Do we have an Energy Crisis, an Oil Crisis, or both – or neither? And does any of this matter?

According to what to what I observe, hear, see on TV, read and can deduce, we do, indeed, have an energy crisis in the U.S. so I’m a little baffled that so little is being done about it – especially when the lead times to take remedial action are so long.

For instance, building a new refinery in a rush still takes five to seven years, and nuclear plants tend to take even longer. Even wind farms take more time than you would think both because the turbines are highly specialized devices – and so not exactly mass produced (as yet) - and because environmental objections can take for ever. So, all in all, it is probably a good idea to think in terms of a gap of ten years between initiating an energy project and having power come on line. True natural gas power generation plants can be brought on stream faster, but not only is natural gas becoming frighteningly expensive, but – just like oil - it’s running out.

Aren't I a cheery fellow!

Mind you, I don’t expect oil and gas to actually run out – there will always be a few barrels of oil hidden in the rock a few thousand feet down in some inhospitable spot somewhere – but I do expect the price of these diminishing commodities to go up and up and up; which is exactly what is happening. Do you know, oil was around $22 a barrel at the beginning of Bush’s reign – and the price of natural gas has quadrupled since 2002? Of course the prices slide back a bit now and then because that is the nature of a marketplace where heavy speculation is involved, but the trend line is unmistakable and the trajectory is up. This is arguably a good thing if you are on Viagra, but is not so good if you are paying the bills.

Worse, the U.S. is more dependent on energy than just about anywhere else in the world. Not only do we use over twice as much energy as Europeans, for instance, but we are unique amongst developed nations in having developed a suburban based lifestyle where one is virtually entirely dependent upon the car – and where sidewalks are lacking more often than not. Then, to add insult to injury, we have scandalously neglected the public transport systems in our cities to the point where you need a car there too in many cases. And, as for Amtrak, it is little more than a decrepit political football although the potential of rail in various forms is plain to be seen.

I have a private theory that Americans are as car obsessed as they are because only when driving do they actually feel in control and relatively safe from the cares of the world such as job insecurity, excessively long work hours, credit card debt, doctor bills, marital problems, mutinous children, and all those other issues that the American Way of Life likes to surround you with. Now, exactly why one should feel safe when speeding along a crowded freeway at seventy miles an hour is a good question. Here, all I can recommend is that you drive over to your shrink to find the answer.