[Agamemnon]

Iran is the real wild card here. They might try to take advantage of this as many places as possible. What’s been going on in Lebanon lately? Haven’t seen much with all this Egypt stuff.

Tail wagging dog. Iran doesn't have any money. Saudi's let them do only so much. Saudi's won't give them money to overthrow themselves. Saudi's are Iran's gravy train. They leverage Iran locally to threaten everyone in the region, and use their money locally and elsewhere to spread Wahabbism. Iran is the spear-tip, not what propels the spear-tip.

Now here's the Reagan tactic to put a check on this and all the runaway oil speculators set to profit off everyone else's misery:

Executive Order # 1 for next Republican President elected in 2012.

AMERICA'S NEW ENERGY POLICY: "US oil for US interests."

1. Drill here, drill now, pay less.

2. Build a network of 10-20 regional refineries to add to and replace the mere two or three 35-50 year-old ones we do have.

3. Build 10 regional nuclear reactors to free up all oil- fired electrical energy plant capacity and devote oil to transportation and building heating only.

4. Refuse domestic importation of ME-sourced oil with the exception of from Iraq and Kuwait who can start paying the US back for all the blood spilled for them the liberate the both of them in 1991 and 2003.

5. Develop shale

Do all this with a sense of urgency akin to the Marshall Plan.

Issue new US currncy backed by black gold.

Some one with more than a just a passing appreciation for the politics of oil with some experience breaking up the good ol' boy networks might be an ideal personality for such a Presidential-level task.

FReegards!

[hal ogen]

After reading this thread I’m reminfded of a couple moolsim jokes.

Knock knock!
Who’s there?
Bits of other mooslims blown to bloody pieces.

and

Is that the head of a deposed mooslim dictator in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

[taildragger]

Add to your list...

1.) Convert Coal via the Fisher Tropsch Process to JP fuels for our Domestic Airline Fleets and the Military. Shoot for 100% domestic supply ASAP for both customers.
2.) Go big on Shale Gas and use it for the Domestic Tractor Trailor Fleet. I don't know how to entice the industry, but either engine conversions or New Tractors so that the diesel fuel they use could be utilized elsewhere. With the lower pricepoint, it may help keep food inflation down.
3.) By Executive Order, resind the portion of the Carter "Start" Treaty that forbids us from reprocessing our Nuclear Fuel from our reactors. Tell the Soviets to pound sand.
4.)Partner with the Country of India on Thorium Reactor Development.

This is just a start I have many other ideas....

[piytar]

Agreed with all that, just one nit: A dollar backed by domestic oil/energy (eg, measured in kJoules) would be even more stable. And feasible. But I’ll take a gold backed dollar any day over our fiat currency.