American Oil Addiction Since the 1977 oil embargo, there has been an increased awareness of our nation's energy security. With the increase in global population and energy consumption, the need for a stable energy supply has become a hot topic and a politically unstable issue. As our negative trade balance grows day by day, the United States finds itself in a rather precarious position. We are becoming more and more dependent on Middle Eastern oil. In fact, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) predicts that domestic oil consumption will increase by up to 60 Btu by 2025. This statistic, in itself, is cause for concern with respect to greenhouse gas emissions from burning oil. petrolium. However, perhaps more disconcerting is the fact that US oil production peaked in 1970 and has continued to decline ever since (Campbell et. al., 1998). Therefore, the American public has turned to foreign oil, particularly Middle Eastern oil, to supplement the increased demand. In an age where terrorism is at the forefront of people's minds, we still continue to import oil from the same nations that supposedly host so-called terrorist groups. The fact is that we are unwilling to responsibly address our energy future and instead choose to maintain a policy of increasing oil supply through imports. One of the main problems with this strategy is that it is a short-term fix. Studies conducted by M. King Hubbert in 1956 predicted the rise, peak, and subsequent decline of global oil production. He predicted that global oil production would increase until around 2002, and then begin to decline (Campbell et. al., 1998). If you take into account the oil embargo of 1977, which effectively reduced the price... to mid-paper... of a fuel that, once exhausted, will mark our retreat from the spotlight of the global economy. Works Cited:Campbell, Colin J., Laherrere, Jean H. "The End of Cheap Oil." Scientific American March 1998: 78-83.Flo, Gary. “Lesson on Fossil Fuel Consumption.” September 8, 2003 NA "Statistics for environmental advocates in hand." 2003: www.geocities.com/Rainforest/Canopy/2743Assoc. Press. “US auto sales hit 2003 high in July.” USA Today August 1, 2003: www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2003-07-31-autosales_x.htmMills, Mark. "25 years after the OPEC embargo". Environmental News January 1999: www.heartland.orgN.A. "www.skyaid.org." 2003: www.skyaid.org/skycar/us_auto_statistics.htmStaff Writer. “Bureau of Land Management Maximizes Energy Development, Minimizes Environmental Protection.” NRDC August 7, 2003: www.nrdc.org/bushrecord/airenergy_publiclands.asp#1383