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Enemy within the Gates

Introduction

The critical issue, which needs focus and attention, is the depletion of oil resources. There are a number of factors which contribute toward the deteriorating reserves of oil. However, it is essential to determine that it may be the result of our own deeds and practices which created such a threat. The arguments will help in identifying if this issue or threat is the result of modern lifestyles or the phenomenon of inevitability. With reference to these arguments, the quote of Marcus Tullius Cicero is significant. Cicero was one of the most prolific and versatile of Latin authors, but his literary reputation has varied more than most. In antiquity, he was accepted as the prince of Roman orators, though sometimes with reservations.

According to Cicero:

“A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear. The traitor is the plague." (Williams, 59).

Narrative

The critical issue is to assess if the end of the cheap-oil era will be due to the policies and practices of our or not. The text “The long emergency” includes arguments in reference to oil peak and global oil consumption. However, the author emphasizes on the issue with respect to America. The assessment of these arguments will base on the maxim of Cicero. “The enemy is within the gates: it is with our own luxury, our own folly, our own criminality that we have to contend” (Williams, 59). The word “enemy” in the quote refers to that person or group of people which intends to bring harm. “Within the gate” means that those people are inside or within the boundaries of the state. “Our own luxury, our own folly” refers to the comfort and luxuries of the modern lifestyle which made people incapable of seeing the bigger picture. That is what the word “folly” indicates which means foolishness. “Our own criminality that we have to contend” means that we need to challenge and deal with our own offense.

Partition

There are a number of arguments with respect to the issue under discussion. At first, there will be confirmation followed by refutation. Under confirmation, there are arguments such as the following:

The world is left with 50 percent of the oil.

The oil will be of poor quality.

The ...