Burn it all

John Lott posted this:

Paying even higher energy prices to avoid high oil prices?

I especially like this quote:

Why is it so bad that we are using oil just because we are using it?

There is no doubt that the world is going to pump up and burn every drop of oil. Even if the west switches to alternatives the second and third world will still have to burn the oil. And that's not taking into account the other products like plastics that we get from oil - even if all our energy was derived from alternatives, we'd still use up the oil.

So if we're going to burn it all anyway, there are only three questions.

1. How much will we pollute the earth before we run out of oil
2. Who is going to have the economic strength to take advantage of a non-oil world
3. Who is going to have the industrial and technological capability to switch to a non-oil economy

How much will we pollute the earth before we run out of oil

Due to cleaner, more efficient technology the west pollutes less per drop of oil than the second and third world. Our auto's and plants are cleaner than those found is less modernized nations.

Imagine if we stopped all oil usage today, the third world would still burn up every drop of oil. Except they would burn all that oil using smoky, nasty polluting technology.

From the environmental perspective it would be better if the west burns that oil - it would produce less total pollution.

Who is going to have the economic strength to take advantage of a non-oil world

At the rate China, India, Indonesia and other second world countries are mushrooming economically, the west is in real danger of being overtaken economically. These countries economies are even more oil dependent than the west. It would be in the west's best interest to use up all the oil as fast as possible before we become the second world countries.

Who is going to have the industrial and technological capability to switch to a non-oil economy

Currently only the west has the industrial and technological capability to switch to a non-oil economy. But, as time passes, the second world will be more capable of making the switch, and do it easier and cheaper than us. Therefore, again, the faster we burn up the oil the better positioned we will be when it runs out.

Ancillary bonus to running out of oil

Once we pump out the last drop of oil that will finally take some of the more troublesome countries of the world out of play. Such countries who make fortunes from their oil production, all the while hating the west with every breath. The faster those countries run out of unlimited income, the less likely we will have hostile, nuclear armed countries sprouting up everywhere.

So I say burn it all, burn it fast, don't look back.

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