US needs to make a strategic decision. If we keep NG/Oil at home we will have the most cheap energy source to power our factories and cars, or we sell it to the world who needs this badly. Right now the world buys NG at $ 12 to $ 15 per 1000 BTU. US consumers buy it at $ 4 to 5. If we export our NG that world price will drop but our domestic prices will rise to about $ 9 to $ 10. Here is the trade off. Higher prices means US may have a trade surplus in energy and tax revenues to help our gov pay down our debt/finance our military and political power against Russia and China. But it comes at a cost to the middle class as domestic prices will rise. On the other hand if we keep NG home we get low prices for factories and consumption, but we must find a way to balance our gov deficit which will eventually hold down US military and economic power. Both approaches have its trade offs and great implications to our future.
If you want nonentanglement, keep NG/oil home and power the middle class and industries and find a way to deal with the gov deficit over time. Under this scenario, the US cannot play empire till the deficit is squared away.
Sell the NG/oil overseas, fed gov will have a new revenue stream that can be used to pay down our debt, thus preserving US world power status, but the middle class will pay higher energy costs and temptation by neocons to play empire America. Thats my 2 cents in this matter.
The only fly in the ointment is that with the Russians supplying significant portions of the natural gas used in Europe, there comes a question of energy hegemony and influence. Europe, imho is going to have to develop enough of their own resources or import from other sources in order to retain any of their independence from that influence.
I think we’ll end up with a mixture, but I’d like to see manufacturing come back to the US, and for all the enviros griping the standards here are high enough.
That way, energy costs here would be kept lower while more of the middle class would be back to work.