by Josh Greenberger

Created on: May 22, 2008

(May 21, 2008) With the almost daily rise in gasoline prices threatening the lifestyle of every American, the question on many people's minds is, where will it end?

According to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the average retail price for gasoline in 2002 was $1.35 per gallon and crude oil averaged $24.09 per barrel. On May 21, 2008, crude oil hit a record $130 per barrel, and many stations were already selling Regular gas for over $4 per gallon.

Goldman Sachs predicts crude oil will hit $200 a barrel in two years. This could translate into $6 per gallon at the pump.

These high gas prices threaten to seriously impact driving habits, air travel, food purchases and just about every commodity we're accustomed to. Replacing a meal with a "big snack" is not something Americans are accustomed to doing, but, if gas prices go much higher, it may become a sad reality for some.

What are the chances of gas prices rolling back in the near future to anywhere near the 2002 levels? The answer, I believe, is very good, and nil. Depending on what we do or don't do.

If we do nothing, things are likely to get a lot worse. If we act now, we can greatly reduce gas prices, not in ten years or some distant future, but in a matter of months.

We're currently sitting on one of the worlds greatest oil reserves. What's stopping us from taking advantage of it is the modern scourges of political correctness and worrying about what others will say.

In one fell swoop we can drastically reduce the price of oil, reduce some of Americans' outrage over the Iraq war, and greatly diminish the power of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Nations).

We're in Iraq right now - let's use it to our advantage.

Taking control of oil fields is not necessarily an "either us or them" situation. There's enough oil in Iraq to satisfy the needs of the U.S. and Iraq. The 2.3 million barrels of oil a day Iraq currently produces is a small fraction of its vast oil reserves. Iraq's proven oil reserves are currently estimated at 115 billion barrels, the third largest in the world, behind Saudi Arabia and Iran. At its current rate of production, Iraq would take over 130 years to use up its reserves. (By then, we'll probably be driving cars on hydrogen broken down from ordinary water.)

The sad truth is that in the middle east, oil money seldom, if ever, goes to "the people." In that region, oil generally makes the sheiks and crooked ruling parties or families rich while the people remain at poverty levels.

Iraq

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