Major changes needed in how Americans use our energy

To the Editor:

News commentators (and others) lament the increasing price of gasoline at the pump, implying that no one has control over it except those who stand to gain from the increased price approaching $4 per gallon or more. In fact, the price of gasoline at the pump has not kept pace with our fairy-tale inflation, a 7 percent growth rate, controlled by the Federal Reserve system by periodic ?tweaking? necessary to maintain a continually growing economy. Maintaining that rate of growth supposedly doubles the nation?s value every 10 years. Thus, strictly maintained, the 1960 25-cents-per-gallon price of gas would have doubled every 10 years to be $8 in 2010 (which it was in Europe). If maintained, the 2020 price for gasoline would be $16!

We complain now about it hovering around one-fourth that price! Unlimited inflation is at the root of current economic stress. It clearly illustrates the hopelessness and fairy-tale nature of unrestrained economic growth: the ever-increasing dollar value of a finite resource. Infinite economic growth on a fixed or limited resource base will come to an end whether we like it or not, whether we do or do not reduce our dependence on oil. Foreign oil is not the problem: it is oil, fossil fuels. Period. That is why we need to make rapid and major changes to our use of energy for the benefit of everyone, assuming we can.

Peter E. Black
Syracuse

Source: http://blog.syracuse.com/opinion/2012/02/major_changes_needed_in_how_am.html

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