Oil--too valuable for just fuel

Not everyone realizes this fact, but oil is used in thousands of other applications. Whether its the multi-billion dollar lubricants industry, pharmaceuticals, or the life-saving plastics industry, oil is THE primary source of raw materials. People (including myself) complain about oil being over $120/barrell, but in reality I think the true value of this resource is far greater. As a result, I feel that petroleum is far too valuable to our technologies to be burned in a combustion engine that is less than 50% efficient at best.

Please feel free to comment.