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In addition to politics, I am very interested in energy and things related. I deal with energy-producers in my "real" job on a daily basis, I am a member of my town’s Energy Committee, and of course, like most Americans these days, above all, I am mostly interested in energy at the moment due to its escalating cost. When you think about it, energy affects pretty much everything. Along with food and water, plentiful energy is among the necessities of life. After all, it takes energy to GET the food and water…

Thursday afternoon, I participated in a Bloggers’ Conference Call hosted by our friends at the American Petroleum Institute. The biggest point I came away with is that there is much more to the topic of energy, its supply, and the exploration of, than you could imagine. While some politicians rail against "big oil" day in and day out, the fact is, "big oil" is an extremely complex industry made up of great numbers of skilled Americans, held together in a logistical system that is undoubtedly as intricate and complicated as anything one would find in almost any other human endeavor on the planet.

If you believe that "big oil" is nothing more than wealthy fatcats that work for a single handful of well-known corporate symbols like Exxon or Mobil, etcetera, hanging out all day in large, air conditioned buildings scheming ways of taking our money, you need to think about these matters for more than a nanosecond. And consider the whole concept of energy and its impact on our individual lives. It is my belief that without affordable, portable sources of energy, we would all but lose the freedoms we hold dear. The freedom to travel about when YOU want to, and go almost anywhere you want in short order, is nothing to take lightly. The freedom to live in your own home and rely on yourself to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer is about as American as it gets. Are we ready to live in Soviet-style housing to stay warm? I think not. When the refrigerator replaced the icebox  and became widely available and affordable to ordinary people, it was hailed as an advance directly responsible for the improvement of peoples’ health through better, safer diets. Without energy, there would be no such thing.

Anyway, during the call, there was much discussion about the lengthy, expensive, and risky process involved with the successful discovery and delivery of oil and gas to the marketplace. We also learned about how some areas presently off-limits contain already existing wells constructed before banning new offshore exploration and drilling came into vogue. These can be quickly brought into production.

One of the people participating was David Mica, the executive director of the Florida Petroleum Council. I was particularly intrigued by recent news of the attitude change in Florida on the part of Governor Crist and wondered if it reflected a shift shared by many Floridians. Here is the transcript of our exchange at the beginning of the call:

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SECURING OUR ENERGY FUTURE

· John McCain Will Break From The Failed Energy Policies Of The Past And Lead A Great National Effort To Achieve Energy Security For A Peaceful And Prosperous America. Working with the leading energy experts inside and outside of the sector, John McCain will work to design and implement the right energy policies that will effectively govern our energy future by enhancing our economic stability, national security and environmental protection.

Our Growing Energy Challenges

The United States And Our Economy Are Overly Dependent On Foreign Sources Of Oil. America currently imports approximately two thirds of the oil it needs. Petroleum products (including diesel and jet fuel) provide 94 percent of our transportation fuel and over 60 percent of that transportation fuel comes from foreign sources. We have doubled our imports of foreign oil in the last 30 years which is a clear failure of leadership from both political parties, the Administration and Congress.

American Dependence On Foreign Sources Of Oil Contributes Wealth To Undemocratic Governments, That Are Both Supportive Of, And Vulnerable To Terrorist Attacks. Oil revenues are enriching the enemies of the United States. Iran alone receives more than $66 billion a year from oil sales. By relying upon oil from the Middle East, we not only provide wealth to the sponsors of terror — we provide high-value targets to the terrorists themselves.

Increased Oil Prices Effect More Than Just Fuel For Our Cars. In recent months, the world has seen an overall increase in the price of food. This is a direct result of increased fuel prices for transportation and the redirecting of grains and feed towards ethanol for our fuel supply.

America’s Increased Dependence On Foreign Sources Of Oil Is Resulting In An Increase In Our Trade Deficit. Since 1973, the United States has gone from importing 6 million barrels of oil a day to 12 million barrels per day with petroleum payments comprising 41 percent of the U.S. trade deficit ($293 billion of $759 billion).

America Needs To Reform Its Energy Portfolio To Rely On Both New And Proven Sources Of Energy. The United States needs to advance its research on clean, alternative energy sources like solar, wind and clean coal, while at the same time recommit itself to expanding the use of nuclear power.

Breaking Our Dependence On Foreign Sources Of Oil

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