Posted on 11/27/2005 5:12:15 AM PST by kellynla
Americans thirsty for fuel are looking to Canada, which stands ready to capitalize on its historic role as the United States' leading supplier of energy.
Canada, with the world's second-largest reserves of oil, is already the biggest and most reliable provider of electricity, oil, gasoline, uranium and natural gas to the United States.
But the massive commerce in energy between the countries each day generally escapes notice because the transactions are more often free of the political tensions that pervade U.S. relations with other major energy suppliers, such as Iraq and Venezuela.
Electricity flows across the 4,000-mile-long border as easily as water and air. A network of pipelines links Canada's rich oil and gas fields in the western province of Alberta with U.S. refineries in Chicago that feed essential fuels to drivers and homeowners in the Midwest.
The close and well-tuned energy relationship with Canada has attracted renewed attention and appreciation from U.S. leaders this year as worries about unstable supplies of oil in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and even the hurricane-prone Gulf of Mexico have mounted, causing political and economic distress.
President Bush said the United States is eager to see Canada ramp up production from its enormous fields of sands mixed with oil in northern Alberta -- a treasure trove whose 174 billion barrels of proven reserves is second only to Saudi Arabia's in size.
Canada already is supplying the United States with nearly 1 million barrels a day of crude from the oil sands. But because deriving oil from the sands is laborious and costly, increased production will not come quickly.
The oil companies making claims in the Alberta reserves plan to triple production to 3 million barrels a day
(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...
American politicians are getting ready for an election and fear the leftists influence on the outcome of drilling in
places like Anwar. One area congressperson had such a close race he flipped on drilling in Anwar to impress certain voters and it was not the ones that put him there or voted in county committee to give him a boost to congress. He is paying attention to the extreme left conservancy movement that has clout and money in this area. It is a shame that blackmail works. It is a shame he has no backbone.
The big problem is that Alberta is not "Canada" -- and the whine is rising in volume for Alberta to "share" its income with the "Have Not" provinces (i.e. everybody else) rather than becoming capitalistic and probably separating from "Canada" in the end.
This article has likely been written by someone who has not been following the current situation in Canada and who imagines that "Canada" is a big amorphous blob up above the 48th.
Being as this would help bush, i'm not holding my breath in hopes of seeing it on CNN.
Albeta shares plenty of it's wealth already. The story you make reference to was one where a few lefties in Leftyland Toronto were jealous that the Alberta Provincial government had enough left after being gouged by Ottawa to share with it's citizens. They felt they some deserved a share as well, rather than the tax increaces they recieve from their own provincial leaders(liberals)
They are every bit Canadians, But mostly conservative, not leftist moonbats like there are in Ontario.
54'40 or fight.
Invade Canada and take the Canucks oil.
But you have to take the bad with the good, and that means taking Quebec as well. Carefull what you wish for. :o)
Well, ok, invade Western Canada only. Leave a "rump" government in Ottawa. Would that be ok????
won't be that easy to * TAKE * our oil...it's in the sand :P
you'd have to find a better way to extract the bitumen...how many diamond cutter blades do you havE?
Did you like the "rump" government in Ottawa idea??? I thought it fitting.
Its been a while since I investigated the economics of this (I did so in the context of considering investment in Canadian oil trusts) ... but my understanding is that extraction from the sands is cost prohibitive at or below current oil prices. They know how to get the oil - it just costs a lot to do it and the quality is not as good as that from other sources. I seem to recall a $70/barrel threshold level at which it becomes profitable to go after the sands in a big way. These are all foggy memories so don't hold me to the numbers. Canada has huge amounts of oil that will likely come out of the ground some day but we will all be paying a lot more for fuel at that time.
Actually it might be better to give Alaska to Canada, so they can get the oil out.
Thats a good idea.
Living 8 miles from the border here in alaska gives one a different perspective. Funny thing is most people here don't distinguish the area and people are being two separate countrys. Friends, relatives, common values, economics and proximity seem to connect Alaska with the Yukon. The politics is almost not an issue. I will say that Canada does some things better than America; ex. how they are assimilating the Indian villages into the modern world through economic investment/development in their villages. You are going to see conservative natives that are contributors to society down the road in Canada.
How conservative are Alberta conservatives? I mean compared to real American conservatives like Rush Limbaugh.
Albertans are far more Canadian than Ontarians. Ontarians are more European.
I don't think you would have to invade Alberta. Just make them a very good offer and help them separate from the ROC. They're ready.
The politicians and environmentalist fence-sitters ought to just tell the eco-nuts and environMENTAList whackos to buzz off, and open up our great country to oil, coal and gas extraction. The incentive is definitely there for oil and gas.
A few years back I heard noises about how Quebec was having wet dreams about joining the US, and I'm thinking, "cold, frosty day in hell".
But that's the reason I was asking about how conservative are Alberta conservatives. I mean the last thing we need is more RINOs or liberals in Congress.
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