Drilling is OK; speculating isn’t

Re “Crude behavior,” editorial, June 11

In general, I’m in total agreement with the arguments presented in your editorial.

But you say that the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge “is more valuable as a pristine home for threatened species.” How did you arrive at that conclusion and what are the threatened species?

The site in which drilling is planned occupies so small an area that it is equivalent to a postage stamp in a gymnasium. This is unlikely to disturb plant and animal life in any measurable way. The area required for transport is likewise insignificant.

The estimated 5.7 billion to 16 billion barrels of recoverable oil would be domestic production immune to foreign vagaries. That huge supply would be welcome and helpful in the future.

Gene Gustavson

Glendale

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Unfortunately, oil prices will remain high as our national leaders mindlessly fumble about seeking solutions.

Such stumbling about is not necessary. Spiraling prices seemingly have little basis in factual “supply and demand” concerns. Oil futures contracts are at the center of the latest money-making scheme hatched by unscrupulous capitalists. Yet Congress and the Bush administration are doing nothing to intervene.

These politicians do not appear to challenge the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to take corrective regulatory action. Instead, our political leaders are advancing lame recommendations that don’t address the root cause of intentional price manipulation, independent of actual oil supplies, by speculators.

As these speculators advance suspect claims of “future oil supply concerns,” the mainstream media repeat these claims without apparent scrutiny. Unchallenged, oil speculators are literally robbing Americans at the gas pump and sucking the life blood out of our economy.

Eric F. Samuda

Corona