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However, I maintain that more drilling is merely a band-aid.

What's fabricated about it? Is global demand increasing or is it not?

Global demand is increasing, yes but have we ever ran out of oil? Have we ever had to sacrifice our lifestyles? The wonderful people in the energy business simply went out and got more oil. Higher demand = increase in supplies.

The bulk of welfare money goes to poor people. In some places, they're concentrated more in the city, but in other places they're more rural.

My point is that the gubmint gives millions of dollars to the "poor" (many of them who don't pay their energy bills through the winter knowing that there'll be handouts at the end) for subsidized energy assistance. Hello - HOW ABOUT JUST PRODUCING MORE ENERGY???

So whining and bitching is now great patriotism?

Hell yeah I'm going to whine and bitch when my livelihood is threatened. I don't want to live like my ancestors did in the 1800s, burning kerosene lamps and splitting logs and hunting for squirrels for dinner and taking baths by heating a big ass pot over a fire. No - energy is the backbone of our economy, and without it we might as well be living in North Korea.

Where are vehicles going to get fuel from? There are no alternatives to use to power our motor vehicles. I work in the trucking industry - dozens of mom-and-pop carriers are pushing up daisies right now because of sky-high fuel prices. Most of our oil reserves are locked away - what do you think is going to happen, other countries are going to start bidding on them.

Vehicles will get fuel the same way they do now - it's just more expensive. All these government-subsidized hare-brained schemes are stupid. The simple solution is to use less when possible. For the individual, it's easier; drive a more fuel efficient car and live closer to work and/or in a more urban area. Trucking, honestly, may not be a viable industry for much longer. Freight trains may make a comeback. I'm sure you know more than I do about logistics since you're in the industry and I'm not, but it does seems that things can replace trucks. Also, we may come up with a good fuel alternative, but who knows. Consumers will also inevitably eat up some of the costs, which is why it's good if we have as many energy sources as possible to reduce the pain.

Global demand is increasing, yes but have we ever ran out of oil? Have we ever had to sacrifice our lifestyles? The wonderful people in the energy business simply went out and got more oil. Higher demand = increase in supplies.

Well, of course we haven't run out of oil, all the gas stations would be closed right now. We can only run out of a fossil fuel once. We haven't had to sacrifice too much yet, but that time may be over. It's not as simple as being able to go and get more. If increase in demand continues to outpace increase in supply, prices will keep going up. Also, in addition to more drilling, we'll need to build more refineries, etc. This will all cost money. There's a lot of overhead costs to increasing oil production, especially if the union thugs are/become involved with refinery workers.

My point is that the gubmint gives millions of dollars to the "poor" (many of them who don't pay their energy bills through the winter knowing that there'll be handouts at the end) for subsidized energy assistance. Hello - HOW ABOUT JUST PRODUCING MORE ENERGY???

I'm not a proponent of welfare. I agree we can produce more energy, but it can't all be oil. I'm not saying "can't" like the government should ban it, I'm saying it in reality cannot happen.

Hell yeah I'm going to whine and bitch when my livelihood is threatened. I don't want to live like my ancestors did in the 1800s, burning kerosene lamps and splitting logs and hunting for squirrels for dinner and taking baths by heating a big ass pot over a fire. No - energy is the backbone of our economy, and without it we might as well be living in North Korea.

You can whine and bitch. I, on the other hand, live in the city and drive a hybrid, and thus am far more insulated against further increases in oil prices. I have to heat my home of course in the winter (this is Minnesota after all), but I dress warm and keep the thermostat low. Somehow I get the feeling my methods are more effective.