Costly, Complex—and Vital: But Carter's ambitious fuel program could have been much tougher.

The article focuses on U.S. President Jimmy Carter's fuel program. It mentions that on his speech, the president planned to spend 141 billion-dollar fuel project to reduce the country's oil imports by half, thus preventing the nation's economy from being bonded to Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Meanwhile, it notes that the only element that promptly took effect was the presidential order that limits the import of oil to an average of 8.2 million barrels per day. Related issues are further discussed.