We’re all saying it. “I never thought I’d see the day when gas would go below 2 dollars.” “I just filled up my tank for 18 bucks.” Yes, it appears as though the 5-dollar a gallon prices have surpassed, at least for now. And we should all breath a sign of relief that the economic crisis has also forced oil prices to lower, which subsequently means less money for terrorist organizations. Hopefully though, the mentality created by expensive gas prices over the summer will not diminish. That people will not leave public transportation or the carpool lane and hop back into their Hummers. And yet, this is exactly what the most powerful businesses in the world would like to happen, but not if Obama has any say. Come January 20th we will begin to witness the clash of titans, as the powerful oil companies will, for arguably the first time, find a foe and not a friend in the Oval Office.
When you look at the past 100 years, oil has always been a factor in important decision-making. Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after WWI the Middle East was broken up and given to Western nations based off the location of oil fields. Soon, revolutions for independence would end complete Western control of these countries, but not Western dependency.
After the gas shortages of the 1970s, Americans foolishly ignored the wake-up call and would continue their complete energy reliance on an unstable Middle East. Since then, in complete disregard for the interests of people living in the region, we have invested billions into oil, through war and the creation of large military bases.
In the past eight years, President Dick Cheney… I mean President George W. Bush has been arguably the most pro-oil President the United States has ever witnessed. In addition to the Iraq war, policies such as tax breaks for both consumers and producers of cars that weigh over 6000 pounds have helped to encourage oil consumption. And we wonder why America’s three largest automobile companies have yet to spend money in research and construction on more energy efficient transportation. Thankfully though, Bush is on his way out and hopefully taking some oil lobbyists with him.
However, oil companies continue to be the richest organizations in the US and surely will not go down without a fight. As the recent third-quarter profits saw red-figures for almost all major corporations, Exxon Mobile posted record profits of 14.83 billion dollars. In an attempt to stay on top, gas prices have lowered, but it is surely not the final tactic to encourage American consumption.
Have we finally learned our lesson? Will we be able to give up the Ford F350, which has become a symbol of Americana? Lets hope so. And lets hope that a President Obama will be the first to win the battle against the almighty oil.
