Peak Oil or Deep Oil?

"Peak Oil"

Some people claim the world's oil supplies are running low. They warn us that we must reduce our population, or else our population will be reduced by starvation and violence as the oil supplies diminish.
Mike Ruppert is one such site

In Saudi Arabia the situation is supposedly so bad that they are pumping millions of gallons of salt water into the oil wells to force the remaining oil out of the ground.

"Deep Oil"

Other people complain that most oil companies have only drilled into the oil fields that are close to the surface of the earth because those are the most profitable oil fields. They claim that the Russians have discovered that carbon and hydrogen are combining into hydrocarbons deep underground.

According to this theory, all we have to do is drill wells deeper than 10,000 meters. Although deep wells are expensive, we can tap into the oil that is supposedly created continuously deep within the earth.
Joe Vialls is one such site

Some of these people believe that the peak oil fear is deliberate deception to justify population reduction, wars, and new legislation.

So, is oil 'Peak' or 'Deep'?

Who is telling us the truth? Is oil a renewable resource? Should we start drilling deep wells and stop worrying about running low on oil?

Or will oil supplies run low soon? Should we start reducing our population and planning for a world of diminishing oil?

Are the rumors of peak oil nothing more than deliberate deception? Were the Americans fooled into bombing Afghanistan and Iraq because they were deceived into believing that they are running out of oil and that they will find an enormous amount in those areas?

Lumber: Peak or Deep?

Perhaps a good way to understand this issue is to imagine it happening with trees rather than oil. Imagine two groups of people. One group complains that we are about to suffer from "Peak Lumber". They claim that there will soon be a shortage of lumber because we are cutting trees down at a rapid rate. They suggest reducing the human population.

The other group claims that under the surface of the earth are seeds that grow into trees. They claim that there will never be a shortage of trees because trees are a renewable resource.

Or imagine this argument happening with water. One group complains that we are about to run out of fresh water because we are using and abusing it so quickly. The other group insists that we will never run out of fresh water because nature is constantly providing us with more fresh water in the form of rain.

So, the questions for you are:

Will the world run out of lumber? Or are trees a renewable resource?

Will the world run out of fresh water? Or is fresh water at a renewable resource?

The answer, of course, is that trees are a renewable resource. However, that does not mean we can cut down every tree and expect new trees to replace them within a few months.

Fresh water is renewable, also. However, this does not mean we can pollute our rivers and suck up water in unlimited quantities.

Carbon is supposedly being converted into diamonds deep within the earth, in addition to combining with hydrogen. Does that make diamonds a "renewable resource"? Does that mean we can use and abuse diamonds without worrying about running out of diamonds?

My reponse to these issues is:

Second, the rate of production of these "renewable resources" may be too slow to deal with a population of 6 to 20 billion humans.

What good does it do us if lots of oil is 20,000 meters under the surface if the cost of getting access to that oil makes it more expensive than solar energy? There is lots of gold in sea water, and the rivers are adding more gold every day. However, it takes a phenomenal amount of energy and resources to extract gold from sea water with today's technology.

I would not be surprised to learn that the American government was fooled into believing that there was lots of oil waiting for us in Afghanistan and Iraq. And I would not be surprised if carbon and hydrogen are combining deep in the earth. I would not even be surprised to find that methane is being created deep in the earth.

However, even if the fear of running out of oil is exaggerated, the concept of peak oil is a serious issue. Every natural resource can be described as "renewable", but there are limits on how fast we can use those resources. And there are side effects to using resources, such as pollution.

Before anyone tells us that oil shortages will be eliminated by drilling deeper oil wells, they should tell us how fast the oil will renew itself, and how much it will cost us to bring up the oil.

Furthermore, using oil in increasingly large amounts is creating increasing amounts of pollution and garbage. Anybody who suggests tapping into oil below 10,000 meters should be required to explain how we are going to deal with all the pollution and garbage.

Peak Intelligence

The arguments between the advocates of Peak Oil and Deep Oil is at the level of intelligence of a 12 year-old child. Furthermore, there are never any intelligent discussions on television, or among top government leaders. It is also difficult to find intelligent conversations at American universities.

I think the human race encountered Peak Intelligence decades or centuries ago. The human race has been degrading into imbeciles ever since.

Maybe pumping salt water into the idiots will help push their remaining intelligence to the top of their head. (That technique works with oil wells; why not idiots?)