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This is Ariana Huffington's Brain On Drugs
OpinionEditorials.com ^ | January 10th, 2003 | Frank Salvato

Posted on 01/11/2003 2:31:44 PM PST by The Rant

This Is Your Brain On Drugs. This is Ariana Huffington's Brain On Drugs. Ariana Huffington, the name should say it all, is on a crusade against SUV's. The campaign is called The Detroit Project and it is airing television commercials not unlike the government-sponsored commercials that pose the idea that if you buy drugs you are funding terrorism. Instead of drugs Ms. Huffington is asserting that people who drive gas-guzzling SUV's are funding terrorism each time they spend money on gas for their vehicles. If there were any logic to this thinking and any equity in her thinking at all then all drivers support terrorism each time they purchase gas that send money overseas.

The problem is not the cars that we drive, although the low gas mileage of the larger SUV's and vehicles in general is disturbing due to the fact that we all know the automakers can make an engine that performs better - a lot better but the fact that we need to start being less dependent on oil from the Middle East.

There are many other sources of oil in the world that the United States could shift its consumer focus on other than the OPEC nations. Alternative oil producing nations include Russia, Venezuela, Mexico, South Africa and an assortment of other countries around the world. If one actually thinks about it there are some situations that could greatly improve if the back of OPEC were to be broken and other oil producing nations were banned together in an alternative to their dominating roll in the oil producing community.

If the United States were to come to an agreement with Russia or perhaps a consortium of countries led by Russia so that they sold us their crude oil at a reduced rate for a period of time in return for a long term commitment to buy their oil and a commitment to use our oil industries technology to build up their oil industry so that it could thrive in a world market the two countries couldn't help but come out on top of the situation.

Instead of borrowing money hand over fist from the World Bank, Russia could build a financial infrastructure based on a natural resource that is abundant in their country. This would only help to strengthen their economy and lend a great amount of stability to their government as well as their currency. Their debt could be paid off over a shorter amount of time and they would once again become a superpower on the world stage with regard to economic stability only this time it wouldn't be under the repressive eye of tyranny.

The commitment of the Russian government to our oil industry would only guarantee contracts for our oil producing companies. It would create jobs, tax revenue and help to strengthen our economy in this time of fiscal upheaval. Every company that has contracts with big oil companies would benefit from the addition work available that result from this contractual partnership. Further, it would ease the fear of the possibility oil prices would skyrocket each and every time some third-world leader from the Middle East who went to Falafel-Mart and bought fatigues decided to rattle his 18th Century saber. It would also help to stabilize prices set by OPEC because they would have to address the fact that the United State was no longer uniquely dependent on them for oil.

It would bind the United States and Russia together in a corporate and economical partnership that would most likely reduce the amount of tensions that may arise when there is a problem on the world stage. In theory it would extend to our two countries the opportunity to have a relationship that could and most likely would transcend the politics of the world theater to some extent.

It would also allow the United States to stop catering politically to the backward practices and demands of the Middle Eastern nations such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar who discriminate against the women of the U.S. military who are stationed over there. Currently it is acceptable for our women to fight and die for their security when one of their self-appointed dictators gets some sand in an irritating place and decided to invade a part of their country but it is quite unacceptable for the same women to have a beer with the subordinate male counterparts in a local bazaar when on leave. If we weren't so concerned about the security of their nation because of their oil supply then perhaps they would understand that they would have to meet us on an even playing field if they want to remain protected by out superior armed forced.

And maybe one of the most important aspects of this idea, it would probably take a lot of revenue out of the bank accounts of those who would use it to fund terror. With the decreased revenue coming in to OPEC it would almost certainly end the era of free spending in the Middle East as it is known today and create an air of tightfistedness in the region. It would choke off the seemingly endless supply of revenue that terrorists have been spoiled with in today.

All of this could happen not only in Russia but also in each country that would be in this proposed consortium.

So, instead of jumping on the bandwagon that Ms. Huffington has championed, most likely to serve her ego and narcissism by allowing her to see her face all over television a bit more than it already is extending her misguided feeling of self-importance, I propose that we do something about the current fuel producing situation that could affectively make a few more countries friendlier toward capitalism and the United States. Pursuing this idea would not only shore up democracy in some countries around the world where the freedom to practice capitalism is hanging on by a thread but it would help to make some of these countries a better place to live for their people because of the elevated level of their economy.

It's either that or we will all have to listen to those stupid commercials that she came up with. I don't think I can stomach that for very long.


TOPICS: Editorial
KEYWORDS: arianahuffington; oil; suv; terrorist; terrorists
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1 posted on 01/11/2003 2:31:44 PM PST by The Rant
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To: The Rant
This is the effect of excess peroxide being absorbed into the hair roots!
2 posted on 01/11/2003 2:36:10 PM PST by Redleg Duke
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To: The Rant
The good thing about the Huffington propaganda tv spots is that they discredit by association the original spots they are satirizing .
3 posted on 01/11/2003 2:40:30 PM PST by Nephi (Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. Moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.)
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* This is Ariana Huffington's Brain On Drugs
* This is Ariana Huffington's Brain On Drugs with a side of bacon
* This is Ariana Huffington's Brain On Drugs with a side of bacon and toast
4 posted on 01/11/2003 2:44:27 PM PST by CounterCounterCulture (I have already previewed or do not wish to preview this composition.)
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To: Nephi
discredit by association the original spots they are satirizing

But it isn't satire! Puffingstuff is serious!!!

5 posted on 01/11/2003 2:47:44 PM PST by Stultis
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To: Nephi
>The good thing about the Huffington propaganda tv spots is that they discredit by association the original spots they are satirizing .

Yes. But. She also
campaigned against Bill Clinton.
Now she's doing this.

She associates
her nuttiness now with the
anti-Clinton push...

6 posted on 01/11/2003 2:48:00 PM PST by theFIRMbss
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To: The Rant
Vote for liberals and you support terrorism.

See a liberal celebrity's movie and you support terrorism.

Buy a liberal celebrity's DVD or CD and you support terrorism.

7 posted on 01/11/2003 2:51:27 PM PST by Mark
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To: Mark
Watch CNN NBC ABC CBS or listen to NPR and you support terrorists as well
8 posted on 01/11/2003 3:03:44 PM PST by perfect stranger (1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10.11.12.13.14.15.16.17.18.19.20.21.22.23.24.25.26.27.28.29.30.31.32.33.34.35.36.3)
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To: The Rant
No mention of her not knowing her hubby liked the boys better than her throughout their union.
9 posted on 01/11/2003 3:05:58 PM PST by Leisler
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Comment #10 Removed by Moderator


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11 posted on 01/11/2003 3:07:33 PM PST by Mo1 (Join the DC Chapter at the Patriots Rally III on 1/18/03)
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To: Leisler
I think she drove him to the company of men.
12 posted on 01/11/2003 3:18:02 PM PST by CARepubGal
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To: pilgrims
Remember when Arianna seemed like a conservative?

I remember that too but two things clued me into her having a screw loose--she came out in support of a Warren Beatty run for the White House and not so far in the distant past I saw her on TV yucking it up with Jesse Jackson at some event. It might have been the Belafonte deal where Colin Powell (house negroe) was disinvited because Belafonte wouldn't attend otherwise--can't remember off hand. The woman is a toon. To be honest, I've never trusted her Zsa Zsa Gabor accent even when I thought she was more conservative minded.

13 posted on 01/11/2003 3:18:30 PM PST by beaversmom
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To: CARepubGal
I believe it.
14 posted on 01/11/2003 3:25:18 PM PST by Leisler
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To: beaversmom
Never mind--I got two different events confused. She was at a birthday celebration for Jesse Jackson and got some award. The Belafonte deal was a separate thing and it wasn't Colin that was disinvited it was Condi. Anyway, she was still yucking it up with Jesse.
15 posted on 01/11/2003 3:29:11 PM PST by beaversmom
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To: The Rant
In Europe, people say she is on "chemicals."
16 posted on 01/11/2003 3:43:38 PM PST by LO_IQ (Ariana lost her thread inside the cave)
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Comment #17 Removed by Moderator

To: The Rant
Besides the obvious disconnect of the limousine crowd lecturing anyone about SUV's, it is also simply wrong.

Remember, we only get about 14% of our oil from Saudi Arabia. The people who get their oil from Saudi Arabia are the Europeans, who are already addicted to tiny cars.

The difference in MPG of SUV and a family car is only a couple of miles per gallon. It isn't enough to make any difference in the world price of gasoline.

Then multiply that by .14, and you can see these people are talking through their hats, so to speak.

Then there is the secondary factor, that in order to get away from Saudi oil, we need to open up other, competing fields. Almost all of these alternatives cost more to produce than Saudi oil. We are in the process of opening up the Caspian, and West Africa, and deep offshore. Cheap Saudi oil is the single complicating factor that makes developing alternative sources difficult.

So, in a weird way, using less fuel, depressing fuel prices, would increase, not decrease, our dependence on Saudi oil.
18 posted on 01/11/2003 4:06:07 PM PST by marron
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To: The Rant
How did this idea start? I'll bet it started with Bill Maher at one of Arianna's dinner parties. I can just imagine him doing a tongue-in-cheek comedy routine about how driving SUV's supports terrorism, to the delighted laughter of the guests.

Arianna likes controversy and being on the tube. In the end, she cares most about having the A-list come to her parties. Not someone to take terribly seriously -- but I think it'd be fun to have her as an aunt.



19 posted on 01/11/2003 4:20:46 PM PST by thisiskubrick
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To: Hermann Cheruscan
A few years back, I subscribed to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. This is the paper owned by Richard Scaife, so I took pride in the fact that I could therefore be considered a dues-paying member of the "Vast Right Wing Conspiracy".

I especially enjoyed the syndicated columnists who would never show up in the other Pittsburgh paper, or whose columns would be run one-third as often in the PG. After a time, Arianna Huffington's column began to run in the Trib. There was some kind of public dispute between her and William F. Buckley, Jr. I can't remember all of the details, but one day, the Trib printed a column by Buckley attacking Huffington opposite a column by Huffington attacking Buckley.

WFB had it right when he accused her of trying to buy a Senate seat by marrying Michael Huffington and then dumping him when she didn't need him in order for her to be rich and famous anymore. It was around that time that Arianna openly began her turn to the dark side.

As for the Tribune-Review...that was the last Buckley column they ever ran, from what I could see. Huffington's opinion pieces continued to run regularly. As much as I still enjoy reading the Trib from time to time, especially for the editorial viewpoints, I have a hard time respecting that decision.

20 posted on 01/11/2003 4:39:00 PM PST by Garth Rockett (Am I the only Republican on the payroll?)
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