re: Agreed, we lookedinto that
In the 1960s, the sensitivity to oil imports wasn't what it is today.
I also suspect that the futures market drives things more than actual prices do, and the futures market does not seem entirely rational. The idea that oil prices should skyrocket if a pipeline in Iraq blows up seems inane to me, considering we rolled along quite nicely for years when Iraq was under an oil embargo.
Most of our imports come from Canada (last time I looked) and Central and South America. Are prices flying off the roof every time Chavez gets a brain fart? If not, why?
If psychology is driving the market, new drilling and exploration in the U.S. should bring prices down even if the oil doesn't come on line right away.