Comment Re:And... (Score 1) 160
The peak oil alarmists really don't understand the oil industry. We haven't even scratched the surface of available oil on earth. Forget shale and other unconventionals. Consider that 70% of the earth is deep water oceans. The average ocean depth is around 12,000 feet. Until recently, we didn't have the technology to drill at 12,000 feet. There has been essentially no exploration deep offshore in international waters. That's more than 2/3 of the earth that hasn't even really been explored for oil yet, let alone tapped. It won't be until prices rise substantially, as it's nowhere near economic at today's prices. We also keep finding more and more shale. Everyone's been talking about the Eagle Ford shale in Texas. Well, guess what? The Austin Chalk layer, which is largely untapped, has been found to have huge potential as well. Same physical location above ground, just different depths.
It's almost certain that there will be some point in human history (perhaps within some of our lifetimes) when oil dependence ceases. When it happens, it will simply be because oil got out competed in the market place by other alternatives. That's what is starting to happen to coal in some parts of the world. There are myriad potential doomsday scenarios, but peak oil isn't one of them.