Oil dependence is a dangerous habit - Essay Example

Oil dependence is a dangerous habit The latest report shows that increasing oil imports enlarged the gap between the country’s exports and imports as a result of dependence on imported oil. Research shows that U.S is using a lot of money overseas on oil rather than investing them at home (Lefton and Weiss para 1). Another reason why dependence on oil is dangerous to U.S is attributed to ever increasing global warning. This problem poses a major threat to both the national and global security.

To avoid this, there is need to stop oil dependence and invest heavily on green sources of energy (Lefton and Weiss para 1). Additionally, oil dependence is dangerous because it leads to national instability. For example, the importation of oil in 2008 by U.S from countries that are currently under the State Department’s Travel Warning List has led to serious consequences for the country’s economy (Lefton and Weiss para 2). Again, it appears that as a major contributor to global oil needs, U.

S is paying to fund and maintain unfriendly governments. Demand for oil by U.S increases world oil prices in the world market and sometimes benefits oil-producing nations that do no sell to the U.S market (Lefton and Weiss para 4). Another problem is that administrations that benefit economically from massive energy resources hardly share oil earnings with their citizens. As a result, this worsens economic difference in such nations and sometimes causes resource driven conflicts and tensions(Lefton and Weiss para 5) .

Similarly, it is dangerous for U.S to depend on oil simply because it is increasingly becoming more challenging and dangerous to satisfy oil needs. For example, in 2008, U.S used 23 percent of the total world’s oil. The country imported 57 percent of the total world’s oil despite holding not more than 2 percent of the world’s total oil deposits. Failure to minimize its dependence on oil, U.S is likely to be forced to seek help from more opposing and volatile regimes that are a threat to national security (Lefton and Weiss para 6).

Work CitedLefton, Rebecca and Weiss, Daniel. Oil dependence is a dangerous habit. 13. Jan. 2010. Web. 26 Sept. 2012. Reference