To Drill or Not to Drill

To Drill or Not to Drill

Is President Obama’s push to free America from its dependency on foreign oil too expensive or do the benefits outweigh the risks? Obama’s states that his plan will “move us from an economy that relies on fossil fuels and foreign oil to one that relies more on homegrown fuels and clean energy” (Winter, 2010). Obama’s plan infuriated some Democrats and environmental advocates who believe that drilling could damage fisheries and tourism. Republicans are encouraging the explorations of areas which are still off- limits, such as parts of Alaska (Winter, 2010). My position is that if using cleaner fuels will make America more efficient and cut back on some of the pollution, Obama’s plan should be put into action.

Some key habits that could hinder ones thinking on this matter are Resistance to change, and conformity. Resistance to change is the simple tendency to reject new ideas or new ways of seeing things. One could not want to accept Obama’s plan for change simply because it is a new way of doing things, and we are so used to the old way that changing it up may seem scary because we cannot predict the result. Conformity is choosing to go with the majority vote because of the fear of experiencing something different. Instead of thinking and coming to our own decision we would basically do what everyone else is doing or believes that we should be doing.

To overcome these habits a person would need to do his or her research. In doing so they would find information about Obama’s plan that would allow them to make their own informed decision and therefore would not have to be afraid of change or be forced to side with the majority simply because they do not have all the facts. A person doing his or her research with resistance to change hindering him or her would find that Obama’s plan is laying a more permanent framework for the development of alternative energy sources (Jonsson, 2010). With more details they may not be so apprehensive...