A Great American Achievement

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Summary

The new government statistics are out. September marked the first month that U.S. exports of crude oil, and petroleum products, surpassed imports since the government started recording the data in 1949. This is a milestone, as the United States is energy independent for the first time in 70 years. We have freed ourselves from the shackles of being dependent on other nations. I clap my hands for the American oil and gas industry and applaud their notable accomplishment!

Make no mistake here. This is a "Game Changer" and one of the first order. We have overcome our energy deficit and America is now winning the battle.

And here is the prime condition of success, the great secret. Concentrate your energy, thoughts and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged in. Having begun in one line, resolve to fight it out on that line; to lead in it. Adopt every improvement, have the best machinery and know the most about it. - Andrew Carnegie

How we got here is a matter of new technologies, the implementation of them, and the resourcefulness of many innovative American companies. There has been fracking, re-fracking, horizontal drilling and a whole host of other innovations that have propelled us along. For American consumers it has been a boon. Since the per-gallon price of gas peaked, in 2008, the price of gasoline has dropped by about 35 percent.

More than all of this, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, refineries across 18 states support over 160,000 jobs and contribute nearly $36 billion to the economy. In some senses, as we consider 5G, the internet cloud for storage, and quantum computing, our new technological breakthroughs in energy are even more important to the country.

So, what we need now is a national energy plan. I am not talking about governmental intervention but a strategy to use our newfound resources to further the interests of America as we export oil and natural gas to other nations. When I last spoke to the Department of Defense, I stated my viewpoint. I told the DOD that the country needed a carefully thought out strategy. We still do not have a national plan, but I hold onto hope as now we are not only energy independent but, with one more push, we can become a major exporter of energy and to the nation's advantage.

Even in the case of our "Game of Thrones" with China, oil and natural gas could be used as a lever. Instead of just concentrating on tariffs, America could make a deal to supply energy to China, as part of our quest to find economic balance with them. We could also make some sort of deal with the European Union where they, too, wouldn't have to rely on the rogue nations for their energy needs. This would also impact Russia to our advantage and tilt the balance of power further in our direction.

You see, there are two ways we can break the budget of OPEC. The first is by keeping the price of oil and natural gas at a level that breaks the economies of these nations. This is a tricky task as the Laws of Unintended Consequences comes into play there could be plenty of fallout from this strategy.

The second methodology is much easier to accomplish, if we focus on it, and if the government is willing to put it into play. This is to make deals, with various nations, to provide oil and natural gas in much the same manner as we wrangle about tariffs. As a matter of fact, I would couple our exports of energy with our tariff discussions so that we are using not only the stick but providing "honey," our energy resources, as an incentive. Then, we could also incentivize our American oil and natural gas companies to produce even more oil and natural gas and so we can literally change the world, one barrel of oil at a time.

I am reminded of Robin Williams' famous line:

"Carpe Diem. Seize the days boys."

Editor's Note: The summary bullets for this article were chosen by Seeking Alpha editors.