This probably isn't news to most of you, but the wreck of the offshore drilling platform that was destroyed by an oil or gas surge in the Gulf of Mexico a few days ago is now exuding thousands of gallons of oil into the Gulf every day. Efforts are being made to contain the damage, but it sounds like a near-term solution is unlikely.
In 2008, the US was the world's third largest oil producer, generating almost half of what we used. I see lots of energy development happening, changing our nation's energy portfolio over the next few decades, but for now we really need this stuff. This episode should remind us again of the costs of our addiction, and hopefully spur increased investment in alternative sources. We can't get to the right place without recognizing the full set of costs associated with our behavior! Too bad we have to learn this way.
