There is no doubt that while sea surface temperatures are rising and glaciers around the world are receding, as far as the global economy is concerned, we are in for a big chill. But no matter what the cause of atmospheric heating, the oil industry seems to be putting all plans for future growth in the deep freeze. But the longer they are in there, the more they will suffer from freezer burn – obsolescence.
To stop this self-destructive downward spiral oil producers and refiners ought to be thawing those frozen plans for improvements squirreled away in the freezer. Even the worst depression will ultimately bottom out, and there will inevitably be a climb upward again. The ones who begin that climb first, slow and strenuous though it be, will also be the first to benefit in whatever form the new world economy will take.
Those who look to government instead of industry to solve our present economic ills are bound to be disappointed. Democracies, well-meaning and well-directed though they may be, are hamstrung by the vagaries of free elections: Good administrations as well as bad can be voted out of office, and with them, whatever good projects have been begun. And authoritarian states will never make real progress but only batten on advances made in democratic societies.
Industry must do as much or more than government. And it is up to the petroleum industry, the only one with the proven experience in mounting long-term projects and the vision and courage to take on work of truly global scope, that can lead. It’s one of the few industries that need not come begging for bailouts if indeed it still possesses the strength, self-reliance, and sheer guts of the original oil patch.
Nathaniel A. Matlin
The Matlin Co.
Langhorne, Penn.
