Oil rooted in politics where special interest groups rule — Awake magazine

Energy — the basis of life on the planet. We use it to operate our cars, run electricity in our homes and cook our food in addition to a million other things.

Oil has become a major source of energy in today’s modern civilisation, with day to day operations dependent on this non-renewable resource. But the question remains, what happens if one day global oil supplies become exhausted? Do we return to the stone age, rubbing sticks together to create fire? The November 8 issue of Awake magazine, a publication by Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, explored the issue of oil in the world today and where civilisation would be if one day there was no more. Ever since crude oil was discovered in 1859 by retired railroad conductor, Edwin L Drake near Titusville, Pennsylvania, USA, it has been used to make fuel for planes, automobiles and heating systems. A multitude of cosmetics, paints, inks, drugs, fertilisers and plastics contain petroleum. According to the writers at Awake,  daily life for many would be drastically different without oil.

Research, according to Awake has Saudi Arabia as the main source of oil to the world with an estimated 332.7 billion barrels being sourced per year. Running in second place was the United States, with 216.5 billion barrels, followed by Russia with 192.6 billion barrels Various energy experts, the magazine revealed, have theorised that oil supplies may eventually become exhausted, since it was estimated that world reserves will last from 63 to 95 years more. This realisation has led mankind to turn to other energy sources, which have been around for decades, but which have only recently been recognised for their potential. Unlike petroleum, these sources, inclusive of solar, wind, wave, hydro-electric and ocean thermal, are renewable or can be quickly replenished. However, it was revealed, there are major problems regarding their production and distribution. The Jehovah Witness publication determined that the prospect of exhausting nonrenewable energy sources and only then turning to renewable ones was a dismal one.

Oil companies, it stated, were ready to take advantage of the limited time that oil was calculated to last for. However, it asked, what of the social and environmental problems associated with oil, will they last just as long? Oil, the magazine continued, was not the problem. Instead, the problem lay in man’s greed and thirst for power. Nazi dictator, Adolph Hitler, the magazine said, moved in as an arbitrator when a war between Romania and Hungary seemed imminent. However, this was in no way an act of goodwill, since Hitler’s real motive lay behind securing Romanian oil wells to prevent them falling under the control of the Soviet Union. Oil was also named as a major factor in the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. “By no means are these isolated events,” the magazine said, adding that many times the determination of oil control has been the cause of conflict and suffering. It went on to note that oil was also deeply rooted in politics and the “special interests of a few powerful people.”  Quoting the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), it maintained that oil was no ordinary product but rather a “strategic asset,” having been used between nations for political leverage through embargoes and sanctions.

In addition, oil wells, refineries and tankers have been the target of terrorist attacks, often causing extensive environmental damage. Carbon dioxide emissions have been the major culprit in environmental damage, contributing extensively to global climate change. A report from Mexican Petroleums (PEMEX), one of the world’s biggest oil enterprises, revealed that contaminants are emitted during various phases of petroleum processing, said the magazine. However, these concerns have been overshadowed by the belief that oil is the “creator of the wealth and prosperity” enjoyed by so many countries today. Awake questioned this belief though and queried the damage that has resulted from the construction of pipelines, as well as the increasing number of unemployed in Saudi Arabia, the country richest in oil deposits.