Posted on 07/01/2005 5:32:46 AM PDT by robowombat
President Bush was very wise to make his Iraqi speech this week. He and his advisors are following the same public opinion polls we all are. Polls show that support for the war among Americans has been falling.
Time has now become an enemy, almost as threatening as the insurgents, to the President's ability to achieve a victory. Our nation does not have much patience for fighting wars that are not discernibly winnable in a relatively short period of time. With congressional elections next year, anti-war sentiment could easily be expressed by voters -- resulting in the erosion of the Republicans' overwhelming control in both houses. Even a Democratic party with no vision of its own could be the beneficiary of hostility toward the war.
Thus, the President has to continuously assure the American people about the status of the war against insurgents and Iraqi nation building to keep his support from sliding further. Against this objective, Tuesday evening's speech was a respectable effort of dealing with a very difficult issue. Bush was correct in not setting a date for the United States' exit from Iraq. However, notwithstanding the President's optimistic assessments, the war against the insurgents does not appear to be winnable in a matter of months. Nor does it seem likely that a democratic government in Iraq can be in place, presiding over a secure nation, in the foreseeable future.
One of the most vexing questions for many Americans is why exactly are we fighting, and why so many Americans are dying or being wounded in this far away place called Iraq. In the days before the war, the answer was because of weapons of mass destruction that Saddam Hussein had. Though the President may have been correct in relying on that rationale based upon the intelligence then available to him, the evidence failed to support that explanation. The second rationale was that Saddam Hussein was a horror to his people and a threat to his neighbors. That was absolutely correct, but Bush's foes contend that we aren't forcefully removing every terrible despot around the world.
The rationale given in the President's speech is that Iraq is the critical battleground in a war against Islamic terrorists who were responsible for the 9/11 attacks. There is no doubt that the fundamentalist Jihadists who would destroy freedom and democracy in the west in and in the Middle East are flowing into Iraq to fight the United States. The President's opponents claim that we are responsible for creating the terrorists by our presence. This is unfair. The terrorists were mobilized even before we toppled Saddam. It's better that this war not be fought on American soil.
The question still is whether the 9/11 rationale is enough for the American people to accept the casualties and costs of the war. Are we willing to become modern day crusaders intending on beating back the potential threat to our way of life from Middle Eastern terrorists. The jury is still out on that question, with the answer depending on how many casualties we suffer.
There is, however, another justification for the war that the President didn't raise in his speech and has never spoken about publicly, but must be an important part of the discussions at the White House. That is oil.
The Chinese bid for Unocal has underscored what has been obvious for some time. The United States' economy and our way of life depend upon oil -- sixty percent of which is imported. Faced with a surge in demand from China and India and the disruption of supplies to the US because of political issues in Venezuela, Nigeria and elsewhere, we must ensure that the flow of oil on the world market continues from Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern nations. If we withdraw prematurely from Iraq and leave chaos behind, the Jihadists will no doubt destabilize Saudi Arabia and other gulf producers. We cannot afford to let that happen.
The time has come for the President to state publicly what most of Washington has long been discussing. The Iraqi war is about oil and its continued flow to the United States. This is something the American people can understand.
If it's all about oil, why didn't we invade Canada or Texas or the Gulf of Mexico?
"All opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily reflect those of Military.com."
I think... the author is referring to the "Cartel". We've had problems with the "Cartel" for 40 years; it's played havoc with our politics. And this is why we need our OWN ENERGY SOURCES AND RESOURCES.
Stabilizing Iraq as an independent supplier -- it opens FREEDOM on the FREE Market. US has not done any "oil stealing" in Iraq. The US DOES, however, need to pass its own energy-resource policies.
Liberal Intelligentsia has been fully in on the "oil cartel" and its deleterious effects upon US domestic operations and in re trade. By bootstrapping the US in re "oil"; outsiders (outside US) have thereby been empowered to play "politics" within the US scene. Liberals know this. They aren't "environmentalists" as much as they are filthy capitalists bent on the sell-out of US Sovereignty. Their followers, however, have little to no clue about this -- they think it's about Kumbaya.
China and the recent UNOCAL deal.
This guy writes FICTION for a living, and has a whole archive of articles like this that he's written for Military.com.
http://www.allantopol.com/index01.htm
"ALLAN TOPOL, a graduate of Carnegie Institute of Technology who majored in chemistry, abandoned science and obtained a law degree from Yale University. As a partner in a major Washington law firm, he practices international environmental law. He writes a weekly column for the on-line newspaper Military.com. An avid wine collector and connoisseur, he has traveled extensively, researching dramatic locations for his novels, some of which are portrayed in Spy Dance, Dark Ambition, Conspiracy and now in Enemy Of My Enemy."
International Environmental Lawyer. 'Nuf said. ;)
Yep...he's got an agenda, and he'll manipulate the truth to meet it.
A sophister in the "tuest" of senses.
If you go back over the last 50 years, you'll find a disturbing (to me, at least) thread that seems to run through almost every military conflict that the U.S. is involved in. In so many of these cases (Iraq and Yugoslavia in the last 15 years are the two most recent ones), the U.S. has ended up engaging in military action in response to a foreign government's decision to nationalize a key sector of their economy.
Covington & Burling and Democracy, Data & Communications Announce Alliance
Washington, D.C., June 28, 2005 - Covington & Burling and Democracy, Data & Communications, L.L.C. (DDC) today announced an alliance to provide integrated support services for political action committees. The firms will offer joint, high-level strategic counsel for responding to challenges associated with PAC compliance and fundraising. Both Covington and DDC currently represent numerous Fortune 500 corporations, trade associations, and their PACs.
The alliance allows both firms to offer organizations an integrated solution enabling them to better align their PAC management and fundraising practices. The PAC experts at both firms will work closely together to provide cutting-edge fundraising techniques and complementary technologies, while emphasizing careful compliance with the increasingly complex federal, state, and local election laws.
"This alliance will enable us jointly to provide the gold standard in PAC support services," said Rob Kelner, head of Covington's Election Law and Political Law Practice Group. "Changes in the campaign finance laws have encouraged the creation of many new PACs and have caused corporations in particular to modernize and grow their existing PACs. Covington and DDC can meet all of the PAC-related needs of our clients in an efficient and legally compliant manner."
Holly Pitt Young, DDC's Vice President for PAC Development, added, "Our joint strategic counsel will be particularly valuable to organizations that are just starting a PAC or are seeking to expand their PACs rapidly. Covington and DDC can help organizations maximize the potential of their eligible class cost-effectively and in accordance with FEC guidelines."
Covington's nationally recognized election law practice advises clients on compliance with the federal and state campaign finance and election laws. Covington also represents clients in disputes with the Federal Election Commission and state election agencies. DDC is a widely respected and leading provider of PAC consulting services, including fundraising software tools, strategic PAC development advice, and PAC accounting and reporting.
Hmmm..Considering that the price of oil has hovered around $60 a barrel for the last few months, I wonder what happened to all this oil we're supposedly stealing?
No Blood for Oil? Apparently this working in reverse: No Oil for Blood, since 1,700 Americans have been killed in Iraq.
It *could* be the result of rainforest math taught in the schools, eh? ;> Can't see the forest for the trees?
Uncivil Fracas Over Civil Rights Commission Heads to Court
"The notion one agency of the federal government essentially suing another agency of the government raises some very serious questions about the role of the chairperson in this very dicey legal issue," said attorney Rob Kelner, who is representing Kirsanow. "We think the attempt by the chairperson to intervene in this case borders on the bizarre."
AND
Campaign Finance Reform: The new law is hurting political parties and helping special interests
"Bobby Burchfield and Rob Kelner are attorneys at the Washington, D.C. law firm of Covington & Burling and represent the RNC in its challenge to BCRA".
I saw "Military.com" and assumed it would be a pro-WOT article; instead it sounds like another liberal rant against Evil Oil.
That said, his conclusions are correct. My letters to the editor during the oil "crisis" in the early '70's suggested that petroleum products be phased out as motor fuel over a 10-20 year period, creating incentive for private industry to provide alternate fuels. They didn't listen then and they won't listen now.
"Iraq is About Oil"
I think the following, excerpted from
http://www.armscontrolcenter.org/terrorism/101/timeline.html#1980
might have had something to do with it.
1979
November 4
Iranian radicals seize the US Embassy in Tehran, taking sixty-six American diplomats hostage. The crisis continues until 20 January 1981 when the hostages are released by diplomatic means.
1983
April 18
Sixty three people, including the CIA's Middle East Director, are killed and 120 injured in a 400 lb. suicide truck bomb attack on the US Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. The driver is killed. Responsibility is claimed by Islamic Jihad.
October 23
Simultaneous suicide truck bombs on American and French compounds in Beirut, Lebanon. A 12,000 lb bomb destroys a US Marine Corps base killing two hundred and forty one Americans; another fifty eight Frenchmen are killed when a 400 lb device destroys one of their bases. Islamic Jihad claims responsibility.
December 12
US Embassy in Kuwait targeted by Iraqi Shia terrorists who attempted to destroy the building with a truck bomb. The attack was foiled by guards and the device exploded in the Embassy fore-court killing five people.
1984
March 16
CIA station chief in Beirut, Lebanon, William Buckley, was kidnapped by the Iranian backed Islamic Jihad. He was tortured and then executed by his captors.
April 12
Eighteen US servicemen killed and eighty three people injured in bomb attack on restaurant near USAF base in Torrejon, Spain.
September 20
Suicide bomb attack on US Embassy in East Beirut kills twenty three people and injures twenty one others. The US and British ambassadors were slightly injured in the explosion which was attributed to the Iranian backed Hezbollah group
1985
March 16
US journalist Terry Anderson is kidnapped in Beirut, Lebanon, by Iranian backed Islamic radicals. He is released in December 1991.
June 9
US academic, Thomas Sutherland, at the American University, Beirut, Lebanon kidnapped by Islamic terrorists and held until November 18, 1991.
June 14
A Trans World Airlines flight was hijacked en route to Rome from Athens by two Lebanese Hizballah terrorists and forced to fly to Beirut. The eight crew members and 145 passengers were held for 17 days, during which one American hostage, a U.S. Navy diver, was murdered. After being flown twice to Algiers, the aircraft was returned to Beirut after Israel released 435 Lebanese and Palestinian prisoners.
September 12
US academic at the American University in Beirut, Joseph Cicippio, seized in Beirut by Iranian backed Islamic terrorists. He is released on December 1, 1991.
October 7
Four Palestinian Liberation Front terrorists seized an Italian cruise liner in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, taking more than 700 hostages. One U.S. passenger was murdered before the Egyptian Government offered the terrorists safe haven in return for the hostages' freedom.
October 21
American businessman Edward Tracy kidnapped in Lebanon by Islamic terrorists and held for almost five years until August 11, 1991.
1986
March 30
A Palestinian splinter group detonated a bomb as TWA Flight 840 approached Athens Airport, killing four U.S. citizens.
April 5
Two U.S. soldiers were killed, and 79 American servicemen were injured in a Libyan bomb attack on a nightclub in West Berlin, West Germany.
1987
January 24
American citizens Jesse Turner and Alann Steen were seized in Beirut by Islamic terrorists. Turner was held until October 22, 1991 and Steen is released on 3 December 3, 1991.
1988
February 17
US Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel W. Higgens, kidnapped and murdered by the Iranian backed Hezbollah while serving with the United Nations Truce Supervisory Organisation in southern Lebanon.
April 14
The Organization of Jihad Brigades exploded a car bomb outside a USO Club in Naples, Italy, killing one U.S. sailor.
August 8
Pakistan president Zia Al Haq and US ambassador are killed, along with thirty seven other people, when a bomb explodes on a C-130 Hercules aircraft just after take off from Bahawalpu, Pakistan.
December 21
Pan Am Boeing 747 blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland, by a bomb believed to have been placed on the aircraft at Frankfurt Airport, Germany. All 259 people on the aircraft were killed by the blast.
1993
February 26
World Trade Center in New York, USA, attacked by a massive bomb planted by Islamic terrorists.
April 14
Iraqi intelligence service attempt to assassinate former US President, George Bush, during a visit to Kuwait.
1995
March 8
Two unidentified gunmen killed two U.S. diplomats and wounded a third in Karachi, Pakistan.
August 21
Hamas claimed responsibility for the detonation of a bomb in Jerusalem that killed six and injured over 100 persons, including several U.S. citizens.
November 13
Seven foreigners, including a number of US servicemen, are killed in bomb attack on National Guard training centre at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
1996
June 25
Islamic radical terrorists opposed to the western military presence in the Gulf region, explode a truck bomb next to a USAF housing area at Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 American servicemen and 385 injuring more.
1997
February 23
A Palestinian gunman opened fire on tourists at an observation deck atop the Empire State Building in New York City, killing a Danish national and wounding visitors from the United States, Argentina, Switzerland, and France before turning the gun on himself. A handwritten note carried by the gunman claimed this was a punishment attack against the "enemies of Palestine."
October 30
Al-Sha'if tribesmen kidnapped a U.S. businessman near Sanaa. The tribesmen sought the release of two fellow tribesmen who were arrested on smuggling charges and several public works projects they claim the government promised them. They released the hostage on November 27.
November 12
Two unidentified gunmen shot to death four U.S. auditors from Union Texas Petroleum Corporation and their Pakistani driver after they drove away from the Sheraton Hotel in Karachi. The Islami Inqilabi Council, or Islamic Revolutionary Council, claimed responsibility in a call to the U.S. Consulate in Karachi. In a letter to Pakistani newspapers, the Aimal Khufia Action Committee also claimed responsibility.
1998
August 7
US Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar-es-Salem, Tanzania, heavily damaged by massive bomb attacks. US intelligence blames Islamic groups linked to Saudi dissident Osama Bin Laden.
December 28
Yemini militants kidnap a group of western tourists, including 12 Britons, 2 Americans, and 2 Australians on the main road to Aden. Four victims were killed during a rescue attempt the next day.
2000
August 12
In the Kara-Su Valley, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan took four U.S. citizens hostage. The Americans escaped on August 12.
October 12
In Aden, Yemen, a small dingy carrying explosives rammed the destroyer U.S.S. Cole, killing 17 sailors and injuring 39 others. Supporters of Usama Bin Ladin were suspected.
December 30
A bomb exploded in a plaza across the street from the U.S. embassy in Manila, injuring nine persons. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front is allegedly responsible.
2001
September 11
Two hijacked airliners crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center. Soon thereafter, the Pentagon was struck by a third hijacked plane. A fourth hijacked plane, suspected to be bound for a high-profile target in Washington, crashed into a field in southern Pennsylvania. More than 3,000 U.S. citizens and other nationals were killed. President Bush and Cabinet officials indicated that Usama Bin Laden was the prime suspect and that they considered the United States in a state of war with international terrorism.
If oil enters the equation at all, its because so much of the world's oil supply, including our own, flows through the Middle East. Without oil supplies, western economies would collapse, causing widespread chaos and probably deaths far exceeding anything we are incurring in Iraq.
Trying to stablize the volatile Middle East is certainly in our economic and social interests.
But far beyond that, Iraq under Saddam Hussein was a terror state. It was the keystone in a archway of terror states running from Nigeria and the Sudan in the southwest to Iran in the northeast. By taking out Iraq, we punched a hole in their communications and transportation system.
A stable, pro-western Iraq is the last thing the terrorists bent on destroying the U.S. want, which is why they are presently occupied THERE instead of HERE.
What the U.S. MUST do to secure the liberation of Iraq is to destroy the Baathist regime in Syria and the Ayatollahs and their nuclear capacity in Iran, both of which states are feeding terrorists from all over the world into Iraq.
Bush is faced with difficulties at home from ignorant Americans who simply cannot discern this - the obvious. He is also handicapped by virulently anti-American Democrats in Congress who are more than willing to sacrifice National Security to gain political points with the unwashed masses, and traitors in his own party like McCain, Chafee, Graham, Hegel, Voinovich and others.
Pray for President Bush and our troops - and pray for us.
The best, greatest hope for freedom and democracy in the history of the world - the U.S.A., is in more peril today than ever before in its history - notwithstanding King George III, Hitler, the Communist menace and the War between the States.
Nonsense. There were a half dozen reasons we went into Iraq. But we emphasized WMD because we were promised UN support if Iraq didn’t comply with the resolutions requiring full cooperation in WMD accountability. Iraq didn’t fully comply, and the French Germans and Russians betrayed us, especially the French with their pre-war promises to Powel to support us and later finding our they had a 100 BILLION dollar oil deal in the works. So I guess it was about oil after all.
Yeah, if it's about oil, why are our oil prices skyrocketing? Cheez.
Alberta's Child, in Post #13, pretty much gets it right. It's far cheaper to trade for oil than to fight for it. Even when nationalizations occured we accepted them if they didn't interfere too much with free trade (Our oil companies usually found a way to remain profitable).
What we wouldn't, and won't, accept, is the use of oil as a political weapon by an antagonist state. There's no forseeable scenario where Canada adopts that position but with Mexico it's a real possiblity. If we actually stop illegal immigration at the same time the Middle East becomes unstable, or the world economy suffers a serious recession, I can foresee a revolution in Mexico which stops oil deliveries. You would then see a very, very nasty war fought not just in Mexico but on our own soil as well.
Skyrocketing oil prices indicate the market's response to an approaching natural limit. You don't respond to that with guns and bombs.
Yes, oil is one of the reasons. Nothing is ever so simple in reality, though. Every press release about this is a lesson in political science, which is the most complex thing there is.
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