How Did All the Oil and Gas Get to Alaska?

I swear, if ever there was a poster child for scientific ignorance as a result of a good Texas education, Congressman Joe Barton of the 6^th congressional district of Texas is the obvious choice.

Not only is Barton hopelessly ignorant of the science of geology he is so totally clueless of this ignorance that he has posted the video of his exchange with Nobel laureate and Secretary of Energy Dr. Steven Chu.

An exchange where Barton characterizes Dr. Chu’s reply to the question posted in the title to this posting as “a puzzling answer.”

He thinks he stumped the man with his shrewd question.

I do have to say this, though. At least Barton knows that hydrocarbons are formed in areas that are generally warmer than it is in the Arctic Ocean.

Which was his point. Since we have oil and gas in Alaska, it must have once been warm way up north.

Negating, supposedly, arguments for global warming.

Chu patiently tried to explain to this ignoramus of a congressman how continents move about, and that, yes, the oil and gas “just drifted” to Alaska from a much lower latitude.

One of the target reservoirs in Alaska is called the Lisburne Group. It is a thick massive limestone formation with abundant fossils. Fossils that were big reef formers during the Mississippian.

That is, a shallow marine warm water environment that was deposited before there was a single dinosaur.

Over 300 million years ago.

That was a time when Earth had just one continent. And it was really, really warm.

At that time, Barton’s hometown of Arlington, Texas was under a vast shallow sea.

See, that’s what happens when the Earth warms up. The ice melts, reefs form and sea level rises.

Now will someone please explain how this guy is the ranking Republican on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce? What’s the term? Dumber than a bag of hammers.