Patriotism

The United States uses 25% of the world oil but we only have 3% of the world’s oil reserves.  This means that we must buy the oil that we don’t produce from other countries.  To get this money to buy this oil, we have to sell something that we own or make.  Because the US currently has the largest trade deficit in the history of mankind, it means that the assets that we are selling are our businesses and buildings, our ports and our roads. 

Our incredible trade imbalance, where every year we borrow from countries like China and Saudi Arabia or sell great sections of our country to pay for the items we import, does nothing but decrease the value of our country and give other countries greater power over our government and our economy.  In fact, China has purchase over $1.4 trillion of U.S. treasury securities in the last 10 years alone.  This is over $4,000 for every man, woman and child in the United States.

The Solution lies in consuming less: oil, gas and everything else

The value of oil imports is equivalent to half of our total global trade deficit.  If we could decrease the amount of oil and natural gas that the US imports from other countries, through energy and resource conservation, increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy production, we could dramatically reduce or even eliminate the sale of American assets to foreign countries and companies. 

The effective new patriotism: Creating “Green Collar” jobs

We would keep more of the money Americans earn in American hands, which would create new jobs and keep America safer and more secure.  Additionally, since many of the job losses that we see in the country are from outsourcing production type work, many of these new jobs could be so called “Green Collar” jobs that are associated with increasing renewable energy production, sustainable and environmentally responsible products and services.

Green Collar Jobs would involve:

• Work done in the US, so they cannot be moved offshore.
• Built with materials designed and assembled in the US for use in the US
• Use of greater technical expertise and a more educated work-force.
• Less dependence on foreign oil.
• More economic independence.
• Reducing our trade deficit.

The result of this new green economy would be American workers designing, building and installing equipment on American homes and buildings that would result in more energy independence, smaller trade deficits and more control over our country and our future.  What could be more patriotic than that?