ANWR

[lyricae]

So I discussed this subject with my Mom while I was in AK after seeing a commercial on TV regarding the subject. The commercial showed a picturesque area of Alaska that the meany oil villains were interested in despoiling. The truth? The beautiful scenery shown in the main media is NOT the land in question. The land in question is an area of

Comments

[kathrynt]

The issue I have with that is that ugly parts of the world are important to ecosystems, too, and from what I've heard, drilling in ANWR won't actually make more than a three-cent difference in the price of gas -- and not for years, at that.

[lyricae]

But drilling in Alaska will make more difference than that. It's not, in my opinion, only about whether the difference it makes is three dollars or three cents or any number in between. Both sides of every political debate I have seen have said that we have to eliminate or at the very least reduce our country's dependence on foreign oil. So we do things to reduce that dependence. We try to eliminate our needs for oil by changing the cars we drive, for example. But in the end, we are going to always need oil for something. Is it better then that we destroy the important ecosystems in another country and pay more for oil than is necessary? If we are going to become a country that relies on our own resources then we should start using our own resources. That doesn't mean there isn't a price, there is always a price. In this case, it is one that the vast majority of Alaskans are willing to pay.

[kathrynt]

See, that's my gig -- according to the sources I've read, ANWR drilling *won't* make a long-term difference in our foreign oil importing. If I thought it would, I'd definitely feel differently about it.

Edited to add: in January, John McCain opposed drilling in ANWR too, although in less strenuous terms than me. Has he definitely now come out in favor of ANWR drilling specifically?

[lyricae]

I'm not referring to McCain or Sarah here. Just the public opinions about ANWR and the deceptions that are being propagated to prevent it. If I were shown only the first pictures on that blog I would be opposed as well. But when you see the actual land in question, though it may contain an ecosystem, it is not an area that has much use. Much of the year it is covered in ice so deep that very little could survive it. The rest of the year it is either swampy or for a short time very dry. Whatever ecosystem exists there is not one that is worth the cost of our reliance on foreign sources. It is only a very small example of the larger picture. The US has oil available that is not being tapped because of the potential environmental risks. I think it's time to do some hard looking at those risks and find out whether they are as egregious as the mass media would lead us to believe they are and to start looking at home for what we need instead of looking to other countries.