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March 27, 2014

America Unleashed: Why We'll Be Number One Once More

Our newly available energy supplies are a powerful force for change in areas other than manufacturing too.
With massive new sources of natural gas and domestically produced oil available, thanks to fracking technology (a technology perfected in the U.S.), the U.S. has cut its imports of oil dramatically. Whereas the U.S. imported more than 35 percent of the energy in 2005, in the last quarter of 2013, it imported only about 15.5 percent. To put that in context, the U.S. cut its imports of oil during that period by an amount equal to all the oil Japan uses. Japan is the world's third largest economy. The U.S. is once again the world's largest energy producer. -- Business Desk

Posted by gerardvanderleun at March 27, 2014 6:34 PM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.

Your Say

Then why are our gasoline prices still so fracking high?

Posted by: Lazarus Long at March 27, 2014 7:11 PM

Sounds good, but there's still Boneless Barry, Nasty Nancy, Light-Fingers Harry, and the rest of the Kill-America-First crowd. Count on them to bury or waste any improvements. And if they're brought down, there's still the army of their compatriots in the Civil Service, amorally following any orders. It's just a glimmer of light right now.

Posted by: JB at March 27, 2014 7:49 PM

More pie in the sky.

Posted by: Lorne at March 27, 2014 8:31 PM

None of this negates the effect of a punitive regulatory state determined to redistribute wealth from producers to parasites.

Even cheap energy will not make people want to build things - either manufacturing plants or their products - in a country where the bureaucracy is determined to make your life a living hell, and the long term effects our growing debt will have on the dollar's purchasing power will destroy any advantages abundant energy could bring.

Nigeria has abundant energy. Venezuela too. Anyone wanna put their life savings into a widget factory in either country?

Posted by: dan at March 28, 2014 6:19 AM

Yes, when a people are already dysfunctional, oil and gas money only buy more of the same.

Posted by: james wilson at March 28, 2014 10:17 AM

It's a hopeful sign, but will mean a lot more if Hillary DOES NOT become our next President.

Also, if she does win, then those red states that allow fracking should secede and form their own country, or, at least, act like they're not beholden to Washington.

Posted by: Don Rodrigo at March 28, 2014 10:18 AM

Gasoline is expensive because oil is expensive. You don't get gasoline from natural gas. Although, about 40% of oil in the US is used to make transportation fuels. If we converted many fleet vehicles, such as buses and trucks that return to terminals, to run on natural gas that would probably make oil-based liquid fuels less necessary and less expensive. Converting thes vehicles to NG would also reduce their fuel costs by about 30%.

Posted by: Scott M at March 28, 2014 2:28 PM

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