Your thoughts on offshore oil drilling,now that there is a oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico?

My stance on “Spilled oil in our oceans is bad” has remained unchanged.

I also think we can drill in the oceans and still take reasonable precautions to see that these sorts of things don’t happen again. We can also make efforts to clean up our messes. That last part is where the US has a bad track record.

You’re not really suggesting that one tragic event means offshore drilling is wrong, right? It has its pros and cons, but I’m just making sure you aren’t making such a lame assumption…....

Since I like driving my car and living in a warm house, I don’t think we should stop drilling. Perhaps more stringent controls on safety and environmental protection are needed. That of course would mean higher cost to the consumer, but if it is the price I have to pay in order to be comfortable and happy, then so be it.

I’ve always hated it. There are alternatives to oil, people are just too lazy to change their ways.

im not suggesting it’s wrong{ or right for that matter) because of ” one tragic event” ,as you put it. i’m asking for opinions. remembering what happened in Alaska with the EXXON VALDEZ and the aftermath of that oil spill, i’m sure there are going to be thoughts on the subject.
i’m interested in hearing them.

I am not too lazy to change my ways, there is simply no alternative available to me with the same results as oil. Takes as much energy to produce the electricity to power a car or heat my house as it does to produce the oil. Nuclear might do but people go crazy about that. So what is this alternative?

I agree why don’t we as a nation be the leaders in an alternative fuel and energy source? I mean hell we hardly produce anything anymore we are turning into a nation of consumers and not producers. So why not take a new direction and set the standard for alternative energy producing nation. I mean there are alot of alternate energy choices (hydro electric, geothermal, wind, tidal, solar) Look at geothermal energy for example: 13,000 zeta joules of power are currently produced by the Earth and 2000ZJ would be easily tappable with improved technology and if you figure the total energy consumption of the entire planet is about .5 ZJ a year so about 4,000 years of clean power for the entire planet using just this resource and Earth’s heat generation is constantly renewed so basically this is a limitless resource. This is just one of the many types of alternative fuel and energies we should be trying to improve upon. The trick is getting the Big O to agree and not buy out ideas and shelve them.

Biodiesel, bioalcohol (methanol, ethanol, butanol), chemically stored electricity (batteries and fuel cells), hydrogen, non-fossil methane, non-fossil natural gas, vegetable oil and other biomass sources.

We (the world) are going to drill for oil somewhere. I’d prefer it to be in the US/europe where the oil companies are supposed to follow more stringent environmental protection laws.

How about this guy, makes fire out of water http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1AUEYssry0

@DrasticDreamer – I haven’t seen a pump for any of them at my local servo, actually I have never seen them in a pump anywhere? I am always intrigued when answers like yours are given, do you drive a car and how do you power it? Or do you ride public transportation, how is it powered?

And one must remember it all comes at a cost, batteries must be produced, vegetable oils must be grown. I recently read that starvation will increase as more food crops are ignored in favor of bio fuel crops.

I don’t see a simple or easy answer anywhere and in my case it has nothing to do with laziness. more like practicality.

i think this once i’ll answer my own question. oil drilling in the oceans of the world,no matter where, just sends shivers down my spine. there are two things that define life on this planet. that’s our forests and our oceans.
ruin either and life as we know it is over. the deforestation of this planet and it’s effects are well documented. look no further than haiti. the rainy season is upon it and millions are in danger of flash floods and mudslides.
in the oceans,coral reefs are dying off at an alarming rate. over fishing by even the smallest countries are having ruinous effects on
the food chain of the seas.
earth will one day no longer exist. but thats not supposed to happen for a long time. unless we dont get our shit together,and soon.

@stallion44107 agreed, it will be a sad day when children come over to my house and ask me what is that it in your fish tank tank, and I have to say “Well kids this is what we used to have in our oceans, this is a coral reef.”

My thoughts on offshore drilling have not changed. I remain adamantly opposed to it. The environmental risks grossly outweight the benefits. And when you consider the relatively low yield offshore drilling provides it’s completely unnecessary.

I say move all oil drilling and refining to the central part of the country.

how about we all just ride bikes? :)

Nuclear; safer, cheaper. Fewer immoral foreign alliances.