HONEST EXPECTATIONS by T. Edwin Perry
The White House has announced that Tuesday, June 15, President Obama will be addressing the Nation regarding the Gulf Oil Spill. My sarcastic response to this announcement is, “Gee, really? Another speech?” But my Honest Reaction is a bit more serious.
First, let’s be fair about something: The spill in the Gulf is a horrible accident, and there are certainly plenty of people to bear the blame for the severity of the incident. No one is saying that the leak isn’t a serious issue, or that the ramifications of the incident won’t be far-reaching and significant. Like the spill of the Exxon Valdez tanker in 1989, the environmental impact is going to influence the fishing industry, the oil industry and the gulf tourism industry…possibly for generations. It is an unmitigated disaster, and it COULD have been avoided.
The question that I have about the President’s Address is this: Will he spend his time continuing to point the finger of blame at the Administration of President Bush, or will he address the regulations that made this disaster possible? Will he continue the rhetoric of “Green Energy Now” with no proven technology to get us there, or will he address the fact that the Government’s well-meaning but ill-advised environmental regulations forced the placement of the Deepwater Horizon so far offshore that this inevitable disaster occurred where the water was too deep to reasonably permit for the necessary repairs? Will he reach the conclusion that all of this was the fault of the Private Company that operated the rig, or will he address the fact that the Clinton Administration, the Bush Administration, and his OWN Administration allowed for unsafe conditions, even after inspections proper inspections?
It seems unlikely to me that the President will do anything more than strike a pose and point the finger at Private Industry as a target of “whose ass to kick.” I doubt that he’ll say anything more sincere than to reiterate his belief that BP should be required to “pay for the clean-up.” I doubt that he’ll conclude any solution other than MORE government regulation and less drilling, ensuring that the oil production will move further offshore, into deeper waters, becoming MORE unsafe, and, eventually, outside of the territories of the United States. (This, by the way, is WHY the United States became so dependant on Foreign Oil in the first place. Do a little research into the history of OPEC sometime.) Companies, like BP, will leave and we will find ourselves without he necessary resources to provide for our energy needs. Some people might find that idea comforting. Those people are idiots.
The Oil Industry contributes to more than just energy. Without oil, we wouldn’t have plastic, meaning that everything from garbage bags to medical catheters would be unavailable. Even the “synthetic” lubricants used in our cars are based from the oil that occurs naturally and is obtained by rigs like the Deepwater Horizon. The solution isn’t LESS oil: it’s about SAFER oil.
There’s plenty of oil and natural gas available on-shore or in much shallower waters offshore, which would make the drilling, pumping and transportation of oil much cheaper and safer than what we deal with today. The oil industry currently provides thousands of jobs, and could provide for thousands more if permitted to expand. Without the adverse Government regulations imposed by the “Well-Meaning” Environmentalists, Private Industries would be willing to invest more money into more efficient and productive means of refining that oil into the products that we need. (There has not been a new refinery built in the United States for over 30 years. Can you think of anything else we use EVERY DAY that hasn’t seen improvement since 1980?) By allowing for drilling on land, we could cut our dependence of foreign oil production to a small fraction of what we use, saving tremendous amounts of money that could…wait for it…be used to develop cleaner, more efficient and more reliable sources of energy. But those who demand “Green Energy” today are asking everyone to take three steps back and wait until the technology “magically appears” for everyone to use. That isn’t how innovation occurs: not in the United States, and not anywhere else, for that matter. Without some potential financial reward, innovation will always remain out of reach. It’s the nature of Capitalism.
So what will President Obama have to say? I HOPE it will be something worthwhile, but, based upon the most recent rhetoric coming out of the White House, I somehow doubt it.
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