The Matthias Chronicles

Thursday, August 7, 2008, 11:59 PM

Can we live without oil?

by Mar Matthias Darin

The price of oil climbs and gas prices climb with it. Many question if we can live without oil. How much would our lives change without oil and oil based products?

Here is an interesting site that shows how a barrel of oil is actually used. There are quite a few products that we use in our daily lives that come from oil.

Here are just a few of the approximate 6,000 products we use in our daily lives:

Ammonia, Anesthetics, Antifreeze, Antihistamines, Antiseptics, Artificial Turf, Artificial limbs, Asphalt, Aspirin, Awnings, Balloons, Ballpoint Pens, Bandages, Basketballs, Bearing Grease, Bicycle Tires, Boats, Bug Killer, CD Player, CD's, Cameras, Candles, Car Battery Cases, Car Enamel, Cassettes, Caulking, Clothes, Clothesline, Cold cream, Combs, Cortisone, Cosmetics, Crayons, Curtains, Dashboards, Denture Adhesive, Dentures, Deodorant, Detergents, Dice, Diesel, Dishes, Dishwasher, Dresses, Drinking Cups, Dyes, Electric Blankets, Electrician's Tape, Enamel, Epoxy, Eyeglasses, Fan Belts, Faucet Washers, Fertilizers, Fishing Boots, Fishing Rods, Fishing lures, Floor Wax, Folding Doors, Food Preservatives, Football Cleats, Football Helmets, Footballs, Gasoline, Glycerin, Golf Bags, Golf Balls, Guitar Strings, Hair Coloring, Hair Curlers, Hand Lotion, Heart Valves, House Paint, Ice Chests, Ice Cube Trays, Ink, Insect Repellent, Insecticides, Life Jackets, Linings, Linoleum, Lipstick, Luggage, Model Cars, Mops, Motor Oil, Motorcycle Helmet, Movie film, Nail Polish, Novelty Candy, Nylon Rope, Nylons, Oil Filters, Paint, Paint Brushes, Paint Rollers, Panty Hose, Paper cups, Parachutes, Percolators, Perfumes, Petroleum Jelly, Pillows, Plastic Wood, Plastics, Purses, Putty, Refrigerant, Refrigerators, Roller Skates, Roof shingles, Roofing, Rubber Cement, Rubbing Alcohol, Safety Glasses, Shag Rugs, Shampoo, Shaving Cream, Shoe Polish, Shoes, Shower Curtains, Skis, Slacks, Soap, Soft Contact lenses, Solvents, Speakers, Sports Car Bodies, Sun Glasses, Surf Boards, Sweaters, Synthetic Rubber, TV Cabinets, Telephones, Tennis Rackets, Tents, Tires, Toilet Seats, Tool Boxes, Tool Racks, Toothbrushes, Toothpaste, Transparent Tape, Trash Bags, Umbrellas, Upholstery, Vaporizers, Vaseline, Vitamin Capsules, Water Pipes, Wax paper, Wheels, Yarn, air conditioners, anti-histamines, bottles, bras, bubble gum, butane, car batteries, car bodies, carpet, cassette tapes, cds, chewing gum, combs/brushes, computers, contacts, cream, denture adhesives, dishwashing liquid, dryers, electrician's tape, glues, hair, hearing aids, heating oil, insulation, jet fuel, lip balm, loudspeakers, medicines, motorcycle helmets, paddles, paints, paraffin, pens, plastic chairs, plastic cups, plastic forks, plastic wrap, plywood adhesives, roller-skate wheels, roofing paper, rubber bands, rubber boots, rubbish bags, running shoes, saccharine, seals, shirts (non-cotton), spectacles, stereos, table tennis balls, tape recorders, thermos, tights, toners, transparencies, typewriter/computer ribbons, volleyballs, water skis, wax

That is quite a list and it isn't even complete. Even those that don't drive have a significant use of oil based procucts in their daily lives. As much as I would like to have no need for oil, the idea of have surgery without anesthetics is very disturbing. Our society would have to go back to the eighteen hundreds.

I can't see that happening nor would I want to. The United States does need a good energy plan and oil drilling must be a part of that plan for quite a while to come. As the price of oil continues to climb, so will the price of any product that is produced from oil.

As you look over this short list of the six thousand some odd products, ask yourself, Can we live without oil? Do the democrats really understand the consequences of not having domestic oil drilling? After seeing this list, I don't believe they do and I believe many people really aren't aware of just how much we use oil in our every day lives...

Without my glasses, I'm as blind as a bat. The thought of surgery without anesthesia is not only creepy, but just plain out right med-evil. Going araound with bad breath and no clothes is also freaky as well unthinkable. No shampoo to wash my hair and no comb for it is not something I even want to think about. The thought is even worse when you think about an office building filled with people in the same state and no air conditioning...

Can you live without the products produced from oil? I know I can't...

Comments from Mrs. Mecomber

Good heavens, we can live without oil. People have been doing it for thousands of years! The real question is whether we *want* to live without oil. As much as I love my refrigerator, I could do with a lot less oil in my life...

Comments from LuckyGirl

This is a perfect example of why we need to put forth the effort to develop more eco-friendly products and purchase the ones that are already available. The thought of washing my hair or gluing in my dentures--if I had them--with oil gives me the creepy-crawlies.

Comments from Arthur

Answering your question, it should be we can live without oil. Before the oil exploration, people had lived without oil though they had it more than we have now. In the future, the oil will run out. So, we had to live without oil. Can we live without oil now? Maybe, we can't. But, man had to think about the oil alternative. Someday we will and can live without oil.