To drill, or not to drill

By Henry Lamb
web posted April 8, 2002

The U.S. Senate is poised to decide whether or not to drill for oil
under the Arctic Natural Wildlife Refuge. The House of
Representatives has already said yes; polls indicate the people
say yes; and a majority of U.S. Senators have indicated they too,
would approve production - if they get a chance to vote on the
question.

There are enough votes to pass the ANWR measure; there are
not the 60 votes required to kill a filibuster, which Tom Daschle
and the Senate Democrats have promised.

Daschle-Democrats and environmental extremists contend that
drilling will "destroy" the pristine wilderness. What this really
means, according to a study just released by the U.S. Geological
Survey, is that the range for a herd of 125,000 Porcupine River
caribou would be reduced from 19 million acres to 18, 998,000
acres. Should the herd get within earshot, they may also have to
endure the sound of trucks and equipment operating on the 2,
000-acre footprint of the oil operation.

Caribou that live 100 miles to the West, on the existing Alaska
oil fields, have thrived during the years of oil production. There is
every reason to believe that the ANWR caribou would benefit
from man's presence, as have their western cousins.

For several years now, it has been known, but not publicly
admitted by Democrats and environmental extremists, that oil
exploration is safe on even environmentally sensitive lands. Bill
Clinton's energy department said as much in a <a href="http:
//www.nationalcenter.org/TSR21302.html">1999 report</a>.

The argument for drilling ANWR is based on the need to
increase our self-reliance, and decrease our dependence on
foreign oil. More than half of our oil is now imported, most from
countries sympathetic to the terrorists responsible for the
September 11 tragedy.

At any moment, these oil-rich nations could shut-off the valve, as
they did in the 1970s. Gas prices skyrocketed. Long lines of
cars awaited the chance to buy gas at any price, on odd or even
numbered days that corresponded with their license numbers.

Of course, a repeat of this situation is far more acceptable to
Daschle-Democrats and environmental extremists than possibly
inconveniencing the caribou in ANWR.

If the Daschle-Democrats block ANWR oil, they are not only
saying "we value caribou more than people," they are also saying:

<li>We would rather continue giving Saddam Hussein $20
million a day so he can continue to develop weapons of mass
destruction and foment terror;

<li>We don't want Americans to have the more than a half-
million jobs that would be created by the ANWR project;

<li>We trust the Arab nations to keep the faucet open; and

<li>We're going to have our way regardless of the expressed
wishes of the Senate majority, the House of Representatives, and
the majority of the American people.

Should the Senate fail to authorize ANWR production, it will,
indeed, be a sad day for the Democratic leadership. Every
Democratic Senator who faces election this year, will become a
target. Should the oil situation worsen as the political situation
worsens in the Middle East, a "no" vote on ANWR will be a
badge of dishonor, will become a big red bulls-eye in the cross-
hairs of every voter.

Our economic engine is fueled by oil, like it or not. It is
stupendously stupid to allow that engine to be dependent upon
the people who produce dozens of terrorist organizations hell-
bent on destroying the United States.

Our national security begins at home. ANWR oil is American oil.
We need it. We need all the energy we can muster from non-
Arab sources, whether under ANWR, offshore, or under the
gazillions of acres now set aside as wilderness. We simply must
expand our domestic energy production - from every source
possible.

It is not a question of hurting the environment; The Nature
Conservancy and the Audubon Society produce oil from their
lands. They know oil production can be safe. It is a question of
national security. We are at war with terrorism. We cannot
afford to lose.

America's war machine cannot be defeated by any nation on
earth - unless, of course, it runs out of gas. The Daschle-
democrats in the Senate seem content to let our military continue
to fill its tanks at Saddam's gas station.

<a href=mailto:henry@freedom.org ">Henry Lamb</a> is the
executive vice president of the <a href ="http:
//www.eco.freedom.org/el/"> Environmental Conservation
Organization</a> (ECO), and chairman of <a href="http:
//www.sovereignty.net"> Sovereignty International </a>.

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