Forty years ago, the United States was thrown into a panic by the Arab Oil Embargo. OPEC’s decision to stop oil exports to the U.S. in response to our support of Israel during its war with Arab nations triggered lines and shortages at gasoline stations and revealed the U.S. economy’s dependence on foreign oil.

Experts predicted we would run out of reachable reserves of natural gas within just a few years. America faced an energy crisis and on April 18, 1977, President Jimmy Carter confronted the nation with what was the hard truth of the day.

“The oil and natural gas we rely on for 75 percent of our energy are running out,” the President somberly intoned in a speech to the nation. “Unless profound changes are made to lower oil consumption, we now believe that early in the 1980’s the world will be demanding more oil than it can produce.”

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