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The U.S. has become entirely reliant on oil in order for our economy to function, which can lead to negative foreign trade implications. This excellent infographic from the CBO displays that although only 37% of our energy use is derived from oil, our transportation methods rely almost solely on oil.

What’s worse, only 8% of our total energy consumption is derived from renewables, a figure that will surely increase over time but can’t happen quickly enough.

It is important to note a common misconception that seems to make its way around the political world quite often. Oil prices are global, not domestic. That means that no matter how much a stupid politician promises to reduce the price of gas, even if elected they would have little to no control over it.

Because the world market dictates the price of oil, increased domestic production would probably not dampen price changes resulting from disruptions.

But the effects of disruptions could be muted if we were less reliant on oil as a population.

 

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