A few years ago, as oil and gas prices continued to increase, a growing number of Americans called for the United States to become less reliant on Middle-Eastern oil

Would it make sense for the United States to try to become totally self-reliant in the production of oil? Why or why not?

It would be foolish for the United States to try to become totally self-reliant in oil production. There is a reason that approximately 40 percent of our oil comes from OPEC nations: Middle-Eastern countries can produce oil at a far lower opportunity cost than U.S. producers. In the Middle East the vast reserves of oil, combined with more lax regulations imposed by the government, have combined to drive down the per barrel opportunity cost of oil extraction to very low levels. Hence the United States gains from trade with these nations. Even though the price of oil was higher than in the past, that price was much less than what would be the opportunity cost of producing enough oil domestically so that the United States was totally self-reliant.