Couple points:
Lauderdale, I couldn't justify my ownership of my 1999 RAm 4x4 with a 5.9 litre v8 if I wanted to, at least not to the government. But it sure did come in handy when I needed to haul a little lumber, move 20 bales of hay, or any other number of things I couldn't do in a car. Also, I have no idea where you live, but I will never ever ever ever own a car without AC in Texas. I am sure there are people from a few other states that would agree with me. Sure, it would probably be ok for highway driving, but lets face it, if it's 100 outside (and it often is, and very humid too) and you spend 5 minutes at a stoplight, it's going to be 100 inside, and you are going to show up to your appointment smelly and sweaty. Sorry, I may be wrong about this, but your statement seems like that from a true northerner! (BTW, never buy a dodge, they are utter crap. lesson learned)
Oh, and aside from all the towing, I would never fit in a car comfortably, I am 6'5 and over 300 lbs, every car I test drove had the dash board digging into my shins (I didn't drive the big caddies though.)
That being said, I would love it if they would make trucks and suv's more efficient, I hate how much I spend on gas...
Which leads us to the reason opening up Anwar is a good idea.
Development and operation of oil fields at prudhoe bay for decades has proven that drilling and production can be accomplished with no long term environmental impact. Pruhoe bay supports bear, fox, and bird populations equal to or GREATER than those of areas immediately surrounding it. Some birds even nest in shelters built around the pipelines. Since Prudhoe bay went online, the caribou herd in the are has grown from 3000 animals to over 32,000.
A facility build in Anwar that produces as much oil as Prudhoe bay in it's prime, physical footprint would be 64% smaller and the drilling impact area 74% smaller. There would be 58% less roads than service Prudhoe.
Prudhoe Bay however, peaked in 1988, it's production is in decline. It accounts for a significatn amount of north slope production, and must be replaced.
Back during the clinton presidency, the strategic oil reserve which services our navy was SOLD (to a company Al Gore had stock in, and people give chaney a hard time!). Production in Anwar from a STRATEGIC point of view, makes perfect sense.
Finally, most importantly, China is an up and coming nation, it's oil consumption, not OPEC, is what is driving your gasoline prices up. China is not a 'condition' that will go away, it is only going to grow worse, and it will in short order be the straw that broke the camels back as far as world oil consumption goes. They are graduating far more scientists and engineers than we are right now, one can only hope that somewhere in that galggle of geniuses is the person witht he magic fuel source.
Anwar is estimated to contain in excess of 24.5 billion barrels according to the U.S. Geological Survey, equal to about 30 years of saudi imports. I consider that a significant dent.
As far as the government not supporting the development of Hyrbrid vehicles, that is simply untrue, Both Clinton and Bush ahve urged the auto industry to produce more efficent hybrid vehicles, the us government currently offers a 1500 dollar tax deduction for the purchase of a hybrid vehicle as well. There is only so much the government can do without overstepping it's charter however.
I don't think anyone in the world except perhaps those that have all the oil under them, would debate we need a new fuel source, a new way of producing clean, efficient energy. And many many people are researching to try and find that, fuel cell research is very promising right now, and other areas of investigation such as carbon nano tubes which will help us produce far stronger and lighter vehicles, will assist in getting us there. It will happen eventually, but in the mean time, the government has to take stop gap measures to make sure oil will be there when we need it.
Will I buy another pickup truck? Yes, but I pray to GOD there is a hybrid by the time I have to. Why? Money makes the world spin in more than one direction, I hate paying 2.00 for gas at the pump, when I bought my ram I could get it between .80 cents and a dollar, my fuel expenses have nearly doubled.
And what was said about clean operation bonuses before is true, whoever wins the Anwar contract will have a massive financial incentive not to give the government a black eye.
Oh, and the next big oil drilling project you may not even know about is in places like Montanna, where oil exists in shale deposits. This oil has not been exploited in the past because there was no profit in it. Oil has to be over 30$ a barrel to make drilling and operation profitable in a shale deposit. Guess what, oil is at 50$ a barrel and won't be dropping by much any time soon. The US oil reserves in shale are estimated to outstrip the current oil reserves (in production) of the entire planet.
lest you all come down on me for being a red necked republican, let me clarify that I want the government and private industry to take a more responsible view and courses of action concerning our environment. I am also a realist and don't see the world in black and white, there are many colors and shades of grey involved here. I would love it if we didn't need to drill in anwar, but I think we do, and I think enough attention has been given to this, that when it happens, it will all 'be good'.
On another note, this breaks my heart wanton irresponsible act of destruction.
that was a reef, and yes, those are battaries.