It’s the most complicated shell game on the planet: Proven Reserves.
The US Dollar isn’t gold-backed, it’s oil-backed. The oil of many other countries, not just the US.
Canada and Mexico are just extensions of US oil as the movement of oil is where all the bets are laid.
The Persian Gulf is the other point of interest for Vegas odds.
It’s too easy to track pipeline and rail shipments. Therefore, the high rollers room is for ocean shipment.
“Transparency” is not an applicable term for this industry.
US oil should have gone bankrupt quite a while ago. Instead (my guess) is that the fracking biz has a guarantee. There’s too much riding on domestic production to allow it to collapse.
All money — wherever found — has an inherent energy debt. That ratio is what props things up (world economy). Too high, no one can afford the cost of borrowing. Too low, and the petroleum biz disappears.
The cost of extraction is simply too high compared to decades ago. And demand.
There’ve been NO giant field discoveries to offset this.
Thus, a shell game.
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