The Steiner Post

An article today in the right-leaning Washington Times quotes Rep. Doc Hastings of Washington blaming the rise in the price of gasoline during the last year to the lack of drilling on U.S. soil. Interesting theory.

Washington’s esteemed representative went on to say that gas prices dropped so quickly following their high in July 2008 because President Bush dropped a moratorium on expanding offshore drilling on the U.S.’ Outer Continental Shelf. Again, an interesting theory.

So we’re to believe that President Bush’s mandate that we drill in the outer shelf–which by generous estimates might hold 10 billion barrels of oil, enough to last the U.S., oh, 18 months–forced down the global price of oil from $147 a barrel to $33?

I guess ol’ Doc Hastings forgot about the largest financial implosion since the Great Depression. You know, the one that thundered in during September 2008, right as oil prices started dropping. You know, the economic disaster that toppled Lehman, Bear and Merrill–and sent global demand for oil and all other natural resources plummeting?

Oh, yeah. That.

But thanks for your thoughts, Doc. I wish I could revise history so well. I’d start with not purchasing a house in May 2006, the absolute height of the bubble. Yes, I did that.

But what I would never do is willingly delude people–voters–into thinking that we have a quick fix for long-term oil resources right here in our own country. That’s dangerous misinformation. It’s not true and to say otherwise is a straight-up lie. The people of Washington State must be proud.

Here’s a excerpt of the article: (I use the term “article” lightly)

Gas prices have been on a roller-coaster ride over the past decade, dropping to near $1 after President George W. Bush’s first year in office, crossing the $2 mark in 2005 and reaching $4 in June 2008 before Congress and Mr. Bush took action, lifting presidential and congressionally imposed moratoriums on expanding offshore drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf.

Mr. Bush lifted the presidential moratorium in July that year. The congressional moratorium expired Sept. 30, and prices fell precipitously, dropping more than $1 in October.

“The reason that it dropped is because the U.S. sent a signal to the markets, by dropping the moratoria, that we’re going to drill on our lands. Obviously, we never followed up, and thus you see the crisis gradually rising,” said Rep. Doc Hastings of Washington, the ranking Republican on the Natural Resources Committee.

The article once again recounts BP’s GIANT find in the Gulf from last fall. Never mind the fact that of those 3 billion barrels, only 1 billion are recoverable and that, ultimately, 1 billion barrels, while they may be worth $80 billion, is only enough oil to last the U.S. about seven weeks.

The article gets better, however. I leave you with this, courtesy of the WSJ:

The discoveries come as many of the giant oil fields of the past century are beginning to dry up, and as some experts are warning that global oil production could soon reach a peak and begin to decline. The new deepwater fields represent a huge and largely untapped source of oil, which could help ease fears that the world won’t be able to meet demand for energy, which is expected to grow rapidly in coming years.

For oil companies, the discoveries mean something more: After a decade of retreat, large Western energy companies are taking back the lead in the quest to find oil. “A lot of people can get the very easy oil,” says George Kirkland, Chevron’s vice chairman. “There’s just not a lot of it left.”