HeatherN wonders if there is a way to lighten the USA’s dependance upon oil.
When I was growing up in California, pretty much everyone drove everywhere. When I was 16, I was the odd one out as someone who didn’t have a driver’s license and a car. Ten years later in the U.K., I only know three people who have their own cars. A whole lot of people I know don’t even have a driver’s license. I think a large part of that is to do with public transportation. Brits complain about their bus and train system a lot, but it’s a sight better than what we get in much of the U.S.
However, it’s also due to the cost of oil in Europe versus the U.S. As this article explains, most of Europe is paying at least twice as much per litre than the U.S. And yet, the cost of oil in the U.S. is a much bigger political issue than it is in much of Europe. Part of why it’s a bigger political issue is because the U.S. uses so much more oil than any country in Europe. And part of why the U.S. uses so much oil is because it costs less and because public transportation is lacking. So it turns into something of a cycle. The U.S. uses more oil because it costs less, but now it’s dependent on that oil use and so people want the cost to stay low.
I’m of the opinion that the cycle has to be broken on multiple fronts. Better public transportation would certainly help. The U.S. could also take a step back and realize that the price of oil is actually something it doesn’t have direct control over. And I’m a progressive liberal, so of course I’m all for alternative fuel sources.
So what do you think the solution(s) is/are to the U.S.’s political obsession with the price of oil?
Photo of Oil Rig courtesy of Shutterstock
US oil consumption has been sinking since 2005.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-29/u-s-was-net-oil-product-exporter-in-2011.html
We probably don’t need to do anything as the trend is already moving in the correct direction.
And yet it’s as politicized as ever…and really I think that’s as big of an issue as how much the U.S. uses.