Crude Politics: The California Oil Market,1900-1940

摘要

While many Americans moan about gasoline costing more than $3 a gallon,few ask why oil is so cheap.Many complain about oil's environmental impact,from smog to global warming,and protest at the geopolitical consequences of our hunger for it - wars in the Middle East.But few question why the USA consumes so much of it.Too often critics look for a simple answer,a search for villains - George W.Bush,the profiteering oil companies,the 'free market',or lazy people in gas-guzzling SUVs.But this search for villains in the oil story is poor analysis,based on crude history.