American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2018 - 16

VISION2020
A Diamond Issue Introduction:

Thoughts From the Publisher:
Oil and Gas Days, Past,
Present and Future
T

hey say a diamond is forever. I suppose one has more
longevity in geological time than say, a 60th Diamond
Anniversary Issue of The American Oil & Gas Reporter. Yet we
are shining on for all we are worth with this special issue.
Rest assured, dear readers, a lot of hard work from the
faithful AOGR crew, as well as great friends and colleagues I
have known most of my life, industry technology gurus,
renowned industry analysts, and several of the biggest
names in the producer/operator industry gave it their all, too.
Of course, as many know, our very existence depends on
the elected oﬃcers who volunteer their time and hardearned money to the producer/operator associations,
working hand-in-glove with the dedicated executives and
staﬀ who direct the association oﬃces. Truth be known, they
represent the front line of the industry's quest for fair
treatment in federal, state and local legislative and
regulatory matters.
It's hard not to get caught up in the excitement about the

There is an employee clause that says after a virtual
lifetime of working for the magazine, that I am due
six weeks of paid vacation. My wife, Yvonne, and I
have faced up to the fact that we are going to have
to be grateful if we get six days, and snag a down
day when we can on conference trips!
16 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

buzz and brilliance of new exploration, drilling, completion
and production technologies. Horizontal resource plays and
deepwater development projects are bright, shining wonders
of technology. But all that technology can't be deployed if
operators don't have access to the resource base or can't turn
a profit developing the nation's abundant energy resources.
I most certainly am not inclined to skip the advertisers
that make every issue of the magazine possible. We
wouldn't have kept our doors open in 2016, and
surprisingly, even 2017, as the rebound got under way,
without the support of Scaramuccis, Chaneys and
Willifords, as well as the likes of rugged fellows such as
Russ Rutledge and Clint Walker, and the alwayseffervescent Karen Wright. They are the epitome of the
industry's best and brightest: those who keep industry
mainstays at the forefront of technical innovation, and who
take "startup" companies to the pinnacle of success.
The oil and gas industry includes huge publicly held
companies that have thousands of employees and business
portfolios that span onshore and oﬀshore operations. It also
includes thousands of family-owned and tightknit companies
with a number of executives, operations and clerical
employees who can be counted on one's hands and toes.
To be honest, I know for a fact a diamond can be forever.
All I have to do is spend some time with my beautiful wife,
Yvonne. Until recently, she traveled with me a lot; frequently
enough that AOGR Senior Technology Editor Tim Beims
nicknamed her "AOGR's Ambassador" (more for her grace and
charm than her mere presence). As time went on, I learned
she could engage conversations with operators at
conventions as well as exhibitors at trade shows and hold
their attention longer than me . . . to the point where I would
insist we split up and work an exhibit hall from opposite ends.
I can't believe I have been lucky enough to spend most of
my life with someone who has never beaten me with a stick
when dinner went cold while I was giving it up and leaving
this wonderful place of work in the woods, sometimes
beaten and blue, about the time the proverbial cows came
home. Not that the constant threat isn't there!

American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2018