Despite robust growth that has seen collective US net worth rise from $3.4 trillion in 1970 to a current level of $56 trillion, the price of a single barrel of oil has dramatically exploded during the same period from $3.18 to $140.00.  The net worth of America, as measured in oil, has actually declined from 1.1 trillion barrels in 1970 to a modest 400 billion barrels today.  See Scott Burns column in MSN Money (7/16).

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