The rise of the drones

"Days like these, it is of great comfort to know our country is a net energy exporter, unlike the sitting duck we were in the 1970's. Thank you, President Trump!"

It was bound to have happened sooner or later. It has been predicted for some time now. And according to futurists, the amount of drones in the sky is going to do nothing but increase. Like anything else, drones can be used for good or for evil. Yesterday, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia saw the evil side of drones. A fairly small number of them, launched by their enemies in Yemen (and supplied by the Iranians), attacked the Saudi oil production site. The attack resulted in massive fires, so large they could be seen from space. And 50% of Saudi's production is now offline.

I know many of the "greenies" worldwide are cheering right now. That dreaded "murder oil" took a hit yesterday! But the world economists are not cheering. 5% of the world's production is now offline, which could spell big problems. The Chinese are not cheering, since they get 50% of their oil from the Saudis. 

Let's pull the string on this event just a bit. It is estimated that only 10 drones were used to cause this much damage. Only 10. The rebels in Yemen have made it known this attack was only the precursor. If the Saudis do not cease the blockade of Yemen, the attacks will get bigger and badder. In my mind, that leaves the Saudis with only three choices. 1) Withdraw from Yemen and call it a day. 2) Quickly find the appropriate defense against drone attacks. 3) Escalate the war, possibly involving Iran.

This is a dangerous situation for many reasons. If the attacks continue on the oil fields, the price of gasoline WILL go up. That includes here. The Saudis are still a major player in the worldwide oil supply. If the war deepens, and involves Iran, stand by. Even though President Trump HATES war (especially in the Middle East), we might get sucked into this one. As will Israel. There could be an unlikely alliance of the US, Israel, and the Saudis going against Iran. We would get little to no help from our Euro allies, nor other countries in the Middle East. Iran would get some support from Russia and China, but probably nothing militarily. 

In any event, what happened yesterday changed the playing field. Or should I say the killing field. The rise of the drones is now here. It is not just the super powers who have big fancy drones - it is also rebels using smaller, every inexpensive drones. Guess what? This could happen in this country also. Imagine drones being flown across the southern border, not to ferry drugs like they do now, but holding explosives. Going after our oil refineries. Going after downtown Houston. The evil possibilities are endless. 

This will be one to watch as the week unfolds. How is Saudi going to respond? Meanwhile, in the other hand, the Israelis are convinced the Iranians are going gang busters on finishing a nuke. Maybe using a second secret site. If war comes, the Israelis would be most happy to attack those suspected nuke sites. I suspect we would also, as President Trump has said many times publicly, "The United States will NEVER allow Iran to develop a nuclear bomb."

As for me, I am gassing up today and making sure my extra gas cans are also full - just in case the price of gas spikes. Days like these, it is of great comfort to know our country is a net energy exporter, unlike the sitting duck we were in the 1970's. Thank you, President Trump!