The Republicans have been screaming lately about how important it is to allow offshore drilling. We buy too much oil from foreign countries, they say. Drilling offshore and in the ANWR would help lower gas prices. It's all about supply and demand.

Oh really?

The last issue is simple enough to address. Is there a gas shortage? There certainly was in the 70's. We had lines at gas stations, and some were running out of gas. After hurricane Katrina disrupted the underground pipes that deliver gas from New Orleans to Atlanta, we experienced a temporary shortage, with long lines at the pumps and prices temporarily spiking.

Have we seen any lines at the pump?.... Seen any gas stations running out?....

No.

That's because there really IS no shortage. The spike in gas prices is based on a spike in raw petrol prices caused by a spike in oil futures prices in the commodities market based on greed and speculation.

So why is there so much talk of drilling offshore? Because it's politically expedient. Like taking off one's shoes at the airport is Security Theatre, this is Gas Price Solution Theatre. It's meant to give the illusion that the Republicans are trying to do something about oil prices, but the Democrats are preventing them from saving the country.

Yesterday, in a move completely ignored by the media, the Democrats showed just how hollow the Republicans are with regards to drilling. They introduced the Drill Responsibly in Leased Lands (DRILL) Act, H.R. 6515, the goal of which is as follows (from Nancy Pelosi's website):

• speeding the development of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) by requiring the Secretary of Interior to offer at least one lease sale annually in the NPR-A.


• reinstating a ban on the foreign export of Alaskan oil.


• incorporating the ‘Use It or Lose It’ legislation, which simply requires oil producers to drill on the leases they already have or relinquish them so that another company can produce the oil there.


• calling on the President to use the powers of his office to facilitate the completion of oil pipelines into the NPR-A and to facilitate the construction of a Alaska natural gas pipeline to the continental United States to move the product to market.

Notice the first item? it says the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). Ignorant though I may be, I was not aware this existed. Apparently, we already have land set aside for drilling. So why do they want to drill in the ANWR? Does it have more oil?

No - the NPR-A has MORE oil than ANWR, is land that is already set aside for drilling, and is already 14% leased. That means that there's 86% of the land open for leasing and drilling by any oil company that wants to. I can't imagine why they wouldn't want to unless they figure that it's more profitable to not glut the oil market with extra oil.

The other provisions of the act would force oil companies to "use it or lose it", regarding existing leases for drilling. This would force oil companies to drill the land they already have leased, or lose the leases. Again - why aren't they drilling if they have leases? You already know the answer.

The DRILL Act would be a REAL solution to the problem, suggested by the Democrats. That's two strikes against it in the eyes of the Republicans, so naturally they are against it. The measure failed to reach a 2/3 majority vote, although it was still fairly close at 244-173, generally along party lines. In another textbook example of "projection", the Republicans attacked the Dems:

More lies, more politics, less leadership... Is this the new platform for the Republicans?

To provide more evidence that the Democrats are trying to provide a REAL solution instead of Republican political theatre, Alternet offers The Three Biggest Myths About Offshore Drilling:

• MYTH #1 -- 'DRILL HERE, DRILL NOW, PAY LESS'


• MYTH #2 -- CHINA ON OUR COASTS


• MYTH #3 -- 'NOT A DROP WAS SPILLED'

(read the detail at the link...)

If you have an hour and a half to kill, you can watch the House proceedings yesterday, thanks to C-SPAN. The twisted rationale and outright stupidity and posturing by the Republicans is in stark contrast to the Dems logical commonsense approach.

For a much shorter bit of amusement, however, here's Larry Craig telling us we shouldn't let foreigners "jerk us around by the gas nozzle"... :D

It's way past time to put the offshore and ANWR drilling myths to bed. The oil companies already have leases they aren't using, and there is land in Alaska already lined up for leasing. It's time for them to put up or shut up.