SVG
Commentary
Wall Street Journal

Echoes of the 1973 Oil Crisis

There’s no embargo today, but America is again surrendering its energy independence.

A long line of cars lined up for gas at filling station on a Saturday night during the oil crisis of 1973, Brooklyn, New York City. (Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images)
Caption
A long line of cars lined up for gas at filling station on a Saturday night during the oil crisis of 1973 in Brooklyn, New York City. (Allan Tannenbaum via Getty Images)

The attack on Israel on the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War should remind us of another anniversary: the 1973 Arab oil embargo. The war began on Oct. 6, and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries cut production and raised prices on Oct. 17. By the end of the embargo in March 1974, the global cost of oil had climbed nearly 300%. Service-station lines and “out of gas” signs became a feature of American life. The White House had ration cards printed in secret (fortunately never used), and President Richard Nixoncontemplated military action to seize oil fields in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi.

The oil shock of October 1973 is the story of America’s surrendering its energy independence, with dangerous consequences. It has disturbing parallels today. In 1960 America imported only 10% of the oil it consumed. But as demand and costs of domestic production rose, imports became cheaper. By 1973, on the eve of the crisis, total oil imports had reached 34% of consumption, much of it from an increasingly volatile Middle East.

Read the full article in the Wall Street Journal.