Why won't the do nothing Congress do anything about high gas prices???

Question

The dems need to open up exploration and stop holding up progress toward energy independance. The argument that oil companies have 60+ million acres availaible don't fly. Do they think there's oil under every inch of that. Only a fool would think that...

Answer 1

In the first place, I seriously doubt that any of them have suffered directly from the high prices.  They have no concept of what the average American goes through to get to work or put food in the cupboard.  They are too busy 'greening' the cafeteria and worrying about steroid abuse in baseball.  In the second place, very few of them really understand economics or what is really happening.  They are too busy screeching "windfall profits" and extra taxes.  Do they really believe that won't be passed on to the consumer?  We do not make them account for the taxes they collect, what they spend, and the results of their actions.  If this were a business, they would all be out on the street.  Oil companies sell a lot of product.  They also carry on the steps to be able to sell that product.  Their profit margin is no greater than many companies, and smaller than lots.  Congress can't run their cafeteria system, what in the world makes anybody think they could run an oil company or a health care system?

Answer 2

Because they can blame the President and to h**l with the good of the Country.

Answer 3

They really don't know what to do.

Answer 4

I take it that you mean Congress should open up drilling in ANWR and lift the offshore drilling ban.  The asnwer is neither will lower gas prices or lead to energy independence.

The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, which supports drilling in the coastal plain on ANWR, estimates that currently there is 30 billion barrels of oil off shore that is subject to the moratoriaum.  The Energy Information Agency estimates that US could get 4.3 barrels out of ANWR over the next 12 years.  So, let's say opening up all areas to exploration would  generate another 35 billion barrels of oil.

Since the worlds total reserve is 1.1 trillion barrels.  All that exploration would increase supply by less than 4%.  Currently, the world uses  82 billion barrels of oil a day.  So, those untapped reserves represent about 40 days of oil consumption.  

Given the existing reserves and the current demand, which, unless something changes, is likely to grow dramatically (China currently consumers less than 1/3 of the oil that the US does), all that off shore drilling is going to have no affect on either oil prices or oil reserves.



Nor would it lead to energy indepence.  The US currently uses 20 million barrels a day. Thirty billion barrels of reserve is trivial in terms of establishing US energy independence.

That is even assuming all those reserves could be brought online immediately, which overestimates their impact.

The point here is that like the gas tax holiday, removing the off shore drilling moratorium or allowing drilling in ANWR is not a solution to the high price of gasoline.

Answer 5

OPEC controls gas prices, and the U.S. gov. doesn't control OPEC, we need to get off foreign dep. of oil. until we come up with a cheaper cleaner energy source, we need to use our own resources, and stop fighting wars for oil

Answer 6

No, only a fool would promote a "solution" that will put us right back in the same place as we are now, except use up all of our oil in the process.

Answer 7

Too busy on other more important things: blaming Bush,steroids in baseball,giving themselves raises,and going after right wing talk radio.