George Bush wants to drill for oil. And while I know we’re all shocked, shocked I tell you, that the President would suggest drilling for oil in our National Reserves and in our oceans, let’s put that aside for a moment. Bush says we should drill because it will help in our effort to reach energy independence. And while I wouldn’t expect a C student to grasp this on his own, I would assume that some of his smart guys might have filled him in on the fact that oil is a fungible commodity.
Let me tell you what that means real quick. Truth be told I made my fair share of C’s, but I’ve got a ton of smart people that work on my television shows and they’ve put me up on game, pulled my coat, hipped me. (Sorry I just finished responding to Nat’s ebonics post and got in a groove).
Fungible in this case means that oil produced in the U.S. is not reserved for the U.S. market. There is no such thing as a U.S. oil market. There is only one worldwide oil market. So when the President tells us that his drilling regimen would increase U.S. oil production by 7-10%, it doesn’t mean that the U.S. supply of oil would increase 7-10%. Nor does it mean that the price of oil-derived products such as gasoline, heating oil, etc. will drop by 7-10%.
So basically what I’m saying is that you’re being sold a bill of goods. The gas and oil consuming public does not benefit at all if we drill every hole George W. Bush can imagine. There are Americans who will benefit, but they mostly live in poverty-stricken places like 5959 Las Colinas Boulevard in Irving, Texas. Trust me, the link is worth it to get the joke.
