by Michael Davis

Created on: June 19, 2008

How in the world could one truly boycott the big oil companies? Are you going to stop buying clothes and food that were shipped on trucks that used their petroleum products? Are you going to travel well out of your way to that gas station that gets its petroleum from the small oil companies, thereby wasting more fuel than necessary? Are you going to stop using electricity from plants that use petroleum from the big oil companies? No, it's not practical.

Are the big oil companies gouging us at the pump? Clearly, they are! Do we still pay half as much for gas as most other countries in the world? Yes! The fact is that no matter how unethical the practices of the big oil companies may be, they are, right now, a necessary evil and as high as gas prices are, we still have it easy compared to the rest of the world.
So, what can we do? Boycotts are typically short-term actions aimed at problems that can be attended to and fixed quickly, and to which there is a viable alternative. In this case, there really isn't a viable alternative. The true answer is a long-term sustained attack against the oil industry. While the American psychology is typically one that feeds off of instant gratification, that won't work here. We need to focus on and pour as much support as possible into developing and using alternative energy sources. The technologies to replace petroleum products are there, they work, and need only be further developed to be more affordable, efficient, and practical. So, people need to start pressuring their Senators and Congressional Representatives.
Overwhelm our special interest government with so much demand for alternative energy that they can't possibly entertain drilling for oil in nature preserves and just off of our shores. Make the demand so loud that no amount of influence from the oil lobby will be enough to cover it up. Make our government spend our tax dollars on programs designed to wean us off of the need for oil, and not subsidize the very industry that is presently raking in record profits.
So, no, boycotts are not the answer. The answer is to stop being apathetic when it comes to government. The answer is to take action to make our government do the right thing. The answer is to understand that until we change our own habits, we will be forever mainlining petroleum like drug addicts in back alleys. The answer is to hit them where it hurts, and that means take the time, energy, and resources to make them unnecessary.

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