Oil Prices: Going Up...
March 14, 2008
Record high gas prices are a belated wake-up call for Americans in lethargy, says Richard Hrair Dekmejian, professor of political science in the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. They should also force presidential candidates to make oil a major campaign issue, he says.
Dekmejian adds: “Rising oil prices may reduce the chances of a U.S. attack on Iran before President Bush leaves office.”
Dekmejian is an expert on oil politics, U.S. foreign policy, and Middle Eastern countries including Afghanistan and Iraq.
Contact him at (213) 740-3619 or dekmejia@usc.edu.
The declining dollar means higher oil prices, because the world trades for oil using the U.S. dollar, and it also means that we need higher interest rates to defend the U.S. dollar from further declines, adds Charles J. Cicchetti, professor in the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development. “The problem is, we also need low interest rates to avoid a major recession. No choices are good, so the out-of-office party, the Democrats, should gain a big advantage.”
Cicchetti is an expert on gas prices and electricity markets. Holder of the Jeffrey J. Miller Chair in Government, Business and the Economy, he is co-author of The California Electricity Crisis: What, Why, and What's Next and member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Contact him at (626) 683-9395 or cicchett@usc.edu.
Carl Q. Christol is an expert in oil policy relating to Iraq, U.S. foreign policy, and international environmental law. He is distinguished professor emeritus of International Law and Political Science.
Contact him at (310) 454-4428 or carlqc@cox.net.
Richard Little has expertise in utilities and energy — including oil, gas and water — and environmental issues. He is director of the USC Keston Institute for Infrastructure.
Contact him at (213) 740-4120 or rglittle@usc.edu.