Like every American, I, too, am saddened by the recent terrorist activities and concerned about the future. Much talk has circulated about military actions and other violent solutions.
Although these may be necessary, I believe that we are ignoring the root of our Middle East trouble, which is our dependence on foreign oil.
For every U.S. dollar that goes to the Middle East to buy oil, we improve the military and terrorist power of the Middle East.
If it were not for our support of the Middle Eastern oil-producing nations, none of our current problems would exist.
Look at our recent history: The 1970s had a national energy crisis, the 1980s had the Iran hostage crisis, the 1990s had the Gulf War, the new millennium brings us the World Trade Center bombing.
Look at the pattern: Each crisis has become more severe.
How far are we willing to go to satisfy our thirst for foreign oil?
Our country currently has no discernable energy policy. Our roads are full of huge SUVs using huge amounts of gasoline. Our public transportation system is disgraceful.
American technology has produced many energy alternatives to oil, including nuclear, coal, hydroelectric, solar, wind, geothermal and others.
With the exception of nuclear and coal, the other technologies are little supported by our government. Time after time, we choose to take the easy way out–oil! Now is the time for our government leaders to move us in a new direction, away from dependence on foreign oil. The type of war America is best at fighting and winning is an economic one. A solid 10-year plan to reduce our oil imports to a trickle would make all of our Middle East problems seem like a distant, bad memory. We need to convince our government that a workable solution exists rather than a prolonged war against the entire Muslim population of our world.
