Friedman's column in today's Times suggested that we could use Putin's aggression as a pretext for forcing through a comprehensive energy policy that focused on renewables as a way to isolate gas and oil rich oligarchies such as Russia. Not such a bad idea, but really, what's the point of suggesting Congress do anything right now, given their obstinate state.
Haha. Yeah, it's a total fantasy. Ironically, the Iraq War was supposed to bring us more oil. Remember how the $2 billion that we would have to spend on the war was an investment that would be paid off by oil revenue within 6 months? Oh man, sometimes it's fun to reminisce.
Fracking only works for natural gas, which has about a tenth the energy density of gasoline. You aren't going to see LPG cars any time soon. Tar sands are much harder to get oil out of than wells. The only reason we're mining tar sands in Canada and not in Saudi Arabia is we don't have to mine tar sands in Saudi Arabia. This discussion misses the point that the US hasn't mined much of our reserved on purpose. The goal is to let the other guy run out of gas first. Great Game bullshit but it's the truth.