Published: August 21, 2008 03:32 pm            

Letter: We need to conserve, find alternative fuels

Originally published in the August 22, 2008, print edition.

To the Editor:

This letter is in reply to the July 11/18 letter to the editor, “We must search for more oil.”

The letter writer stated that Democrats are responsible for the huge oil prices and that there are vast amounts of oil just waiting to be pumped. That there are huge oil fields under our feet is a fairy tale. We all wish it was true, but of course it isn’t. Any oil that remains to be found will be costly to pump and will not reduce the price at the pump.

Blaming Democrats for high oil prices makes about as much sense as blaming Democrats for the war in Iraq. I have been to Washington, D.C., several times with Farmers Union and have always found Republicans opposed to any change to the energy policy of “drill and burn.” The Renewable Fuel Standard was not passed until public opinion forced some Republicans to back Democrats in this energy plan for the future. President Bush has never had an energy plan that I am aware of.

There are only two possible answers to the energy crisis. The first is conservation. The second is alternative fuels. The age of oil is over. We have the knowledge to survive this crisis and make America a better place. Let’s start building for the future instead of trying to prolong the past.

Marv Jensen
Kensington

        

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