The Sophian

Issue date: 9/21/06 Section: News

Media Credit: www.dodmedia.osd.mil Former CIA Director John M. Deutch spoke last week at Amherst College.

This past week, John Deutch, former director of the CIA and esteemed alumnus of Amherst College, deliberated on "America's Energy Future." Deutch examined U.S. dependency on oil, the problem of global warming and the politics of nuclear energy.

The energy industry is enormous; needed to fuel the economy of a nation and the personal comforts of the individual, it is a business that, he said, comes with many "formidable obstacles and challenges." To address these problems Deutch asked his audience to examine U.S. policy and action with regards to dependency on foreign oil, the measures against and the effects of global warming and the criteria set for the boundaries of nuclear power.

According to Deutch, the United States consumes "20 billion barrels of oil per day, at 42 gallons a barrel, which is approximately 800 million gallons in 24 hours." Our nation alone guzzles 22 percent of the world's total daily production. "In 1960 when I was at Amherst College, the United States consumed half that amount," Deutch said. The country also paid $3 per barrel against the current rate of $160.

In recent years there has been greater international competition for oil and the United States has become more and more reliant upon oil producing countries. Our dependence has become so great that, according to Deutch, we "balance our need for oil with other foreign policy objectives, especially in such countries as Iran and Venezuela."

A workable solution will most likely come with domestic reform. The nation, "needs a higher tax on gas to lower the demand for oil and encourage energy efficient technologies," said Deutch. The United States also needs to "increase our own production of oil and gas because it is hard to encourage greater efforts in other countries when there is none in our own."

Deutch also addressed the problem of global warming. In rapidly-industrializing nations such as China, India and Indonesia, the carbon dioxide levels have risen. Deutch believes that all countries, regardless of their output, should examine this issue. "Global warming is a global problem," asserted Deutch. He went further to praising Al Gore for identifying the issues in his documentary, An Inconvenient Truth. However, he asserted that the former vice president's presentation "was not as strong on providing prescriptions for the problem."

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