen

to account for the possibility of hurricanes... How about someone actually acts to take speculation of the goddamned market?

[Buzz Clik]

7. Vote their conscience versus economic reality? You've got to be kidding. When did that ever happen?

Our best hope for ANWR happened six or seven years ago. We had the opportunity to sit down and "negotiate" a reasonable approach to exploration of the area knowing full well that we would be facing peak oil, increased demand for oil, and eventual irresistible pressure to drill the region.

If we allow ANWR to be opened under panic, we'll have diminished capacity to insist that environmental/ecological considerations be high on the list of priorities. Negotiating from a position of strength will happen now, not later.

[endarkenment]

9. The MSM will be screaming that.

What we should be talking about is what we can do now to increase access to and the quality of mass transit, provide tax breaks for those at the bottom most affected by fuel price increases, provide tax incentives for home owners and businesses to add geothermal, wind, and solar power power generation to their buildings, provide incentives for R&D of new clean energy sources etc. Why do we also have to sink down to the stupidest shortterm knee jerk rethuglican approach to problem solving? They've stuck their heads in the sand for 35 years on this issue, and now that it is a crisis their only answer is more of the same. What we do about the the 300 lb gorilla in the room is let it out the door and get to work on building a sustainable society.

[raccoon]

10. Even if they did, it would be years before any oil from ANWR or wherever

new drilling spot would make it to the gas pumps.

[RB TexLa]

11. I'd be fine with them just continuing to pump out of the ones drilled on my land.

[safeinOhio]

12. But it is OUR oil

it is owned by "we the people". Big Oil wants it, only to sell it back to us at a huge profit. We should set OUR price to them at $100.00/barrel, all profit going to benefit US. Pay for research. Balance the budget. Pay for health care. The public has to understand this point. It is our oil. Once it is taken from the ground it goes on the world market. If China will pay more, they get it, not us. That is what a world market means, not energy independence.

[JCMach1]

14. I am all for nationalization... In fact, let's do it in the first 100 days!

[nels25]

13. I have been advocating for over 6 weeks now

that this issue was coming, and that we as progressives stood a large stance of being caught on the wrong side of it in the perception of the general public.

McCain and the GOP can and will use this as an effective cudgel against us, the public at large just will not listen to the fine nuances of not drilling, when oil is south of $150 a barrel and other countries are hell bent on drilling in the gulf and other places and we are not.

If I had my guess the GOP will push for votes concerning drilling to put us on the defensive.

Unfortunately I can see some of the ads now.

Our carbon footprint and associated ideas while with merit are just to hard for the public to grasp as a general rule, heck I pay attention (or like to think I do) and I don't understand them.

This one is going to cause us trouble.:shrug:

[JCMach1]

15. That was my thinking as well- Obama will have to get out in front

of the issue pretty quick.

[DainBramaged]

18. Yup, a serious wedge issue, and maybe, just maybe this whole problem

with oil prices and supply is a conspiracy just to get the oil companies in a position to drill in Alaska and in the Gulf Coast (and in our National Parks for that matter).


Do not underestimate the power of the GOP noise machine.

[nels25]

33. My point exactly

Do not underestimate the power of the GOP noise machine.

[Canuckistanian]

16. They had FOUR YEARS to pass any needed legislation

And yet, they did NOTHING. "It's all the fault of Liberals", they said. "They won't let us drill".

Oh, really? Look at all that legislation they shoved down America's throats - The PATRIOT Act, The Military Commisions Act, The MBNA bankruptcy laws..... ENDLESS EO's, signing statements.... ALL against vehement protests from Liberals.

NOW they're saying that laws need to be passed?

Give me a break.

[Phred42]

17. As we have seen in the past few days - It's NOT a SUPPLY problem

It's a speculation problem

Time to NATIONALIZE the Oil, gas and Coal industries.
They have proven, consistently for years, that are NOT responsible enough to be allowed to control these resources.

Greed and megalomania do not trump patriotism and National Security.

And this is a matter of National Security

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why Oil Prices Are So High
http://www.alternet.org/story/87474/


Looking for villains around the gas pump? Look at the super-rich making bets with billions while regular people always lose.

In the late 1990s, we had the stock market bubble. That popped. Then we had the housing market bubble. And that popped. Last week the market for crude oil bubbled to an all-time high, nearly $140 per barrel. We seem today to be forever blowing bubbles. Maybe we should stop and ask why.
After all, back in the middle of the 20th century, our economy didn’t careen from one bubble to another. Why now all the bubbles — and busts? Here’s why. We’ve become too unequal. We have too much wealth concentrated in too few pockets.

Grand concentrations of private wealth, history tells us, have a nasty little habit of nurturing wasteful and witless speculation. Wasteful and witless speculation, news reports last week revealed, just happens to be the economic joker in the deck that's turbocharging our current surge in crude oil prices.

[bdamomma]

19. this is what they want us to do

we cannot let them do this. Not only will it destroy our environment, but it will put more money in those corporations who are just fueling this. We got to stop this.

[WildClarySage]

20. Just remind the voters how nice it will be to have

all that oil sitting there in the event that everywhere else has dried up. And how nice to be sitting on the alternative technology when the rest of them are scrambling to keep up!

[Treadwell]

21. who needs it

My car now runs on tears of shame. Plenty to go around.

[SammyWinstonJack]

23. Just remind the voters that whatever oil is found will be sold to the highest bidder and that won't

be US! We won't have access to one single drop of any oil from ANWR.

[RayOfHope]

25. They already are in my neck of the woods

and are placing the blame for oil prices square on the back of 'environmental do gooders' and the 'democrat party'. The comments on our newspaper website are absolutely disgusting. These idiots also think that oil companies are already paying their fair share of taxes and shouldn't be taxed further :eyes:

I just can't believe (okay, they are repubs, so I can) that they are so stupid as to think drilling in ANWR is the answer to the gas price problem.

[dysfunctional press]

26. we need to explain a few things VERY CLEARLY to the american people-

like how a combination of peak oil, global climate change, and islamic fundamentalism in the middle east REQUIRE that we curtail our addiction to petroleum.

we need an apollo-type program to develop a new means of powering personal/commercial vehicles that doesn't involve internal combustion engines.

i honestly think that most americans really do know what's needed- they just need/want the leadership to take us there.

[lonestarnot]

28. They'll be drilling under their own portapotties with the Black and Decker cordless.

[Nye Bevan]

29. We *should* drill in Alaska

We're talking about using 2000 acres out of about 20 million. That's equivalent to a 2 foot by 2 foot square out of a 1 acre lot.

Allow some drilling but with *huge* environmental safeguards, and with a pre-agreed levy on each barrel going straight to environmental causes (global warming and conservation).

[Lorien]

30. How would they get the oil out of ANWR? Air lift?

Even if the permafront were STILL permafrost it would take ten years and billions of OUR taxpayer dollars to build the infrastructure needed to pump oil out of ANWR. But as global warming has caused the permafrost to melt for a good part of the year, NONE of the roads that would be planned would be safe or stable. The only way to get in and out of that region safely is by plane/ helicopter. Better to invest money in clean, renewable energy development technologies.

[Bigmack]

31. If the government has to subsidize the oil companies....

to get them to drill in ANWR.... and I think the govt would have to to induce them to drill, why not agree to drilling with the following stipulations:

1. The oil companies must drill on their own dime.

2. All oil must be sold in the US market at the price agreed to on the contract.

3. The oil companies must agree to be monitored for environmental damage and cleanup costs.

I have a strong hunch the oil companies wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole.

It's a risk, but at least it would take the ANWR off the table.

[Javaman]

32. let them scream all they want. when they find out that it will take

between 6 and 8 years to get the first barrel on return, they might have second thoughts.

all the bs about drilling in those areas being pushed by the right wing is nothing more than psychological warfare.

It boils down to, "the Dems won't drill to save us!! but we will!!!"

When the first barrel percolates out of the ground, in the best case scenario, 10 years from now, it will have the effect of a fart in the wind on oil prices and/or demand.

it's nothing but BS being pushed by the right wing.

[Cleita]

35. And here is your reply!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3437957