The oil sands of Canada - Essay Example

In the first part of the video, the narrator establishes the fact on the demand of oil resources for energy consumption all over the globe. From heating the home to the common city lifestyle, energy generated from the oil is arguably empirical for the contemporary world. But with higher demands and lesser oil reserves, the narrator observes, there is a need to find new ways on obtaining oil resources; and oil sand is this new way of generating oil material. In the 60 Minutes film with the title “The Alberta Oil Sands,” on the other hand, its main thesis is the growing popularity of Canada as the next country that produces oil resources to the world particularly to the United States.

Moreover, the film narrator remarks that the oil companies in Athabasca provide high amount of salary to their workers in order to lure them to work for a long period of time amidst the distance and unfriendly climate condition marked in such region in Canada. And finally, in the “Dirty Oil” video documentary, the film subtly criticizes the oil sands acquired, processed, and consumed by oil companies for the reason that this oil type greatly harms the human habitat and the environment. In watching these films, the most surprising part to me was the fact that sands can be a substitute for oil.

Well yes, not all sands, nevertheless, the truth remains that tar sands -- an uncommon type of sand -- can be converted into energy. There is a need, of course, to process this particular sand type through modern technologies prior to its oil conversion. I must admit that technology or its invention is no longer surprising to me. With vast array of gadgets and technological items visible in the modern world, I seem to find technology per se as something quite common. Perhaps the reason why I am surprise to know about oil in sand is because the term “oil” is widely defined in terms of liquid form.

Meaning to say, the oil resource is acquired in its liquid form and is not processed extensively using sophisticated technological equipments and techniques. In the long span of my life, it has been inculcated in my brain that oil is not solid but liquid. And seeing or knowing oil in sand is very mind twisting to me. Of the three films that I agree the most -- with respect to thesis or main idea -- is the Dirty Oil video documentary. In this film, the argument is substantially taken from the environmental perspective.

It is true that America and the rest of the world are addicted to oil. Nonetheless, as the documentary argues, there are consequences to the choice of utilizing oil as an energy-generating medium. The tar sands, for example, are taken into the factory for processing and conversion to usable oil. The dilemma created in this sort of process method is an environmental one: gas emission that pollutes the air. Conversely, the Dirty Oil film gives a recommendation on how to produce or create energy without necessarily destroying the natural ecology and environment: via wind energy among other environmental friendly energy technology.

On the other hand, the AOSP and 60 Minutes films are largely framed in the organizational, economic, and political spheres. In AOSP, the narrator merely states the companies that comprise the oil project prominent in Canada. One of the rationales for pursuing this project is to provide the world with oil reserves amidst its demand for energy. Admittedly, I do not agree to this line of argument. For one, energy can be generated or created without