At this point, people object that increased drilling will do nothing to lower gas prices. They insist it will be decades, if not longer, before the increased exploration pays off in new supplies.
Well, they are wrong: Before the moratorium on offshore drilling, oil companies had already discovered billions of barrels of reserves on the California coast. A friend of mine in the industry says they could be online and pumping within two years.
What is more, announcing that we would allow more domestic production would quickly lower prices at the pump—because traders would be convinced that the supply is going up, not down.
Nobody would benefit more from offshore drilling than working Americans—those being hurt the most by the status quo.
It is galling to me to watch people who, doubtless, live in large homes, fly in private planes, and are not affected by the price of gas, build their idea of utopia on the backs of the poor. Christians must care about the environment, of course—but people, especially the poor, come first.
So, if our leaders are, indeed, ready to change this immoral status quo, I say, “What took you so long? And let’s get going now.”
|