The Cost Of A Gallon Of Gas Prices - 1626 Words

In January 2016, the cost of a gallon of gas dropped below two dollars, and consumers were rejoicing. Driving that car with twelve miles to the gallon car wasn’t so bad. Going to the grocery store was a little cheaper because of the transportation costs of goods. Americans could afford a like extra and never wonder about why the gas dropped. We were still hurting from three dollars or more for a gallon. Companies in the United States started drilling for oil on American soil in larger quantities than before two years earlier in 2014. Jobs in the industry were aplenty. Young adults straight out of high school could go into training for a year and come out making six figures by they were twenty-five. The amount of oil produced was†¦show more content†¦Oil towns started dying when the restaurants and stores have no more customers, because there was no money. This could start a â€Å"domino effect† and cause an economic meltdown in states like Texas, New M exico, and North Dakota (Egan). This event was caused by the U.S.’s dependence on imported foreign oil, because when the U.S. imports more than half of the oil it uses on a daily basis, someone else has the control over the economy. Energy dependence is not a new problem but one that started in 1973 after the oil embargo. It was caused by the Arabian government cutting off the oil and gas supply as a protest against the U.S. support for the Israel in the war between Egypt and Syria (Myre). President Richard Nixon gave a speech claiming his plan called â€Å"Project Independence† could produce enough energy needed in America and stop importing oil and gas by 1980. Then in 1975, President Gerald Ford had a similar plan with a deadline of 1985, and this was the cycle that lasted eight presidents so far. The deadline has now been moved up to 2025, but now, the U.S. is in a hole more than ever before. In the 1970s, imports only accounted for about 30% of all oil cons umed. In 2010, imports account for 60% to 70% of all oil consumed. This problem has accelerated almost to the point of no return (Gottesdiener). The idea of energy independence is that the U.S. would not import any oil or gas from outside counties and produce all energy needs inside the U.S.