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Not many people know this, or remember. But civilizations used to fight over salt. The Romans, the Gauls, Chinese, Egypt, Babylon, British Empire, etc. You name it, most of the greatest military civilizations in recorded history fought wars over one item....
Salt.
Thats right salt. Before we had refrigeration, the only means of storing most foods for winters and long periods was to salt the meat. It was used for medical needs, and countless other things that salt was needed for.
The main reason was food preservation. Armies needed it, as armies traveled on their stomach, ask Napoleon. When his supply lines were cut in Russia, and the salt ran out, his soldiers starved to death.
But with innovation of a new technology, refrigeration, we no longer needed salt that much. Now we still use salt, we use it on our food and we use it for a plethora of other applications, but we no longer need it for food. After refrigeration was introduced, the salt wars almost immediately stopped world wide.
What can this teach us about oil.
Lets look at the similarities. Oil is needed for civilization. Its needed for armies. Its in small supply in a region of the world that makes it hard to protect, which makes prices higher. Nations fight wars over it, to protect the price of it, and it upholds dictatorships that aren't good for anyone.
So supporting alternatives to oil isn't that bad of an idea. I know, I know, drill here, drill now. As has been stated and proven many times, the United States doesn't have enough oil to effect world oil supply. We simply don't have the reserves needed to greatly influence the price, even if all restrictions were removed.
As with salt, we will always need oil. Many of the synthetics that we use and produce require petroleum. But the biggest need is because of transportation needs. If the United States alone cut its oil demand by 25%, it would cause the price of oil to be cut in half world wide. The middle east dictatorships that we find ourselves protecting or at odds with would have to go back to the middle ages or find something else to do with their oil.
If you support the troops, and you really want to bring them home, support alternative energy. That alternative could be coal, gas shale, oil shale, nuclear, wind, hydrogen, and others.
The lesson of the past should be remembered. When you have a limited resource that every nation needs, its not time to continue to fight wars over it, when there is a viable alternative. We have spent several trillion dollars on our military and our wars over the last decade. What would happened if we had spent that money on electrical infrastructure, or changing gas pumps over to natural gas?
Food for thought folks. This isn't about green, its not about saving the environment, its about lives, money, and our countries well being.
Salzburg (salt city) Austria was wealthy because it had a salt mine. If anyone suggested that salt be dumped on roads in winter he would be considered insane.
Only that oil is the greatest single reason for our lifestyle, riches, comfort and life in the US AND the world. EVERYTHING in this country has it's origin in oil.
Everything you hold dear, all the material possessions you have, come from oil and the energy it provides.
From your home (and everything in it), car, furniture, food, gadgets, appliances, games, toys, the building you work in, the computer you use, the list is long...too long to list.
Why does the Left want us to give up the most productive, cheap, abundant, reliable energy source the world has ever known?
Only that oil is the greatest single reason for our lifestyle, riches, comfort and life in the US AND the world. EVERYTHING in this country has it's origin in oil.
Everything you hold dear, all the material possessions you have, come from oil and the energy it provides.
From your home (and everything in it), car, furniture, food, gadgets, appliances, games, toys, the building you work in, the computer you use, the list is long...too long to list.
Why does the Left want us to give up the most productive, cheap, abundant, reliable energy source the world has ever known?
Its not the cheapest if you add into account the price of our military. Our militarys sole purpose over the last decade has been to protect oil.
We have viable alternatives here at home, no reason not to use them, other than the fact that politicians are in the pockets of oil producers, and some people can't seem to realize that cutting oil demand by viable, cheap alternatives are a good thing.
You're right about one thing, we'll always need oil, just like we'll always need salt. But when your economy is so centered around one thing, its time to diversify. Take a lesson from the stock market. You may invest, but you have one really good investment. No one who is smart about money is going to put all of their eggs in that one basket, and thats what the United States does.
Take the biggest reason for oil off the table, transportation alone, and it would decrease demand, stabilize the market, and we'd have a domestic energy supply that doesn't require a massive military to protect.
As I said, not just green energy, ALL energy. Any alternative to oil that is cost effective, like shale gas and oil is needed.
Why does the Left want us to give up the most productive, cheap, abundant, reliable energy source the world has ever known?
You should already know the answer to your question, it is so obvious. Since their inception the Democrat Party has had only one agenda, the complete and utter destruction of the US. Abolishing our oil supply is just the latest means for accomplishing their sick and twisted agenda.
You should already know the answer to your question, it is so obvious. Since their inception the Democrat Party has had only one agenda, the complete and utter destruction of the US. Abolishing our oil supply is just the latest means for accomplishing their sick and twisted agenda.
Could you imagine if Hayes had told people in 1871
"We don't need refrigeration, we have salt"?
I mean, look at how stupid it is to continue fighting wars when there are viable alternatives at hand?
All I can compare that sort of attitude to is the old saw "cutting off your nose to spite your face".
I have a really hard time believing the deliberate obtuseness of some of the remarks on this thread.
At present, oil has a near monopoly on transportation. The price is causing some users to consider converting to Natural Gas. But don't think that if we become energy independent we can bring all the troops home.
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