Originally Posted by mulp

Yes, this is about energy costs. Republicans want their children and grandchildren to pay much more for today's consumption of energy.

Let's assume that as much oil exists in protected lands as was opened for extraction in the 70s so the price of oil drops for 20 years as it did in the 80s and 90s. What will you blame for preventing the oil companies from stopping the explosion in oil prices in 2030?

Of course, all the vast untapped reserves were opened up in the 70s - where is all that oil from the oil shales that we were promised back in the 70s, then the 80s, and now? Exxon is making $10B in profits so they must really be investing big in extracting the oil from the oil shales, right???

But not to worry, I'm sure that if the entire west is excavated for the coal and oil shale with the suport of government subsidizes and the dirversion of all the west's water to these projects, the west can be turned into a vast wasteland.

Meanwhile, I will enjoy the natural beauty of the Northeast where the land is dominated by granite which is totally useless for making energy. Unless one is an environmentalist....