Boy, there's good old-fashioned American hubris for you. Oh yes, America, that bastion of civility. Not to mention the fact that OPEC is protected from lawsuits in U.S. courts under the auspices of multinational union immunity. We could seek out alternative fuel sources, some of which already exist. Ethanol, for instance, is a viable substitute, but is currently too expensive to produce.
Oil is much cheaper to suck - for now.
If the demand for a cleaner-burning alternative abounds, however, one would imagine that the government, or the yakuza or whoever's in charge for the month would step up efforts to make it more cost efficient. They just need someone to throw a tantrum. Our long-term Honda Insight, by the way, is garnering tons of interest wherever it goes, much to the chagrin of our introverted editors, and is running blithely along without a hitch. For those who shudder at the size of the Insight and insist on driving big fat cars, there is relief. And you know if Mr. Gore gets elected, he's going to push for the passage of this bill.