As probably anyone will attest, the greatest spectacle of the past year – if not of the past eon – has been none other than the United States presidential election, something that I now like to refer to as World Electioneering Entertainment (WEE). Because to properly understand this election (and its nascent title) requires, I believe, an understanding of the WWE – World Wrestling Entertainment. I've personally never had a liking for any of that wrestling stuff, but I am nonetheless intimately familiar with it all thanks to an old high school friend of mine – who goes by the nom de plume of Jason Sensation, but whom I knew as Jay – who has been a wrestler and impersonator in the WWE and other wrestling federations for nearly 20 years now. Follow along with this and the next two posts and – partially in thanks to my exposure to my old friend's antics and the mechanics of the WWE that he often explained to me – you'll see why I've come to the conclusion that this United States presidential election – WEE 2016 – might very well be the greatest con that any of us have ever beared witness to.
A long one Allan. An aside, claims of energy independence can’t be countered with just a blurb on how US oil production hasn’t met US supply for awhile, it misses the point that a majority of energy used in the US isn’t oil. Worse yet, it also allows anyone knowing about increases in US oil production to poke holes in oil only angles.
I recommend using information showing that energy independence is being approached, but has not been achieved, from the best information sources available.
Here is a graph showing that we aren’t ENERGY independent, but have been improving, which is where I assume the claims of independence itself comes from.
Good point, “claims of energy independence can’t be countered with just a blurb on how US oil production hasn’t met US supply for awhile”. And you’re right, “it misses the point that a majority of energy used in the US isn’t oil.” But the non-oil supplies of energy extracted in the US don’t provide enough of a surplus to counter for the necessary oil imports. The US doesn’t break even, hence no “energy independence” if that’s what it’s supposed to mean.
On top of that, referencing graphs that give no context as to where their hypothesis come from doesn’t really stand for much. Why is there no need for imports, because consumers can no longer afford it? And if not that, is it due to dreams that extraction levels from fracking aren’t about to take a nose-dive? That’s not very reassuring either.
p.s. I don’t know why you’re comments are no longer pre-approved. This comment scrtipt is getting an overhaul soon, I’ve read, which may fix that problem. Nonetheless, I may be switching to another commenting script in the near future anyway.
The point is that there has been growing additional energy supplies in the US, and that yes, they are expected to create enough of a surplus for net energy independence in the near future. I realize this isn’t the point that some folks want to acknowledge (that drill baby drill works) but it is a fact.
And if you aren’t aware of who the EIA is, and what the AEO is, or what it is based on, and how its value to the United States makes it a mandated by Congress product, from an agency that has no equal in terms of energy statistics and analysis, then I really can’t help you. Talking about energy, and not knowing the best source of information and statistics on the planet is a short coming I recommend you remedy prior to talking to anyone who knows anything about energy. Otherwise, the instant you transpose oil and energy, or don’t know that net energy balance is fast approaching, and aren’t familiar with the best sources of information used by governments, the markets, policy makers, peak oilers, bloggers and everyone in the MSM and on the internet, people will tune out everything else you say. Which in this case is substantial, even if a bit overwrought with MSM/social media references and images.
You’re absolutely right. People who are wont to believe what they hear from “the best sources of information used by governments, the markets, policy makers, peak oilers [no, not all peak oilers], bloggers [no, not all bloggers] and everyone in the MSM and on the internet [no, not everyone on the Internet]” probably aren’t going to be much interested in what I have to say, and there’s not much I can do about that. But there are those who are willing to question things a little and wonder if what they’re being told isn’t the whole story. Those are the people that come back to FF2F and other such blogs. Plus you.
And if you really think that growing additional energy supplies in the US are going to “create enough of a surplus for net energy independence in the near future”, then you, sir, are in for a rude surprise.
Well, admittedly this is a blog, and there are reasons you usually don’t find the relevant experts blogging, because they tend to be doing the heavy lifting that only those kind of experts can do. Most people probably do know this, and it is no slight on bloggers, their resources are limited, as usually is there experience in the fields of science in question.
Rude surprise? Look at the graph, it isn’t a surprise, it has been coming for years, and you are free to ignore relevant facts because, as I said, this is a blog. The reference I provided was to a group that is dedicated to answering exactly the questions necessary, with the force of law behind their data collection. You don’t collect the data, can’t force people to give you the data, do not have at your disposal the experts in the field necessary to process the data, the server power to dispense it to any customer globally that desires it, or any of the expertise necessary to analyze it.
Dismiss the facts of our world any way you’d like, as I said, this is a blog, and that is what is expected of them.
