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We passed the peak, just as predicted, back in 2005. But the real issues is that the cheap oil was already in short supply. We are so addicted to oil that we chase after other things and turn them into oil. The Canadian Tar Sands are a case in point. Their dirty little secret is that the have to add tons of hydrogen to even approximate a hydrocarbon. And where do they get all that hydrogen? From natural gas, a perfectly good and clearer energy source. As one journalist called it, "they turn gold into shit". Remember all those flares at oil refineries, they used to just burn off the natural gas. It too will be gone in few more years. But we will be drilling baby drilling according to Trump long after the the thermodynamic net loss sets in.

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Greg Daneke, Emeritus Prof.
Greg Daneke, Emeritus Prof.

Written by Greg Daneke, Emeritus Prof.

Top Economics Writer, Gov. service, corp consulting, & faculty posts (e.g., Mich., Stanford, British Columbia). Piles of scholarly pubs & occasional diatribes.

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