Congressman Calls Energy Crisis More Threatening Than Terrorism

Rep. John Peterson (R-Pa.) called the nation’s energy crisis “more important and threatening to America’s future than terrorism”. We agree and – wait – wha? That guy has an R after his name. What’s the deal here?

From The Hill:

Amid the partisan bickering on Capitol Hill, Peterson and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) are leading a bipartisan group of lawmakers seeking consensus on energy legislation.

On Wednesday, the lawmakers said that their plan will not call for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Drilling in parts of the United States, however, is expected to be a key part of their plan. Peterson has indicated that provisions on natural gas and shale oil in the West will likely be included in the bipartisan bill.

Aha. Drilling. I see. Of course, they’re right that something needs to be done, and it’s big that people are realizing how important it is. It’s just annoying that somehow, drilling is always the answer.

More people stuck on oil. What’s that about? Why can’t people seem to comprehend the idea that there are other, cleaner sources of energy out there? The issue here isn’t just the environmental impacts of drilling, it’s the idea of continuing to rely on oil for energy. Everybody’s looking for that quick fix for high gas prices, but if we’re going to move beyond the age of unsustainable, polluting forms of energy, we’ve got to change our habits during this transitional period. This will undoubtedly piss off the selfish “You can’t tell me what to do” types, but conservation on everybody’s part is what it’s gonna take to push through to the other side.

Link [The Hill]
Photo credit: Flickr user Nestor Galina

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