Political - President Bush rescinds...

[Ysabel Kid]

... the Executive Order (i.e. - the ways Presidents by-pass the Constitution) his father put in place banning offshore drilling.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080714/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush

Good first step. Now, if several tens of millions of Americans would call their Congress-critters - especially those in the House (all up for re-election this fall) and explain to them in no uncertain terms that if they don't vote to allow offshore drilling they will be out of a job come fall, we may actually see some progress here!!!

[Griff]

That's assuming, of course, that they care what WE think...

[donw]

i don't trust congress...

they have nothing to lose and $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ to gain by doing nothing. they make a LOT of tax revenues from oil and oil related products.

not to mention their personal fortunes...i read somewhere that there are only a handful of congress and senate members that are not at least millionaires. that in itself is enough to make me wonder...

i think we need to worry about the intensifying attacks on gun ownership as much as the oil issue...

[tman]

bush acted on it, knowning congress will block it. because the all profit from it. the jokes on us, personally, its getting a little boring

[Naphtali]

Estimates of off-shore oil reserves show that the amount of oil available will achieve little change in the country's problem.

Alberta has HUGE oil shale reserves, the technology to extract being available. And, of course, the cost of nuclear power (about half of our oil consumption being consumed by electrical power plants) is low after construction of the facility. These options are not really solutions, though.

An immediate action that may temporarily inconvenience many, until drivers become attuned to the system, is to create multiple rider traffic lanes in major metropolitan areas that include all but a single lane.

Result: While people are not forced to ride/drive as more than single occupants, the inconvenience of restricted single-passenger lanes available will cause substantial migration to multiple riders. Numbers of vehicles on a metropolitan roads will decrease. Cost of road maintenance and construction decreases, lowering taxes. Amount of fuel consumed each day decreases, forcing cost of fuel lower. There would be a plateau where fuel cost, inconvenience, and vehicle numbers would settle.

Just some thoughts.