Re-Energizing the Republican Energy Policy

THE RANT.US ^ | MARCH 17, 2005 | LT. COLONEL ROBERT LANZOTTI

[CHARLITE]

Being a conservative political writer is so blasted easy these days. Subjects to delve into are never lacking as there appears to be nary a single issue that Democrats and Republicans can agree upon. Like failed marriages, donkeys and pachyderms seem to have irreconcilable differences on virtually everything.

Here are a ‘few fresh pickings from the political grapevine‘….taxes, tort reform, health care, homeland security, right to life issues, social security reform, war on terror, foreign policy, the deficit, judicial nominations, immigration, and, oh yes, the energy policy. That’s my pick of the day. Energy.

I got energized when Congress rejected the Republican Energy Policy Act of 2003 and wrote an article for TheRant.us entitled, “Drill Or Not To Drill, That Is The Question!“ When the piece was posted on 9/23/04, the cost of oil was slowly beginning to creep its way upward through $40 and onward to $50 per barrel. We have gone past that $50 milestone and the creeping continues ($55.65 as of 3/9/05). Americans are becoming increasingly alarmed as the impact on household utilities, gasoline at the pump, and overhead costs for our airline industry slams its way into the American economy.

Maybe it’s time to use a little common sense in this matter. Thomas Paine’s 1776 Common Sense pamphlet is historically credited with helping overcome a dependency on the benevolence of King George III and the colonists’ subservience to British monarchy. Where in the world is our common sense today? We’ve allowed the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Counties (OPEC), a cartel of eleven foreign countries, to collectively hijack our economy by dictating oil production and price.

We have become dependent on a commodity provided by the Middle East of which we own an abundance of within our own borders. We pay OPEC countries their asking price for this commodity that needlessly devastates our economy and enslaves us to the very region of the world where we want to promote capitalism, free trade, and liberty. We bow to a cartel and pray that their production quota and price per barrel doesn’t adversely affect our economy. Oh, we desperately need that Common Sense pamphlet!

Common sense argues against our economic masochism, but love of animals and the sanctity of an arctic tundra, labeled ‘pristine” by our tree-hugging environmentalists, is powerful medicine and they have sold it well. Americans have been falsely led to believe that drilling for oil within the earth’s crust, in a very small piece real estate within the vast Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), will devastate the pristine land and destroy its animal life. Most people actually believe that drilling in ANWR will decimate herds of caribou. The truth is that the caribou population in the Prudhoe Bay area, just 60 miles west of ANWR, has flourished since drilling was initiated there some 30 years ago. The caribou seem to get along just fine with oil wells. It is estimated that our planet loses six species of plant and/or animal life every hour of every day. For all the good intentions of the environmentalists, they do not have the wherewithal and cannot stop or even slow down this phenomena.

Environmentalist would also prefer that you believe that the amount of oil within the ANWR is not significant enough to risk harm to its wildlife nor disruption of its natural geological state. In 1968, the largest oil deposit ever found in North America was discovered at Prudhoe Bay. Environmentalists decried this discovery, calling it just a few months supply, not worthy of exploration. It took nine years, almost 8 billion dollars, and 1,347 government permits to build the 800 mile Trans-Alaska Pipeline. Since its completion in 1977, 13 billion barrels of oil have been pipelined from Prudhoe Bay.

Today, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carries one-half of its capacity of oil and the search continues for a new supply to keep it operating. Without a new oil supply, the entire pipeline system will be decommissioned, disassembled, and removed. Drilling in nearby ANWR promises the best likelihood for regaining full utility of the pipeline and an end to foreign oil dependency. The indigenous citizens of ANWR as well as the entire state of Alaska support renewed oil exploration of ANWR. The tide is turning among Americans in the lower 48 as well. The opposition, of course, are the Democrats, the environmentalists (democrats), and the OPEC hijackers.

Interestingly, Senator John Kerry recently jumped into the fray and declared that he would lead the fight to stop President Bush’s proposal to drill at ANWR. Kerry referred to the President’s plan as a “phony, absolutely fraudulent offering,“ and promised to lead the fight to combat the Republican energy plan. The following is a reiteration of the Rant editor’s comment regarding Senator Kerry’s ridiculous pledge….“Amazing that Senator Kerry can find time to champion this cause, yet he still can’t find time to sign his Form 180 which he pledged to do on NBC’s Meet the Press a little over a month ago.” As for me, I just look forward to seeing Kerry get his clock cleaned again by ‘W.’ Just one more once. And, of course, it will be nice to say, “Arrivederci“ to our OPEC business associates and subsequently watch their oil prices tumble.

About the Writer: Robert Lanzotti attended the University of Illinois on a football scholarship from 1955-1960. Through the ROTC program, he was commissioned into the Regular Army as a second lieutenant in 1960 and retired as a lieutenant colonel twenty-five years later. Robert was an Airborne Ranger and a Master Army Aviator. During his two tours in Vietnam he flew more than 1,000 hours of combat helicopter time and was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses, four Bronze Stars, and twenty-four Air Medals. He commanded a helicopter unit within the 1st Cavalry Division and served as operations officer of the Army's largest divisional aviation group. Robert served fours years on the Army General Staff at the Pentagon. His formal education includes: University of Illinois, BS, ALS; Hampton University, MA, Ed. Admin.; and Marymount University, ME, Ed. Robert also graduated from the Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk, VA. Today, Robert is an elementary school teacher in Smyrna, a suburb of Atlanta, where he lives with his wife Vicki and their golden retriever, Rocky.

Comments: rlanzotti@mindspring.com