Senate Votes to Open Alaskan Oil Drilling

The US Senate voted 51-49 today against removing funding in the federal budget for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Supporters of drilling believe that this will help make America energy self-sufficient. However, when you consider that recent US Geological Survey estimates that there's about 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable oil in the Arctic Refuge when you take into account the cost of bringing that oil to market. Also, if we start now, that oil's not going to get to market for ten years.

In a nutshell, if you're expecting this scheme to lower your gas prices, it's not going to make a damn bit of difference. If we're serious about lowering our dependence on foreign oil, we ought to be talking about raising CAFE standards, and doing a better job of urban planning so we don't have to consume so much Texas tea.