We have oil, let’s get it

Summer is settling in. The weather is heating up, and this is the time when people start to hit the road and the beach. But with gas prices soaring, travels have subsided this summer. People are not enjoying the beaches and lakes like they have in the past. This is a problem that needs attention as quickly as possible.

The country is facing gas prices around $4.50 a gallon, and prices are only going up. The United States’ citizens use roughly 21 million barrels a day and only produce about 8 million barrels a day. Our supply doesn’t even touch this country’s demands.

As Newt Gingrich said, “You have to have enough energy in the U.S. to never again have to go to the Saudis and ask them to pump more. If we’re going to pump more, let’s pump it in the United States.” And he is right.

The United States has oil available. With the ability to begin offshore exploration of oil in the United States, dependence on the Middle East would subside, and so would the gas prices. But the House Democrats have made this a difficult task, to say the least. A House subcommittee rejected a Republican-led effort to open up coastal waters to oil exploration.

What people seem to have a difficult time understanding is that the president is not the problem, neither is the Middle East nor the oil companies—the problem lies with the House. It is time for our representatives in Congress to step up and realize that they have a job to do. They are the ones to pass bills, not anyone else. With them keeping their foot on the brake pedal, we will continue to see the gas prices soar and break record highs. Now isn’t that a depressing thought?

The left needs to realize that they can’t have things both ways. Either they want gas prices lower, or they don’t. Those who want them lowered have no right to complain about the steps taken to solve the gas crisis. For those who don’t want the gas prices lowered, well, I am at a loss as to where their heads are. But I’d like to ask those who do want to see their pockets a little fuller after leaving the gas station what we should do, if not to obtain more oil.

I have heard endless numbers of people say we need to find other sources of energy. Good plan, but what do we do in the meantime? Take nuclear power plants, for example. They eventually would be a great source of energy, but it would take roughly 10 years to build one of these plants. So do we suffer for the next decade while we patiently wait?

While we are waiting for more energy sources to be developed, we must take advantage of energy sources for which we have the technology to exploit: oil, for example. The only problem left for us is the House Dems and their issues with getting the job done and fixing the given problem.

If we have the energy within the United States, why would we struggle constantly with outside sources? Seems kind of ridiculous when I think about it. It is summer. People should be going places, buying plane tickets and planning road trips. But they can’t—all because we are trying to work things out with the Middle East instead of handling our own problems. This needs to change.