I disagree. Yes the rise in the price of oil could be good for the US if the eventual outcome is more environmentally friendly cars, less car usage in general, and a focus on developing and implementing more sustainable energy sources. But these are things that could happen without the price of oil skyrocketing if consumers and companies were willing to change their mindset.
On the other hand, the rising price of oil is bad for the US for a number of reasons that cannot really be controlled: it lowers savings, undermines an already weak dollar, and worsens inflation as well as the trade deficit (with rising prices of imported oil.) As the Washington Post points out, it's also changing the balance of world power in favor of places like Saudi Arabia, Russia and Iran – not the greatest thing for the US.
May 15, 2008 at 4:24pm
Saabira Chaudhuri