Newt's Drill in America petition

[fletch]

Newt Gingrich has started a petition to pressure congress to open up America's own oil reserves for drilling.

http://www.americansolutions.com/actioncen...7b-346a1e096659

[punk]

I've always understood that the US has oil reserves for military reasons.

I mean as long as we have a military that needs oil to go, we should have supplies on hand for that end.

So if we use up the reserves just to have cheaper gas, doesn't that weaken us militarily in the long run?

[khaight]

I've always understood that the US has oil reserves for military reasons.

I mean as long as we have a military that needs oil to go, we should have supplies on hand for that end.

So if we use up the reserves just to have cheaper gas, doesn't that weaken us militarily in the long run?

My understanding is that we maintain something called the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for this purpose.

[punk]

My understanding is that we maintain something called the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for this purpose.

Ah, my confusion, I thought that was what was being discussed here.

[Steve D'Ippolito]

Unfortunately "reserve" has an unexpected meaning when discussing natural resources; it means resources known to exist underground but not yet extracted. This conflicts with the same word as seen in "Strategic Petroleum Reserve." I think in that case they are pumping the crude into underground caverns (inside of salt domes); if you drop enough context, you could look at it as artificial oil fields, and justify "reserve" in both senses of the word that way.

If Wikipedia is to be believed, the SPR has a capacity of 727 million barrels, and currently contains 703 million barrels. I imagine they can just excavate more underground caverns to expand the capacity. They can only pull 4.4 million barrels a day out of it if they need to; that would not be enough to fully replace our 12 million barrel daily importation if that were cut off; even if it were it would be less than two months' worth.

[IchorFigure]

Do electronic petitions ever really work? If it does that's fantastic, but in my experience they have little effect. I also find it funny that this has Newt Ginrich attached. He's the same shmuck who's sitting on the bench with Nancy Palosi in an advertisement saying how they both agree the environment is important.

[fletch]

Do electronic petitions ever really work?

I doubt any petition, no matter how many people sign it, will have any impact on those who oppose drilling in America. But enough signatures might help the republicans grow a spine on the issue.

[sanjavalen]

I doubt any petition, no matter how many people sign it, will have any impact on those who oppose drilling in America. But enough signatures might help the republicans grow a spine on the issue.

What Republicans lack is not a spine, but principles. In their hearts they agree with the fundamental premises of the democrats and "But we shouldn't be THAT environmentalist/socialist/whatever, just a little bit less!" is not a winning argument.

[fletch]

More than 1,000,000 million signatures in about 3 weeks. More importantly, drilling for resources here in America is topic #1 on the political scene. Thanks to Newt, Republicans have found a way to get off the mat. Even McCain seems to be listening to reason (or potential voters) on this issue as it is reported he is rethinking his opposition to drilling in Anwar. Where would the Republicans be without Newt? It is hard to imagine that they would have won control of the House in '94 without him, and he leadership on this issue might be the only thing keeping the Dems from having a 435 seat majority.

[Benpercent]

More than 1,000,000 million signatures in about 3 weeks.

I am not being sarcastic or poking fun, but one million million? Do you mean a billion?

[fletch]

Sorry. That should read 1 million.

[Seeker]

Newt Gingrich is possibly the greatest Republican disappointment in my lifetime -- a man who could have shut down the government's nonessential functions and made it stick for a while, or at least eliminated some unnecessary departments. Instead he caved to Bill Clinton politically and never made any cogent moves towards reducing the size of government. His Balanced Budget Act of 1997 disastrously claimed to have balanced the budget when in fact, economic growth balanced the budget faster than Congress, with its "Balanced Budget Act", could increase spending. There was never any coherent limited-government leadership, only a pretense. Newt Gingrich was finally hoisted by his own petard with an ethical scandal and since been consigned to selling books and making speeches. His petition will undoubtedly help his book sales immeasurably.

The Republicans don't need Newt Gingrich to find their way. He can't even find his own way. This petition is just another example of the false hope that someone like Newt Gingrich provides. What he needs, and everyone needs is a coherent rational philosophy, or it will just be the same disaster, over and over again.

Edited June 22, 2008 by Seeker

[fletch]

This petition is just another example of the false hope that someone like Newt Gingrich provides.

I disagree. Not only are most Americans unaware that we have such vast supplies of untapped resources here at home, more still are unaware that the government has made it illegal to exploit them. Gingrich, to his credit, has brought these issues to light, given Americans a forum to voice their outrage, and helped bring to the table an issue that clearly divides the two major parties during an election year.

The Republicans don't need Newt Gingrich to find their way

OK, so the Pelosi thing was pretty awful, but as far as Republicans go, who else is out there?

[Erik Christensen]

I have recently found this awesome new reality show called "Black Gold". http://www.trutv.com/shows/black_gold/index.html

Maybe it can help inspire people to get the government out of regulating and hyper-controlling the domestic oil industry.

(I too, signed the drill now petition)