Obama will not allow offshore oil drilling, will extend dependence on Middle East oil

[PJABBER]

I had to skip lunch today to start doing the economic projections for the latest anti-energy independence, anti-economic development, pro-foreign oil plan announced by our President this afternoon.

So soon after the WikiLeaks revelations detailing the instability and counter-US interests of a wide variety of countries, particularly those in an unstable Middle East, it is true to form that Obama is going to place our economy further in their hands.

While the United States has huge oil and gas reserves, both on-shore and off, much of these resources are now off limits by federal government fiat and will remain so for another seven years, or until Obama loses the Presidency and the Democrats the Senate in two years.

Instead of using domestic production, production that can be managed and monitored locally, the development of which will be a huge economic stimulus with direct and indirect local employment in economically depressed areas, along with a hugely stimulative lowering of energy costs everywhere else, we will now place our full faith and credit toward purchasing from other countries, most of whom are not our friends.

Salazar: Offshore oil drilling ban to be maintained in key areas

By Juliet Eilperin

Washington Post

December 1, 2010; 1:50 PM ET

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced Wednesday afternoon that the Obama administration will not allow offshore oil drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico or off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts as part of the next five-year drilling plan, reversing two key policy changes President Obama announced in late March.

"We are adjusting our strategy in areas where there are no active leases," Salazar told reporters in a phone call, adding that the administration has decided "not expand to new areas at this time" and instead "focus and expand our critical resources on areas that are currently active" when it comes to oil and gas drilling.

In March--less than a month before the BP oil spill--Obama and Salazar said they would open up the eastern Gulf and parts of the Atlantic, including off the coast of Virginia, to offshore oil and gas exploration. On both of those new areas, the administration said it would start scoping to see if oil and gas drilling would be suitable. The eastern Gulf remains closed to drilling under a congressional moratorium, but the White House indicated it would press to lift the moratorium if necessary.

Wednesday's announcement is sure to please environmentalists while angering oil and gas companies as well as some lawmakers from both parties who have pressed for continued offshore energy exploration in the wake of massive Gulf of Mexico spill.

According to multiple individuals briefed on the plan, the Obama administration will proceed with scoping for possible drilling in the central and western Gulf of Mexico and in the Arctic as part of the upcoming 2012-2017 Outer Continental Shelf program, while keeping the other areas off limits.

The administration is likely to conduct a new environmental assessment of Shell's plan to conduct drilling in the Arctic, the sources added.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), who has consistently pushed to restrict drilling in the eastern gulf, welcomed the news. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar called the senator Wednesday morning, according to Nelson spokesman Dan McLaughlin, but the two men did not speak yet because Nelson is chairing a hearing.

"Drilling off Florida's Gulf coast is banned at least until 2022, under a 2006 law passed by Senator Nelson," McLaughlin said. "The senator is pleased the White House has decided rightly to keep the area off-limits. He hopes Florida's next governor and the Legislature similarly will commit to protecting the state's tourism economy and unique environment."

Activists such as Margie Alt, executive director of Environment America, also praised the administration's plan, saying, "Today, anyone who loves our beaches, who fishes in the ocean or who depends on a healthy coastal economy can thank the Obama administration for protecting the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and the west coast of Florida from oil drilling. The BP disaster earlier this year was a tragic reminder that drilling is a dirty and dangerous business. The only way to truly keep our coasts and ocean ecosystems safe is to keep them rig free."

But the move could spark a backlash from business interests as well from both many congressional Republicans and conservative Democrats such as Sen. Manry Landrieu, who argue that curbing offshore energy exploration could exacerbate the nation's economic woes.

Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for 21st Century Energy, said in a statement, "The Administration is sending a message to America's oil and gas industry: take your capital, technology, and jobs somewhere else."

Rep. Doc Hastings (Wash.), the top Republican on the House Resources Committee, issued a statement Wednesday afternoon accusing the administration of "taking the wrong approach in responding to the BP spill and creating energy and energy jobs in this country. The answer isn't to give up and say, 'America can't figure it out, we'll rely on other countries to produce our energy.' The answer is to find out what went wrong and make effective, timely reforms to ensure that U.S. offshore drilling is the safest in the world."

 

[JSt0rm]

because the large tourist industry in the gulf is worth less then the large oil industry?

The answer to that is that the large tourist gulf industry is LARGER then the oil industry and they used their freedom of speech to lobby the government and get this stopped. Why do you hate lobbyists? Why do you hate business? Why do you hate free speech?

 

[Bowfinger]

I had to skip lunch today to start doing the economic projections for the latest [ RNC propaganda points redacted ] announced by our President this afternoon. ...

Ah, so which right-wing lobbying group or "think tank" do you work for?

 

[werepossum]

because the large tourist industry in the gulf is worth less then the large oil industry?

The answer to that is that the large tourist gulf industry is LARGER then the oil industry and they used their freedom of speech to lobby the government and get this stopped. Why do you hate lobbyists? Why do you hate business? Why do you hate free speech?

Yes, the large tourist industry in the gulf is worth less then the large oil industry. Much, much less. The oil industry is producing wealth; the tourist industry is merely consuming wealth. This should be so obvious as to go without saying.

 

[thraashman]

Where's Spidey when we need someone to have a "We The People" moment. Because the state of Florida was against allowing offshore drilling near Florida.

I'm sure you're wondering why this is happening Pjabber. Well, judging from your posts you've spent most of the last year completely brain dead. So I'll forgive you not knowing about this really serious oil spill that happened in the Gulf this spring. Go look it up. We'll wait.

 

[theeedude]

We the people don't want to depend on foreign oil, we want to be able to go to the beach and get all the oil we need!!!

 

[ayabe]

Right-wing climate deniers will not allow proper focus on green energy, will extend dependence on Middle East oil

 

[JSt0rm]

Yes, the large tourist industry in the gulf is worth less then the large oil industry. Much, much less. The oil industry is producing wealth; the tourist industry is merely consuming wealth. This should be so obvious as to go without saying.

Its worth more then the oil industry IN THE GULF. Who are you to dictate that the oil industry is more important?

 

[Blackjack200]

We the people don't want to depend on foreign oil, we want to be able to go to the beach and get all the oil we need!!!

Right-wing climate deniers will not allow proper focus on green energy, will extend dependence on Middle East oil

Ouch! This thread is starting to backfire.

 

[fskimospy]

It's a PJABBER thread, of course it's backfiring. You don't think he bothers to understand what he's talking about before he posts, do you?

All he needs is CTRL-C and CTRL-V!

 

[PJABBER]

Ouch! This thread is starting to backfire.

LOL! Replies depend on who is working and who is not!

I like to post as a diversion, but I am self-employed. I guess I should fire myself for taking so much time some days!

Fact is, when you are unemployed you can spend more time at the beach and you can certainly bike to the beach because you can't afford the cost of gas.

Everyone else has to take a position -

1. Hang out at the beach, support the oil and gas industries in South America, the Middle East and elsewhere, be dependent on their anti-American governments, and pay hugely for the privilege of buying their oil and developing their economies or,

2. Support domestic exploration and development, hire lots of American workers, pay less for gas and oil, be less and less dependent on foreign interests.

Oh yeah, accidents and spills do happen. They happen overseas as they do here, so don't plan on taking vacations there. Not that you could afford it when you calculate the cost of paying their bills when you pay yours.

 

[epidemis]

Right-wing climate deniers will not allow proper focus on green energy, will extend dependence on Middle East oil

They are no better than left-wing climate deniers!

 

[sandorski]

So much angst, only to achieve a few Months of Energy Independence. If it were possible using Oil anyway.

 

[Blackjack200]

LOL! Replies depend on who is working and who is not!

I like to post as a diversion, but I am self-employed. I guess I should fire myself for taking so much time some days!

Fact is, when you are unemployed you can spend more time at the beach and you can certainly bike to the beach because you can't afford the cost of gas.

Everyone else has to take a position -

1. Hang out at the beach, support the oil and gas industries in South America, the Middle East and elsewhere, be dependent on their anti-American governments, and pay hugely for the privilege of buying their oil and developing their economies or,

2. Support domestic exploration and development, hire lots of American workers, pay less for gas and oil, be less and less dependent on foreign interests.

Oh yeah, accidents and spills do happen. They happen overseas as they do here, so don't plan on taking vacations there. Not that you could afford it when you calculate the cost of paying their bills when you pay yours.

3. Support domestic development of alternative energy, hire lots of American workers, consume less energy, pay less for gas and oil, be less and less dependent on fossil fuels.

 

[CrackRabbit]

3. Support domestic development of alternative energy, hire lots of American workers, consume less energy, pay less for gas and oil, be less and less dependent on fossil fuels.

I'm sure we could generate enough electricity to run the Anandtech Forums on PJABBER's hot air alone.

 

[Throckmorton]

You have NO clue what you're talking about.

Oil that is drilled domestically isn't somehow restricted to domestic use. It goes onto the global market just like every other barrel. And guess what, there's no real impact on price.
My dad, who worked in the oil industry for his entire career, told me a long time ago that the reason we don't drill up all our oil is that we benefit from leaving it in the ground to gain value.

So how exactly do we benefit from drilling more oil here now, vs leaving it in the ground until it's worth a lot more as oil becomes scarcer?

If you don't understand a topic, keep your mouth shut or try to learn about it, don't latch on to stupid platitudes that have nothing to do with reality.

 

[PJABBER]

You have NO clue what you're talking about.

Oil that is drilled domestically isn't somehow restricted to domestic use. It goes onto the global market just like every other barrel. And guess what, there's no real impact on price.
My dad, who worked in the oil industry for his entire career, told me a long time ago that the reason we don't drill up all our oil is that we benefit from leaving it in the ground to gain value.

So how exactly do we benefit from drilling more oil here now, vs leaving it in the ground until it's worth a lot more as oil becomes scarcer?

If you don't understand a topic, keep your mouth shut or try to learn about it, don't latch on to stupid platitudes that have nothing to do with reality.

I've traded oil futures as well as other instruments for fun and profit going on 20 years, so I may know more about this than your dear old dad.

The worst traders are usually amateurs who come from the oil patch. They figure since they can get it out of the ground that they know something about its value. They are almost inevitably wrong.

Physical oil scarcity is a myth. There is more than we need for as long as we are projected to be dependent on fossil fuels.

Artificial oil scarcity is real. Thank your cartels and your governments and your speculators.

Fact is that there is absolutely no alternative to fossil fuel as an economic driver.

Want to delve into the scam that is alternative energy a bit more deeply? Look up Solyndra, which received some $500 million in federal subsidies and a campaign visit from Barack Obama before laying off 17% of its work force. This was on top of over $1 billion from other vanity investors that I expect is not going to yield more than heartbreak. You can still drive by their beauty of a white elephant fabs in Fremont, California.

Believe me or not, virtually every new venture investment proposal harbors a "green" angle that turns it from a potential economic asset into a government dependent. That means "unprofitable" and "unsustainable" by definition.

 

[bfdd]

We should drill for more oil here, but we don't have to. We do need more refineries though. Gas prices aren't as high as they are because of oil prices, they are as high as they are because we import gasoline now and gasoline is much more expensive than raw crude(and the cost to refine it). To bad the hippies won't let anyone build anything.

 

[ericlp]

good. about time......

 

[CanOWorms]

Seems like it may be better to depend on Middle Eastern oil rather than European oil companies.

 

[Throckmorton]

I've traded oil futures as well as other instruments for fun and profit going on 20 years, so I may know more about this than your dear old dad.

The worst traders are usually amateurs who come from the oil patch. They figure since they can get it out of the ground that they know something about its value. They are almost inevitably wrong.

Physical oil scarcity is a myth. There is more than we need for as long as we are projected to be dependent on fossil fuels.

Artificial oil scarcity is real. Thank your cartels and your governments and your speculators.

Fact is that there is absolutely no alternative to fossil fuel as an economic driver.

Want to delve into the scam that is alternative energy a bit more deeply? Look up Solyndra, which received some $500 million in federal subsidies and a campaign visit from Barack Obama before laying off 17% of its work force. This was on top of over $1 billion from other vanity investors that I expect is not going to yield more than heartbreak. You can still drive by their beauty of a white elephant fabs in Fremont, California.

Believe me or not, virtually every new venture investment proposal harbors a "green" angle that turns it from a potential economic asset into a government dependent. That means "unprofitable" and "unsustainable" by definition.

Being a futures trader isn't a credential in any way. Remember when futures trading in 2008 caused oil prices to skyrocket, for no real reason?

I'm guessing your knowledge of geology is near zero. Physical oil scarcity is a reality. It won't "run out" so much as ramp up in cost to extract. We benefit from leaving our easy oil alone for the near future.

 

[werepossum]

3. Support domestic development of alternative energy, hire lots of American workers, consume less energy, pay less for gas and oil, be less and less dependent on fossil fuels.

I'm all in favor of supporting domestic development of alternative energy, but unless and until we develop a practical alternative to oil these jobs continue to be wealth consuming rather than wealth producing. Were there no difference in the two we could simply have the government hire 10% of the population as telephone sterilizers or pet therapists or psychic hot line advisers and be done with recession.

 

[Throckmorton]

I'm all in favor of supporting domestic development of alternative energy, but unless and until we develop a practical alternative to oil these jobs continue to be wealth consuming rather than wealth producing. Were there no difference in the two we could simply have the government hire 10% of the population as telephone sterilizers or pet therapists or psychic hot line advisers and be done with recession.

The major oil companies are all global. If they aren't drilling here, they are drilling somewhere else, and they move workers if necessary

 

[werepossum]

The major oil companies are all global. If they aren't drilling here, they are drilling somewhere else, and they move workers if necessary

Most of our oil companies are majority American owned, the oil produced will be taxed by our nation, the added supply will reduce costs, and the workers producing the wealth will be mostly Americans if the drilling is inside the USA. Producing wealth anywhere improves the world's economy, but producing wealth in America improves our economy most. This is true even for foreign companies.

 

[Throckmorton]

Most of our oil companies are majority American owned, the oil produced will be taxed by our nation, the added supply will reduce costs, and the workers producing the wealth will be mostly Americans if the drilling is inside the USA. Producing wealth anywhere improves the world's economy, but producing wealth in America improves our economy most. This is true even for foreign companies.

The choice is between jobs now and jobs in the future, not jobs and no jobs.

Drilling here now to create jobs is basically borrowing from the future, which I thought you Republicans were opposed to... with the added detriment that we lose the oil that will be worth much more.