Achieving energy independence is no longer about inventing a new technology. We need the political will to make it so. Solar cells novel in the 1970s and costing $76 a watt are now less than 76 cents a watt and commonplace. This reality frightens existing energy interests and their backers. Forward deployed soldiers don’t want to solely rely on fuel deliveries to power their electronic equipment. One in fifty fuel deliveries to deployed soldiers resulted in a fatality or injury. Some folks then think that using solar cells to minimize the use of fueled generators is somehow a bad idea. Perhaps we should prohibit our citizens from using solar cells on their pleasure boats or RVs as well by that logic.
Algae species that were initially investigated in the 1970s are now creating oil for use as transportation fuel. Airlines dependent on jet fuel are adopting renewable fuels or buying their own oil refineries so as not to be subject to continual fuel price spikes. In another demonstration of political defeatism, a representative from Texas amended the National Defense Authorization Act of 2015 to require congressional approval before the Air Force or Navy can set up a renewable fuel facility. As we hear that government should be run more like a business, it seems a bit disingenuous. An airline can make its own fuel to save money, but the military can’t.
As a taxpayer, it is frustrating to find out such things. We hear that we should drill and drill for more oil to lower prices, but then gasoline exports increase so much that our domestic prices actually rise. Lastly, we were told that our nation’s huge supply of natural gas would make us energy independent. We are asked to accept the risks of hydraulic fracturing to meet this goal. Now we are exporting natural gas and propane because we have too much? There are plans for even more export terminals in the near future. Logic would say that we have drilled enough for now then, but energy companies say otherwise. Foreign countries have bought some oil and gas companies; they don’t really care about our environment or energy independence. There is also talk of exporting our crude oil if the laws can be changed to allow it. Compared to other countries, we don’t have much domestic oil compared to how much we use. Then some politicians incredulously announce that we should reduce our dependence on foreign oil by buying foreign oil from Canada. Do they plan on making Alberta province the 51st state?
If you don’t think elections are about energy policy, you should reconsider. Ask your self what kind of world you want to live in and then vote accordingly. When profits are more important than patriotism, our nation loses.