I well remember the days of the Jimmy Carter Presidency and the accompanying recession and energy crisis. As the price of gasoline skyrocketed well above inflation (sound familiar) President Carter set up the energy department and created the well publicized “Synthetic Fuel” program to totally eliminate our dependence on foreign oil. When that pronouncement came out, almost immediately the sheiks all got together and increased production and lowered the per barrel price of oil to pre-inflation prices. And so we forgot our resolve to wean ourselves off of foreign oil dependence.

This past summer we watched helplessly as gas prices went through the roof once again. When the #dontgo movement finally convinced the Democrats in Congress to vote on legislation that will allow us to drill offshore and extract oil from shale, amazingly the prices plunged again. I just filled up last night and only paid $1.49 per gallon for my gas. It was 2002 the last time I paid that amount for my gas.

Let’s not get fooled again here though. It’s clear that the Saudis are pulling the same stunt as before in an attempt to keep us dependent on their oil. We absolutely must take full advantage of this opportunity to develop alternate energy options so that we will NEVER again be subject to the whims of hostile foreign powers. Again, I’m not the kind of person to just talk about a problem just so I can vent—I like to provide what I believe to be reasonable solutions to help solve the problem. So here’s what I believe we, individually and collectively, should do to improve our situation.

• Demand that auto manufacturers build more cars that use natural gas, a gas that is renewable and a resource that has enough reserves in Canada, US and Mexico to last several lifetimes even at current fuel consumption levels. When I say “demand” I mean go straight to the source and vote with your pocketbook. Don’t clamor for more government regulation to solve our problems. We want to make our government smaller with less control, rather than the opposite. Just go to your local car dealer and let them know that you will be unable to purchase any more new cars from them in the future until the time that they have alternate fuel vehicles readily available on their lots for purchase. Personally, I would define “readily available” as 50% of the inventory on their lot is alternative fuel vehicles.

• The stock market is down right now. Eventually it will go back up and when it does I believe the smart money will be put into alternative energy stocks such as natural gas, wind power, hydrogen fuel, nuclear development, etc. Invest in those stocks so that entrepreneurs with great ideas will be able to provide the best products to the market that will in turn reduce or even remove our dependence on foreign oil.

• Write your Congressman and Senators to let them know how you feel about government regulations that discourage the development of alternate energy resources and encourage foreign oil dependency. Hold their feet to the fire on a fairly regular basis so they are constantly reminded that we’re not going to let them off the hook this time.

• Go to the T. Boone Pickens website and read about and support his plan for alternate energy development. He’s a smart guy who knows a little bit about energy development from the oil side of things, which gives him a unique perspective in exploring the other energy options that could be made available to us.

• Walk more places and commute via bus or bike every once in a while. The less we purchase fuel, the lower the prices will get AND the less wear and tear on your vehicle—hence lower maintainance costs for you in the future. This is not an endorsement of the Global Warming theory—I think that’s phony science guided by political forces. I’m just saying that it’s a kind of boycott of the auto and oil industries every time you choose to reduce your driving. This summer, for the first time in many years, our nation’s fuel consumption declined. That in turn helped force the prices downward. You know, that old law of supply and demand thing.

• Notice how sales of SUVs and pickups have declined significantly? It sure made the auto industry sit up and pay attention for the first time in like, forever. They are ready to listen to us tell them what kind of cars we will buy rather than the other way around. Write letters to the captains of industry and let them know what your car buying plans are. I’ve got no problem purchasing a Suburban from GM as long as I can run natural gas in it. Make sure they understand that YOU understand the foolishness of the whole government mandated ethanol thing. They need to know that you know why food prices are so high, and why turkey farms had to kill all their turkeys days before Thanksgiving because they couldn’t afford the corn to feed them with. An educated electorate is a very powerful electorate!

So don’t let them fool us again this time. I’ve got no problem with raping and pillaging our own soil and coastline a bit more than we do right now in order to take care of our own fuel needs, rather than being held hostage by foreign governments. I’m not even convinced that we should consider oil based fuel to be a long term strategy for the United States. But we do need to start NOW to develop the alternative energy resources that will give us the edge once again.