The American Economy, a Well Oiled Machine

Think of the economy as a car with lots of moving parts. Like all cars, the economy needs oil to run smoothly and if you try to run it without oil, you’re asking for trouble, big trouble, really expensive trouble.

Every part of our economy uses oil, in fact, we use oil for more things than most people realize.

We know our cars and trucks run on it, and that our trains and busses run on diesel fuel, but many people don’t know that plastic products are made from oil, and so are the candles in your bathroom, the make-up your wife wears, some of the vitamins you take, the laundry detergent used to wash your clothes is made with oil, the golf balls in your golf bag, and our roads are made from asphalt, which is made largely from oil.

A healthy, modern economy uses lots of oil. No amount of solar panels or wind turbines can change that (no matter how much our government and electric users subsidize them).

The oil industry currently employs 2.7 million people, and that number will continue to increase in the coming years, provided the EPA doesn’t put a stop to fracking.

Regardless of what some liberals argue, the United States still has large reserves of oil. In fact, within eight years, the United States will produce more oil than Saudi Arabia because of the jump in oil production in Texas, North Dakota, and Alaska.

In the last two years, Texas has doubled its oil output, and in November of last year, Texas produced 2.139 million barrels a day. That’s more oil than the U.S. imported from all of the Persian Gulf countries (Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, and Qatar) combined.

Texas produces nearly three times as much oil as North Dakota, which is the number two producer of oil in the country. Some estimates project that the Bakken oil field in North Dakota has enough oil to last 100 years meaning the oil boom could be around for a long time.

As big as these oil reserves may seem, they pale in comparison to the Monterey Shale in California that makes up an estimated 66 percent of the US shale reserves and covers 1,750 square miles, making it larger than the state of Rhode Island. If this resource is developed, it could make California the largest producer of oil in the country. That would help the left coast state deal with their government deficits in the billions of dollars.

It’s funny how lefties want to punish companies that move jobs overseas, but don’t want companies to create good paying, family supporting jobs right here in our own country. The average salary for oil rig workers is $99,175 dollars a year, and those with less than one year of experience average $66, 932, nearly double the U.S. median wage.

It seems that we’re supposed to always buy American, unless it’s oil, natural gas, metals, minerals, or coal. Liberals use products derived from oil and made with metals every day, and they come from somewhere, why not our own country or state?

By increasing our energy production, we will put more people to work, put more money into our economy, and raise more tax revenue for schools, roads and policemen. Experts believe that more oil production should bring down the price of gas by 20% over the next five years, which will help everyone who drives to have more money to spend on other stuff of their choosing.

Without oil, you can’t drive a car, and you can’t drive an economy. America is blessed with vast oil and metal resources. We need to use them for a vibrant economy that provides family supporting jobs.