Tribune’s December 29th editorial on energy dependence was both factual and wrong. It left out critical information. Whoever wrote it should have consulted someone knowledgeable of the oil industry.

The first thing that caught my eye was the headline. We cannot be energy independent as long as we get oil from Canada, Mexico, and Venezuela. For some reason the people who know nothing seem to forget those countries sell us oil so we are far from being independent. The second is a picture of an oil well pumping unit and calling it oil rig. Rigs are towering structures that drill the hole. Units are put in place along with the piping, pump and rods after gas pressure reduces the free flow of oil.

The writer left out statistics of consumption, domestic production, and barrels we buy from different countries. Also the writer left out that oil shale fracking produces a spurt of oil which rapidly dies out. Often the well dries up before the financing is paid back. If the price of oil is high during the spurt, the well is profitable. If it is at today’s price it may not break even, drilling drops and therefore production when the price is low. We produce less and consume more.

I hope a more baked editorial will be forthcoming.