Actually the same thing was said a 100 years ago about coal, and some 70 years ago about copper (for powerlines). But instead of coal we now use oil, and instead of copper we use sand.
Probably, when the price for oil gets high enough it will pay of to use Wind, Water, Bio or Nuclear energy instead. I'm not saying we shouldn't care, but the lack of oil probably won't be that huge of a problem.
Furthermore many of the things you mention as consequences of the rise in oil price, is not only because of the oil price.
The rise in food prices for example, is a result of many factors, such as worldwide bad harvest, and the fact that EU (and possible the states) have been dumping food prices in Africa (that is artificially lowering prices).
The inflation in the states is because of the low US currency, which makes imported goods costlier, and because of the inflationary policy being used to stimulate the US economy.
A possible reason for the low US currency is a case of so called "capital flight (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_flight)". That is when people are afraid the exchange rate will fall, they will remove their assets from the States thus making the exchange rate drop.
The worst effect of the heavy use of oil might be global warming. Of course the size of this effect have never been determined, since the are thousands of factors involved.
Actually i do agree with you, to some degree, i just don't agree with your arguments. I do believe that we in the western world should subsidize renewable energy and tax gasoline, so that we use less oil.
I got into a debate with Sun-Tzu... this might be the death of me...
