Benjammin, if you think opening up the north to oil exploitation is going to lower the price of gas, help to deliver us from OPEC, and solve any of our problems, I think you're dreaming.

Right during/after the oil 'shortages' of the 70s, some people started thinking about alternative sources of power, like passive solar, wind, etc.

Then America, with its collective short memory, seemed to forget all that. They went from smaller, energy-efficient vehicles (some, anyway) to SUVs. Things (esp packaging) that were made from paper or glass went to oil-intensive plastics. Look at all the new houses they've been building: do they face south or do they just face the street?

First, we ruin the north (reclamation is basically a joke), then we find ourselves right back where we are now.

Yesterday, the price of gas around here was $3.24/gal. Do you really think that if we did open up that pool of oil you mentioned, that our greedy oil companies would LET the price go down? Oh, yeah, from $3.24 to $3.02. Big effing deal.

Sue