Here's the truth: high gas prices have nothing to do with lack of available gas in America.

flickr image By danmachold

That's because for the first time in 62 years, the United States became a net exporter of oil products. In 2011, our nation sent 439,000 more barrels of oil overseas than we imported. That means we're awash in oil and gasoline -- it's just in the hands of oil barons who are making more money shipping it overseas than selling it to U.S. customers.

Drilling in Alaska or in the Gulf won't cut gas prices. Our status as a net exporter of oil also means we're now part of the world's dirt pit, where the dirty work like refining and processing crude is done, because oil barons don't have to worry about the costs of pollution.

We the taxpayers and consumers pay for all the externalities of oil production, from more asthma and cancers to the environmental damage.

In the hands of bankers and oil barons, the United States of America is un-developing and unraveling.

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