On Friday, January 27th, Thomas Friedman wrote the following:
"Here's the speech I'll be listening for:
I am here to tell you that if we don't move away from our dependence on oil and shift to renewable fuels, it will change our way of life for the worse — and soon — much, much more than communism ever could have. Making this transition is the calling of our era...
But to lead, we must impose the highest energy-efficiency standards on our own automakers and other industries so we force them to be the most innovative. I want to inspire girls and boys across America to study math, science and engineering to help our nation achieve green energy independence."
After reading Friedman's column and, as usual, agreeing with it, I worried that perhaps Friedman and I had become hopelessly idealist. But the U.S.'s energy dependence so clearly props up the very violent regimes and forces that this country is simultaneously trying to eradicate, that I knew Friedman's ongoing argument would gain traction before long.
Finally, in tonight's State of the Union address, President Bush acknowledged our energy problem, and began the discussion with a poignant declaration: "America is addicted to oil."
Friedman has often equated America's need for oil with a drug addict's need for his drugs. Clearly, Bush heard this message, either directly or indirectly.
It was also nice to hear Bush speak about breaking this addiction to oil and its benefits to both world security as well as the environment. As I've said, this will be a leading issue in the 2008 presidential elections.
Before the speech, analysts said that Bush would try to cast the state of the union in a hopeful tone. Most of the speech was somewhat boring and predictable. But if Bush is right when he says that we can reduce our dependence on Middle East oil by 75% come 2025, this is certainly something to be hopeful for.
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