To Eggplant:

Thank you for a very good point about the economics of extraction, but also keep in mind that Congress has deliberately put oil & gas exploration off limits in large areas, including the near-U.S. ocean floor. There is likely agood deal of economically extractable oil and gas in some of these regions. Also, technological solutions are becoming available to make shale and tar sands extraction more economically viable.

The point isn’t to reinforce a dependence on petroleum, but to give us as much margin as we can for as long as we can while alternatives have time to mature and take over increasingly larger portions of the energy load.

Also, I have no illusions about “energy independence,” for America, because that is not possible. Both parties are touting that fantasy, with the Democrats being the more egregious. However, LESS dependence on foreing oil is an achievable goal.