State of the Union

Discharging his duty under Article II, Section 3 of the Consitution, President Bush delivered his State of the Union message this evening. Although I had to tutor, I was able to hear the speech (almost in its entirety) while driving to Torrance.

The most heartening part of the message was his recognition of America's need to purge foreign petrol from her diet:

Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. Here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology...So tonight, I announce the Advanced Energy Initiative -- a 22 percent increase in clean-energy research at the Department of Energy, to push for breakthroughs in two vital areas.

To change how we power our homes and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission coal-fired plants; revolutionary solar and wind technologies; and clean, safe nuclear energy.

We must also change how we power our automobiles. We will increase our research in better batteries for hybrid and electric cars, and in pollution-free cars that run on hydrogen...Breakthroughs on this and other new technologies will help us reach another great goal: to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025.

By applying the talent and technology of America, this country can dramatically improve our environment, move beyond a petroleum-based economy and make our dependence on Middle Eastern oil a thing of the past.

That I am absolutely against sending more money to the Middle East, and against the evironmental damage caused by our "petroleum-based economy" should not come as any great revelation to my close friends. Even I was startled, however, at just how deep-seated and primal my disapprobation runs; this little discovery came upon me while I was listening to NPR.

A political scientists of sorts commented that with oil around $60/barrel, Iran feels free to act with impunity [with regard to its nuclear program], because sanctions against it would result in $100/barrel oil. He concluded that as long as America and other countries depend on Middle Eastern petrol, we cannot move against Iran. "Damn our thirst for foreign oil! DAMN YOU, OIL!!!" I found myself shrieking at the top of my livid lungs. How fortunate there was no one else in the oil-efficient Prius to observe this unseemly outburst. Perhaps therapy would work to treat my oil-averse condition.