By Robert BryceUntil the U.S. opens its offshore waters to oil drilling, it will be seen as the world's worst energy hypocrite.
If you think that the issue of offshore drilling is only a matter of interest to American environmental groups and the U.S. Congress, think again. At last month's World Petroleum Congress in Madrid, the blatant hypocrisy of U.S. energy policy--demanding that OPEC members expand their oil drilling efforts while restricting offshore drilling here at home--was a prominent topic of discussion. Indeed, the U.S. ban on drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf was mentioned by three of the most powerful people in the global energy business: the head of OPEC; the chief executive of Brazil's national oil company, Petrobras; and the Saudi oil minister. All of them said the United States should start drilling in its offshore areas.