Ask HN: How about small technological solutions to bring oil prices back down?
AFAICT, one significant part of the problem is something like:
Huge hulking expensive iron delivery vessels chugging through the water get blown up by inexpensive distant ordinance delivery.
Thus, a general solution could be something like:
Transition to small, cheap and highly numerous delivery vessels to nullify the effectiveness of distant ordinance delivery.
My layperson conceptual solution:
Create synthetic (e.g., plastic, PVC, etc.) eel-shaped self-navigating "vessels" that provide delivery in very high volume (millions of such "vessels") through dangerous waters to be recovered in safe waters.
These could be manufactured into large rolls, à la inflatable packing, and filled using mechanical power (either any simple motor powered by whatever or even human-powered via crank handle).
Drive can be provided by whatever works: time the release of the vessels to go out with a tide current; small sails; solar-powered propellers, etc. Speed does not matter as the quantity can be so high that once the vessels are being recovered the volume being delivered will be massive. (Conceptually similar to the old saw about "never underestimate the bandwidth of a 747 full of tape.")
I really only provide the above to hopefully inspire people who have the talent and means to create something yet better than what we currently have so that we do not arrive at a very real problem of products such as diesel fuel being not only high in price, but largely unavailable, as we may currently be on course to experience.