Arguments Against ANWR = All Wet.

The Seattle Times has a column today by Bruce Ramsey titled "My Last Word (Yeah Right) On ANWR Oil Drilling". In it, Ramsey takes to task the e-mails he has lately received from some of his readers trying to make the case against the recent Congressional authorization to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

One of them reflects a similar argument that I've heard before. His response really gets to the heart of the matter.

"One response was that Americans may need the oil, but won't get it. "The bulk of this oil will go to China, Korea and Japan," one reader wrote. "Regular U.S. citizens (and taxpayers) get nothing from this." Assume the oil goes to Asia. The conclusion does not follow. From ANWR oil, Americans would get taxes, royalties and jobs. Also we would get some slack in the oil market, because if China buys more oil from Alaska, it buys less from someplace else.

The oil market is global, which means that supply from anywhere benefits consumers everywhere. Demand from anywhere is felt everywhere. Indeed, the most commonly given reason for gas rising above $2 in the United States is increased demand in China.

It's simple economics. Obviously these people have never read Thomas Sowell.

Posted by: Gary at 08:25 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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