Why don't we let the oil companies to drill offshore?

can you knowlegable people help me, i am just curious. I mean i believe the reason is so we use everyones oil so when the whole world is out we r the only country with oil left, as a reserve, u know in case of a mayor war or mayor oil crisis, we are the only country with remaining oil, anyone thinks different? serious answers only please, thank you.Why don't we let the oil companies to drill offshore?
Firstly, we are not the ony remaining country with oil reserves. I think the reason we don't drill here is because its an ugly process that no one wants in their back yard, they'd rather have it in someone elses.Why don't we let the oil companies to drill offshore?
Mostly it's Environmentalists and even some of the gulf States themselves that are opposed. I can understand the worry about oil spills but if Standards are raised %26amp; if we can control such horrible goofs as that AND if we drill only in the places far, far offshore (away from beaches / tourism), I don't see a problem. And as far one of the earlier responses (MO talking about the refineries)... that was misinformation! Here's some information from a geologist in response to 'building more refineries' -you can look this up for accuracy:





';It won't do a thing,'; says geologist Ken Deffeyes, author of Beyond Oil: The View from Hubbert's Peak. The problem, he says, is not a lack of refining capabilities but a shortage of crude oil to be refined.





';Building more refineries won't make crude oil appear at the entry side of the refinery,'; says Deffeyes.





Additionally, he notes that while the U.S. has not built a new refinery in decades, oil companies have added increased capabilities to existing refineries. ';We haven't seen oil piling up on the dock waiting to go to the refineries,'; he notes.





The focus, he says, should be on the lack of crude oil, and he says that problem won't go away. ';If world oil production is not increasing 鈥?and in fact seems to be in the process of decreasing 鈥?you need fewer refineries, not more refineries,'; he says.
It ruins beaches and natural habitat.
it's a band-aid. A quick fix to a long term problem.. just so we can come full circle to this exact same problem in a few years. Now, I have no problem using this quick fix, just as soon as you show me the long term planning on how to get us off of oil. Till then, I'm going to keep pushing for alternatives to make sure the government realizes just how important I believe it to be.
They already have been given 89 million acres of offshore area to drill on and 10 thousand permits to drill and yet the oil companies have refused to use more than 2.5% of the permits issued.





Since they have the land and the drilling permits, shouldn't your question be, why are the oil companies refusing to use what has already been granted to them.





The only logical answer is that the oil companies want supply to be short so they can proffit more.
The first President Bush was the one who set the moratorium on off shore drilling in the first place, so I don't see how that was the Dems fault.





It's all politics really, people are sick of the high prices so both parties are trying to position themselves on this issue.





The oil companies could drill in a lot of places that they are not drilling in right now, it's not having more oil that is the problem. If there are not enough refineries to handle the oil, the same amount of gas is going to be made. Exxon has actually purchased refineries in order to shut them down. Exxon wants to make money, pure and simple. If they do drill for this specific oil, something else will just be the problem as to why gas is still high, war, refineries, they will come up with some excuse.
Quick fix or not, doesn't matter. The simple fact is that if the rest of the world knew we weren't going to sit here and do nothing like we have the last 30 years, the markets would change. Speculators are invested that we won't lift a finger. They've been right so far.
They are already doing it where ever it is possible.
No one is stopping the oil companies from drilling on what they leased to drill on,except oil companies. They drill on way less than half( i think it is more like a qaurter) of what they have leased so why would they need more leases? This is just being used as a wedge issue.
Why use our own OIL when we can start an unconstitutional, illegal, immoral 'war' against another sovereign nation that never threatened, provoked or attacked the United States? After all, what's all of OUR oil doing underneath THEIR sands?? Bush's #1 non-military 'benchmark' insists that the Iraqi Parliament surrender two thirds of its OIL fields to foreign OIL companies, which - in effect - allows corporations like Exxon-Mobil to virtually STEAL Iraq's most valuable economic resouce.





The White House is occupied by two former OILmen who have allowed American OIL companies to fix its prices, gouge its customers and manipulate the OIL market, all for maximum profits without intervention or complaint from a compliant Oval Office.





Domestic OIL exploration and drilling would only be a bandage, or a temporary solution, and would only serve to continue to enhance OIL company profits for the short term.





What we need is an administration that promotes alternative energy solutions, demands that manufacturers build more fuel-efficient cars, and caps OIL company profits so that they can't pay their CEOs and sharehodlers such handsome dividends.





What we DON'T NEED is oil drilling in the few remaining pristine regions of the planet. Drilling in the ANWR region would disrupt the migration patterns of caribou, on whom remote Eskimo tribes depend for food, clothing and shelter. What we DON'T NEED is oil drilling in gulfs and oceans which decimates lives of everything from whales to sea lions to krill. What we DON'T NEED is more arrogant, ignorant, greedy OIL barons plundering our lands and waterways so they can continue to line their pockets.





Whether you're a Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, agnostic or atheist, you must have enough intelligence to recognize that EVERY species of plant and animal on this Earth is here for a purpose. We 'superior beings' can't just rape the land, pillage through the waterways, and destroy everything in our path just for our own profit, comfort and convenience. Elephants, whales, rain forests, tsetse flies, mountains, meadows, horse shoe crabs*, wetlands, rare poisonous Amazonian frogs, mangrove forests, beaches, trees, Venus fly traps, spiders, kittens, wheat fields and all other plants and animals on the planet have just as much right to be here as do we. We have been poor stewards of the planet, never recognizing (as did the native American Indians and other tribal units) that every creature, beast, plant, seed, and species on this planet serves a purpose.





OIL is not the long-term solution to our energy crisis. We must begin to make sacrifices such as giving up our gas-guzzling SUVs and Hummers; driving more fuel-efficient cars; driving less; learning to REuse, REduce and REcycle; bicycling; using more mass transit and actually WALKING to work or school. Until we realize that we're the 'problem', all the OIL drilling in the world won't keep us from being addicted to [petroluem-based] plastic junk we buy at WalMart every day. We have squandered Earth's resources and now - sooner, rather than later - we will pay dearly for such gluttony. I pity our grandchildren and great-grandchildren. -RKO- 06/18/08
First, drive along the Texas coast and look at all the oil wells. We do drill offshore. However, I understand what you are saying. My husband used to work in the oil fields. He said that many, many times when drilling, wells were capped and left alone. You may be correct, that US is saving our own oil for future generations.





In the midst of worldwide high gas prices, with the upcoming election, we will definitely address this in the very near future.
germany has oil reserves too





other countries too i guess
It takes years to start production on oil so if they start drilling today, it will be 2012 before we see any changes in gas prices. By 2020, we would be right back in the same boat again. The only solution to the oil problem is to stop using it altogether.
Read official reports, look into the connection between 'lobbies, Bush %26amp; ANWR', understand why prices are increasing in the first place (supply %26amp; demand) ----- Problem is reliance on the OIL %26amp; Middle East in the first place, how long do you think this fantasy is going to last.





The resources we have we can have a viable alternative source within 10 years, so question is WHY NOT %26amp; why is McCain refusing point blank to invest in research for alternative fuels.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOZRrbE8Q鈥?/a>
Why hasn't the oil companies drilled on the 68 million acres of off shore drilling sites they already currently have access to? We're being conned and lied to once again. The oil companies are hording oil and hording drilling sites. The speculators (look up ICE) are buying up oil futures and artificially controlling the price by creating the appearance of a supply shortage. Why would they do this? It seems obvious. To drive up prices, increase their profits, and lie their way into the previously protected drilling sites off shore and in ANWR. Total US gas consumption is down 3% in the past year (that means less use, more supply available) and yet in that same time frame gas prices have increased 35%.
Because liberals are speculating in the oil commodities market and they would take a financial hit if we came up with new sources for oil.
the Democrats owe all to the radical tree huggers...they CANT allow it...plus they just su*k pretty much all around..I spent 12 years in the offshore oilfields of La and Tex...it takes more money to drill in some leases than in others..the deep expensive leases are open.the cheaper shallow leases are closed...we need to open the shallow ones and thats the ones ';congress'; wont let be drilled
3 words


Environmental Protection Agency.
Environmental Lobbyists.