On October 14, 1982, President Reagan declared a war on drugs which had become a plague in many of our communities, fueling crime and driving the murder rates in American cities sky high.
After 30 years of fighting this war, it can be declared an abject failure. The drug cartels continue to deliver the drugs that feed the insatiable appetites of the American consumer. Early in the war, when drug lords were arrested and supplies disrupted, the effect was to drive up the prices of drugs, making the delivery of drugs even more profitable for those able to deliver them and encouraging new entrants into the production and supply chain. In the face of persistent demand for a product, there will never be a shortage of suppliers to deliver this product in search of profits. All markets for all goods behave this way. Producers and suppliers will cease to exist only when the demand for the product disappears. Draconian laws, long prison sentences, even the possibility of a violent death does not prevent the drug supply from meeting demand. This is the behavior of all well functioning markets.
The markets for fossil fuels behave no differently and, in the presence of a persistent and increasing demand, any attempts to prevent the exploitation of fossil fuels until they are completely exhausted are doomed to failure. If we want to keep this product in the ground we must act on the demand side. As consumers, individually and in the aggregate, we must quickly destroy our addiction. A rapid reduction in the demand for fossil fuels will cause an immediate reduction in production and the drop in prices will make the most expensive sources of oil uneconomic, leaving them in the ground.
Focus on demand. Also, listen to the objections when a proposal is made that would serve to shrink demand. The concern will always be about the need for growth.
My only cause for optimism is that, as consumers, we could alter the marketplace for fossil fuels instantly if we were to embrace dramatic lifestyle changes.
