Why? Because we can't. We dependent on of other countries for a lot. To begin with, we import almost 100% of the rare earth metals such as chromium, cobalt, and platinum which are needed by many industries because they are either not found in this country or are found in only trace amounts. In food products there's coffee, teas, spices, fruits,.....
Stopping the import of oil into the US for 2 months, not 2 years would double the price of gas. Of course when gas reaches that price level, oil from shale, shallow wells, and alternative fuels would be cost effective, however by the time we could produce enough to relieve the shortage, we would be in a depression.
We can not build a wall around the country and live in isolation. Anyone that seriously suggested it would be branded a fool or lunatic.
Flopper it's that oil mthing again . Maybe you didn't read my earlier post.
I think that most of the oil rigs in American that have been shut down are still in place and can be restarted. America according to this 2006 list of oil producers is number 3 in the world.
Top World Oil Producers, Exporters, Consumers, and Importers, 2006 — Infoplease.com
And 2007
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/en...oil-production
And America is an export of oil
U.S. oil exports are up to 1.6 million barrels a day, according to a recent Reuters report. That's 9 percent of total refining capacity: 17.6 million barrels (abbreviated "bbl," no one is sure why).
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/business...mestic-oi.html
AMERICA DOES NOT NEED FOREIGN OIL
Well let's see America has Iron Ore, coal, water, wood, silver, oil, natural gas, zinc, copper, bread basket of the world, corn, cotton, cattle pigs, goats, America has empty factories that could be started up to make anything that an Amerrican could possibly want and or need. We have an infrsturture airline, trains, super highways. Just to name a few great things about America. Now who needs the world?
And yes you can find these elements in America
chromium, cobalt, and platinum