- Question
- Can we live without oil?
- Position‹2 of 2
- No, we can’t live without oil
- Argument1 of 2›
We cannot supply the world’s energy needs without oil
Getting rid of oil would be an inconvenience for the world. Oil makes up a good portion of energy production. Taking it out of the world system would mean economic degradation.
The argument
The sheer scale of the world's dependence on oil, proponents of this argument hold, is the decisive fact. In 2018, $2.18 trillion worth of oil was consumed globally. A figure of that magnitude is not a marginal detail of the world economy; it is a measure of how thoroughly oil is woven into the ordinary functioning of modern life. On this view, any honest accounting of the world's energy needs must begin from what is actually being consumed, and what is actually being consumed is oil on a scale no alternative currently matches. The argument rests on a claim about pervasiveness as much as volume. Most of the world is powered by oil in some way — not merely in one sector or one region, but across the interlocking systems that societies depend on. Because that dependence is so broad, advocates reason, oil cannot simply be subtracted from the picture and replaced piece by piece without disruption rippling through everything built on top of it. Replacing oil would be, at minimum, a serious inconvenience to society, and the argument holds that the removal cannot be accomplished without inconvenience of a genuinely crippling kind. From these premises the conclusion follows in two steps. First, if most of the world runs on oil and taking it out would cripple the globe, then the world's energy needs cannot presently be supplied without it: there is no way to meet existing demand once oil is removed from the supply. Second, if the world's energy needs cannot be supplied without oil, then living without oil is not a live option — which is precisely the position this argument supports: no, we cannot live without oil.
Premises
Counter-arguments
Sacrificing the need for comfort with oil will be worth it. Oil is a fossil fuel that, when burned, causes global warming by producing excessive amounts of carbon dioxide. It would be better to keep the planet healthy than have global financial health.
Rejecting the premises
[Rejecting P2] Replacing oil would benefit the planet and ultimately the human race.