[Vision2020] Banditry is Not an Option Was: Economists Predicted $90/Barrel...

[Sunil Ramalingam]

The President has already embarked on phase 1 of Donovan's Swiftian proposal.  It's called the Iraq War, and thus far it hasn't worked as planned.

Sunil

> Date: Sat, 1 Mar 2008 17:56:42 -0800
> From: chasuk at gmail.com
> To: donovanjarnold2005 at yahoo.com
> CC: vision2020 at moscow.com
> Subject: [Vision2020] Banditry is Not an Option Was: Economists Predicted	$90/Barrel...
> 
> On Sat, Mar 1, 2008 at 2:40 PM, Donovan Arnold
> <donovanjarnold2005 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> 
> > What if the next president did the same thing with oil? What if the military
> > forced itself onto oil rigs and started pumping more oil, and build and
> > opened more oil refiners to make sure we had affordable energy in the
> > country? What would be the consequences of that action?
> > If the president forced the private energy market to charge reasonable
> > prices by releasing its own oil production efforts and releasing oil from
> > its reserve?
> 
> I would be uncomfortable with our military acting as bandits so that
> our obese pampered citizenry could continue to make midnight runs to
> WinCo for Twinkies and Mountain Dew.  I know, I'm simplifying, but not
> by much.  Sometimes, these midnight runs include Twinkies, Mountain
> Dew, and Doritos.
> 
> Now, being really, sincerely serious, I would never, ever condone
> using our miltary as bandits, for whatever reason.  Of course, this
> "never, ever" has three exceptions, but I'm fairly confident that
> these three exceptions are far removed from reality.
> 
>  1.  I'm starving to death.  My three bowls of rice and beans have
> diminished to a single bowl of rice and beans, and then to a bowl of
> rice without beans.  The menu might vary, but my bare nutritional
> needs are not being met.  Banditry is okay by me when it is necessary
> to guarantee my literal survival, no other proviso required.
> 
> 2.  The government spends at least $1 trillion on developing
> alternative energy sources.  If we can spend that much money killing
> people, we can spend that much money developing ways to unyoke the
> world from the petroleum beast.  If our scientists are given that much
> money to spend -- with oil companies, oil company lobbyists and oily
> politicians put on firm leashes -- thn we would find an oilless
> solution.
> 
> 3.  Walk.  I didn't get my driver's license until I was 26 years old.
> It expired when I turned 30, which I didn't renew for the next twelve
> years.  Somehow, I managed.  Generally, i walked everywhere.  This
> obviously isn't viable for everyone, but it is viable for millions of
> USians who live two minutes from the supermarket and yet still drive
> to the store to pick up that loaf of bread, or that all-important
> Snickers.  In other words, for my able-bodied peers who complain about
> the price of gas and yet still walk only when their car is in the
> shop, I whip out my smallest violin while simultaneously singing  "boo
> hoo hoo."
> 
> Chas
> 
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