My own personal resistance to off-shore drilling is based on the simple economic principles of supply and demand and the fact that oil is finite resource. Environmental Scientists, including Professor Dork Sahagian of Lehigh University, believe that oil is a resource that will be completely exploited by 2020-2050. It is because of this that I reject the premise of presently employing domestic oil reserves to lower the high price of gas and transportation. If we as a country increase the use our own oil to satisfy the demand for lower gas prices now, we risk exploiting our supply before a seamless transition can be made to renewable energy sources. If this were to occur, we would inevitably be forced to pay an even greater premium for foreign oil than we do now in order to satisfy our demand. In other words, actions taken to lower present fuel costs could force us to pay much more for our fuel sometime in the near future. Although I can see how an increase in the use of American oil may be tempting, actions such as off-shore drilling are dangerous and will not only put us at the mercy of foreign suppliers, but will put a far more severe strain on the US economy as well.
What I find most alarming about Obama's switch to supporting off-shore drilling is not the fact that he flip-flopped; politicians do this all the time (especially when 80% of Americans in fact support the issue at hand). I am most unnerved by the fact that I still support Obama for President! When choosing who to support for President, I tried to go about it as rationally as possible. I read up on the issues, listened to speeches, and researched backgrounds in an attempt to make the most informed decision possible based on my own beliefs and ideas on where the country should go in the next four years. Before I finally did choose to support Obama, his position on the issue of off-shore drilling was one that made me feel that he possessed economic ideals parallel to my own and that he possessed the intelligence and ability to revamp our economy.
Cognitive dissonance occurs naturally whenever a person holds two contradictory beliefs, but I never expected to have such a feeling in reference to a Presidential candidate. In hindsight, some degree of dissonance was to be expected upon my discovery that Barack Obama no longer rejected the idea of offshore drilling. Although the issue is an important one to me, I have recently been finding myself downplaying the issue's importance and trying to find ways to reduce my anxiety. While dissonance reduction was discussed in class and I know that I should know better, I still feel that I should support Obama. Of late, I have tried to denounce my pro-Obama stance and have even tried to garner my support for John McCain, but I still find myself rationalizing an innate support for Obama by placing greater emphasis on some of the other issues that led me to his camp in the first place. Whether
The concept of change is one that has brought Barack Obama to national prominence and one that may him take him right through the doors of the White House. As a now reluctant and frustrated supporter for Obama, I thought that his beliefs on change pertained to the direction of our country and the methods of our government. Never did it occur to that his ideas of change concerned his stance on issues that I found most fundamental. When I place my vote in November, I will now be forced to consider myself a liar or a fool. If I vote for McCain, I am lying to myself about my suppressed support for Obama. If I vote for Obama, I am the fool who votes for a candidate who gained my support by taking a desirable stance on an issue, only to change course when the winds of public opinion turned in the opposite direction. Although I can only assume that Obama perceived that most people would continue to support him despite his complete 180 on the issue, I feel as if he has abandoned me without any sense of where to go (and who to trust) next.
4 comments:
Please note that with a 37% decrease in the price of crude oil since from its record high in early July, Obama should resist the urge to pursue off-shore drilling and take action to marginalize the issue despite the recent effects and shortages anticipated as a result of Hurricae Ike. Rather than pursue a policy that increases the use of domestic oil, I wish that efforts would be focused on scrutinizing the problematic nature of the Enron Loophole and the trade of energy futures and sanctioning those speculators that exploited the American public.
I think everyone experiences this cognitive dissonance at some point when they strongly support a candidate. It seems like politics really does come down to a "lesser of two evils" choice, and evaluating (or re-evaluating) your priorities in what you expect from a candidate.
I think that Obama has "flip flopped" on this issue because of the fact that so many Americans (whether or not they are truly educated on the issue) agree that off-shore drilling is necessary. I think that the reason this issue has become so popular is because the American public is looking for a quick-fix, simple solution to the gas crisis. I wish that efforts would be focused on Enron and the trade of energy futures, but unfortunately the general public does not research issues of this nature, nor do they fully know or understand the alternate solutions. This is a tricky issue because of the nature of the economy and the desperation of not only the American people, but the current government as well.
I very much understand that the general public is not educated when it comes to issues pertaining to our economy, but that is no reason for one to change their position on a vital issue to to appease their ignorance. In these times of desperation, we need a President that will stick by their ideals and educate the masses on issues of such great national importance. To do anything besides this (especially flip-flopping) will prevent the President from being exactly what the President should be: a leader.
The fact that he so easily changed his position really makes you how much a certain special interest is whispering in his ear and wonder whose pocket his hand is resting in.
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