The American Spectator

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Energy Security and Houston

By Hunter Baker on 2.29.08 @ 5:40PM

I attended the Houston Presidential Summit yesterday. Though one should be pleased to rub elbows with city elites, I left the event disquieted. Former Secretary of Commerce Robert Mosbacher talked about his career as a contributor to the supply of energy, a supply which is now being outstripped by demand. While he talked about hope and the development of new sources of energy, I felt more than a little sense of the late '70's breaking out. He referred again and again to the iron law of supply and demand.Increase the supply or be caught up in a crisis situation.

Shell Oil President John Hofmeister also spoke. He offered an impressive political rationale for increasing the supply of oil in the short term.In short, the price at the pump is killing the little guy. If you want to talk about social justice and liveability for the average person, open up Alaska to more drilling. As much as Obama and Hillary say they plan to make life easier for average Americans, increasing the supply and therefore reducing the price of gasoline would be a great start. The rich, Hofmeister pointed out, are not much troubled by higher prices.

topics:
Law, Energy, Alaska, Oil