By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
For Americans who came of age in an era marked by worries about scarce world oil supplies, dominant international oil cartels and unrest in the Middle East, the times are changing — quickly.
Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing have boosted shale gas production from zero a few years ago to 10 percent of all U.S. energy supplies in 2012, observes energy analyst Daniel Yergin.
Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing have boosted shale gas production from zero a few years ago to 10 percent of all U.S. energy supplies in 2012, observes energy analyst Daniel Yergin.
That prospect also ushers in a major shift in OPEC exports toward China and the rest of emerging Asia — especially as Iraq ascends once again as a game-changing exporter — in a development that also has important implications for the U.S., Mr. Yergin said.
"The results of this hemispheric upsurge will have far-reaching consequences — nothing less than a rebalancing of world oil," Mr. Yergin said, noting that China now imports more oil from the Persian Gulf than does the United States.
