so naturally, nuguy, the Board's Village Idiot signs on!  The idea that announcing new drilling would change the market price is so naive and stupid it's beyond belief.  Don't you think the markets know how long it will take to bring whatever oil that's found (if it's found) to market?  The markets bid on contracts months out based on what they believe the factors/risks are during that time.  An announcement of more drilling has no more to do with these markets (which are what set the price at the pump) than announcing a cure for AIDS.  At least mr notrouble admits his lack of knowledge, but you, nuguy, are so anxious to find anyone to agree with you that you'll salute and say "Yessir" to virtually anything that fits with your prejudices.  You clearly fall into the "too dumb to post" category.

Not to mention the fact that the SPR is not a hedge against high prices, it's a reserve designed to be tapped in times of national emergency, not a way to manipulate prices.

With a scant 35 days of consuption at it's current level, the SPR is hardly a way to manipulate crude prices any how. You really need to get a clue before spouting off on topics you know nothing about.

It is amazing to hear you defend burning more coal just 'cause it comes from the good 'ol US of A.  You are a Fine American! And thanks for the acid rain!  But you gloss over "tweeking" the efficiency of batteries.  I know an engineer who's an expert on such batteries and assures me it's not as simple as you think.  You also underestimate the environmental cost of mining, manufacturing and then disposing of the batteries.  The result is that, right now, the savings of battery-powered cars is an illusion.

How are you defining efficiency? Just where are you calculating your “metric tons of energy”

The average IEC engine is about 20 to 25% efficient in converting the thermal energy content of gasoline into mechanical energy.

It’s true that electric motors and solid state inverters are about 90% to 95% efficient in converting DC electric power into mechanical energy. But examining the typical battery charging system reveals that coal fired power generation (the most common source) is typically about 40% efficient in converting the thermal content of coal in electric power. Then there are the losses of the distribution grid which average about 10% nationally but can be as high as 25%.

Of course there are production and distribution energy costs (losses) in the manufacture of gasoline and diesel. But the energy density of batteries doesn’t even come close to that of gasoline, hence the poor range of total electric vehicles. And don’t expect things to improve anytime soon regarding batteries.

Electric vehicles certainly have the edge on several items. Most maintenance is far simpler and have much lower pollutants of Carbon Monoxide, and Nitrogen Oxides, but the total Sulfer Oxides, heavy metals and other particulates goes way up due to coal. But as mentioned the manufacture and disposal of batteries is quite polluting.

At 10 cents per KWH (low side of average) the mileage equivalent of a TEV is actually closer to $1.00 per gallon. Still attractive but the energy density of batteries is still lacking and five year maintenance does include replacing the batteries at a substantial cost of several thousand dollars making the actual energy costs go way up.