4 posts tagged “oil”
In the 1930’s the Japanese Empire had the military acumen to be a Super Power in Asia and the Pacific Islands in the Japanese sphere of influence. There was one problem Japan faced with their powerful military and hegemonic agenda. Japan did not have the natural resources to maintain a military in the event a nation with natural resources challenged the expansion of the Japanese Asian grip.
Japan needed oil and metals to be a powerhouse. Japan was fully aware their expansionism would collide with the National Interests of America eventually. Preparation was needed for this confrontation. The only logical solution for a nation with the hubris of go-it-alone self-determination was to prepare tactical scenarios to weaken or strike fear in the American government to try to mold a revision of the American National Interests in the Pacific and Asian economies.
After weighing the tactics it was decided to try to take out the strength of America’s Pacific Fleet; thus the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Like it or not oil is even more important today as a source of energy today than in the 1930’s. Oil has empowered the Islamist dream of a global Muslim spread of their religion in the style of the glory days of using the sword and fear exampled by their prophet Mohammed. Without oil the Middle East would still be a third rate collection of clannish dominated nations with Islam confined. Industrially or Economic powerhouses would have zero interest in camel jockey land and Muslim Middle Easterners would probably have no interests outside of regional clannish/national interests of petty squabbling.
Indeed though there is an abundance of oil in the Middle East and it is controlled by nations that serve the harshest and conservative interpretations of their Quran, Hadith, Sunna, etc.
America and Western Europe have been natural allies since the end of WWII. Present day Russia and the former Soviet Union had their own political agenda of spreading repressive Communism (really Russian hegemony in the name of Communism). China was somewhat under the Russian orbit of Communism but fiercely independent and weaker than Russia and America industrially.
As interdependent Globalism began to evolve in the economies of the world, things began to change.
Eastern Europe became liberated from the grasp of a weakened Russia after the fall of repressive Communism as the governing principle. Russia by no means the Super Power of the USSR days, but still powerful enough to have hegemonic designs in their immediate region.
Global economics suddenly saw the flow of capital into India and (ironically anti-capitalist) Communist China.
Suddenly China had the money to build a military infrastructure that will eventually challenge or test the strength of the current hyper-power America.
Globalism has conjoined the world into a global economy in which the power of capitalism (for better or worse) connected humanity for the first time in a state that transforms National Interests to the Global Interests of individuals.
There are two huge down sides to this Global Interest. There are still powerful nation-states that have developed cultural values that do not match the Global Interests.
America has iconized its Constitution as the measuring stick of what Freedom, Liberty, Civil Rights, Domestic Tranquility and the Pursuit of Happiness is. There is political polarization on defining the direction of those freedoms; nonetheless on both sides of the polls the essence of the Constitution is sacrosanct.
Western Europe has taken a more egalitarian definition of Liberty and Freedom that has led more to the rights of multicultural or group Liberty rather than individual Liberty; thus the attempt to balance what constitutes a hate crime or an offense to a cultural group or group phenomena.
The relatively new acquisition of freedom in Western Europe is trying to discover the path of American Liberty, European Liberty and the former rule of Law left behind from Soviet control.
Whether Russia has been Czarist, Communist or toying with the concepts of Democracy; has always been the State defines the welfare of the people. I believe Russia will eventually lose most of the tenets of Democracy to go back to what it knows best on how to govern their people; i.e. a combination of benevolence and the stick to inspire Russian Patriotism and Pride from the State. This means Russia will again challenge Europeans and America with their own hegemonic goals (at least regionally).
There is the Third World. The Third World struggles to instill Democracy while battling the evils of political and/or criminal corruption or they are just plain dominated by a strong man with some kind of military support to remain in power until a revolution or assassination replaces one strong man for another.
And of course there are the oil Baron Nations of which most are Muslim and being Muslim and feeling empowered by oil wish to spread political Islam globally.
So here is the problem: there is actually a Global Interest that affects individuals economically but no power structure to enforce the Global Interest. Why? The reason is the globe is still ruled by Nations – some good and some bad (and flowing to downright evil). Their ideologies clash forming diverging National Interests according to the ideology. When the National Interests clash it boils down to one mitigating factor in this day and age – oil and how to attain it economically.
The day that oil threatens the ideology of the Nation or Nations that have military clout regardless of ideology or religion, the next global war will occur.
Look around. Nations are slowly gravitating toward alliances (that may become official some day) in which the National Interests are shared and oil is the target.
Islamism may be the spark as the assassination of Franz Ferdinand was the spark for WWI; however it will be oil that is the prize sought.
I’ve written all this because America is focused (rightly so) on the Global War on Terror; however China is slowly becoming that nation (like Japan) that will be desperate for oil as a resource to the Asian and Pacific hegemon.
And again which nation is the greatest obstacle to acquiring oil and Asian hegemony? Yep, it is the United States of America.
A Chinese surprise attack will not be with planes launching from Chinese Air Craft Carriers on Pearl Harbor. It will start with surgical nukes from their submarine fleet that will first target global communications then military targets to cripple the best human fighting force the world has ever seen.
I don’t think I am exaggerating. READ THIS!
I operate many blogs, some of a social nature and a few are just blogs for anyone to show up. My pet blog is SlantRight.com. My son has purchased the rights to the name and operates it on his servers for me for free. It is the Dad discount.
I rarely spread comments from one blog to the others; however I received a comment from “More Democrat ‘aid and comfort’ to the enemy” on my Mindsay blog which is more of a social blog. The comment was made by a person that goes by the moniker of Moralnihilist. Moralnihilist said little but it irked me a lot. So I am sharing my distinct charm around in my reply.
Moralnihilist said:
The purpose of the Iraq war was to line the pockets of George W Bush's oil buddies, nothing more. There were no weapons of mass destruction. Iraq was no threat. ...
We've already spent 10 times what we spent in Vietnam, and the cost in lives has been tragic.
I guess Ann Coulter is correct: Liberals Lie!
The Dems and Bush reacted to the same Intelligence of the time. Even President Clinton understood that Saddam Hussein was dangerous but did not have the cajones to do what GW did. Clinton's awareness of Iraq and transnational terrorists may never be completely known because the treasonous Dem used his security clearance to destroy classified material related to Clinton.
Whether or not the validity of WMD in Iraq is actual or mystified is irrelevant. The fact remains Hussein has shown in the past no hesitation to attack his neighbors for hegemonic gain and profit (with Iran the US aided him and with Kuwait we were against him). This is not to mention the brutality that Hussein and his psycho-sons inflicted on Iraqi citizens. Even now in 2008 mass graves of slaughtered men, women and children are haphazardly stumbled upon.
The only reason the U.S. does not send a military force to remove the butchering Arab Muslims from Sudan is the Islamic world would wrongly perceive it as an attack on Islam. Western nations even with the potential of their combined power to remove the current Sudanese government fear the Islamic reaction (The West is dominated by Left Wing cowering dhimmis). The genocide against Black Muslims in Darfur and Black Christians in Southern Sudan is enough reason to take out the regime. It is a demonstration of dhimmification of the U.N. and the protection of Communist Chinese that such action is not even close to being a consideration.
As far as oil goes: duh!! Are you an American or a dimwitted American? Islamists (though a growing minority in the Middle East) run the perceptions of America. If Islamists control oil in Iraq as well as oil in Iran and the Saudi Monarchy is a sneeze away from joining the Shah of Iran's fate. How do you think the National Interests of America would be affected if Islamists controlled the life blood of the World's economy? Can you say convert or no oil? That would mess up the Dems utopian delusional vision on how we should respect what happens in another nation's internal affairs.
As for the Iraq and Vietnam comparisons, the only thing valid that you have asserted is the unpopularity (forged into the minds by a Leftist MSM ignoring other facts and the Dems exploiting the non-reported facts) of the Iraq War in America.
So in essence Moralnilhilist, you are full of manure. I leave it to you decide what kind.
Let us do that thing that Appeasers and Leftist fear. Let us dwell on the Iran issue vis-a-vie American National Interests.
Iran trains, supports and arms Hamas, Hezbollah and fellow rogue nation Syria. Iran supplies Shi’ite radicals in Iraq. Iran has aided insurgency in Afghanistan. Iran worst of all is developing weapons nuclear technology that only an idiot would believe will not turn into nuclear weapons.
These are serious acts of global intrusion that destabilizes the Middle East and consequently America and the global economy. Why? Because the life blood of multiple national economies is not the value of currency and national debts owned by whatever other nation. In this stage of the Earth’s history EVERYTHING is centered surrounding oil/petroleum.
Thus one of the greatest sources of global angst (or should be) is that rogue nations or nations dominated by fanatical theological nations. That place is the Middle East for the most part. Iran is the center of destabilization yet Wahhabi Islamofascist Theo-political thinking dominates the Big Dog Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia is currently in America’s camp only because the Saudi leadership realizes that is a counterweight to Twelver Shi’ite Iran. That means Saudi Arabia is not a solid ally. The Saudi leadership has to play a Machiavellian political game between assuaging American Interests and placating the radical Wahhabi Theo-political ideology of mainstream Saudi citizens.
Given the correct catalyst Saudi Arabia could be the next national government in favor of a Wahhabi National Saudi revolution.
Iran was a solid American ally under the brutal Shah who alienated his people by attempting to Westernize Iran. President Carter abandoned the Shah when American support could have been used thus establishing the Iranian Revolution and the deposing of the Shah. Iran’s government switched from a repressive Shah operated government to an Islamofascist intolerant Mullahcracy.
This Mullahcracy is bent on spreading Mohammedanism as they view their prophet had done in the 600’s. Global destabilization is the goal because the Twelver Shi’ites believes this will bring global chaos. The onset of global chaos will bring the Lost Twelfth Imam – the Mahdi. The Mahdi will force the world into Mohammedanism or so the Twelvers believe.
So again let us consider Iran.
Another invasion would stretch the American Military a bit too much. Not to mention the Leftists might experience an aneurism or throw themselves into seizures over the audacity of protecting American National Interests from psychotic conquering wannabee Islamofascists.
Here is an interesting option that does not include invasion: Exact a military blockade on gas imports into Iran. I have learned from a Max Boot article in “contentions” that Iran does not have many refineries to accommodate their volumes of oil. Indeed the Iranian populace is currently rioting over gas shortages and gas prices in oil rich Iran. What an irony that is!
Messing with Islamofascist Iran’s economy its government may collapse upon itself ending the Mullahcracy government. America can fight destabilization with destabilization.
The Axis of evil was at one time: Iraq, Iran and North Korea. Iraq was bumped from that list.
I guess the next Axis of Evil would be Syria, Iran and North Korea. All three are rogue nations destabilizing peace in their regions.
Now I am reading in the Scotsman.com that Burma is preparing to join the Axis of evil club. Burma is already a rogue nation with a horrible human rights record. The nation is ruled by a military junta Dictatorship.
Apparently Burma is rich in natural resources and is prepared to profit on those resources. Who is paying for the natural resources? China, Russia and India.
Russia is aiding Burma in preparation of nuclear plants. Does that sound familiar?
China is buying oil and setting up naval bases on Burmese islands. This is part of the Chinese military strategy known as the “String of Pearls.” This is a reference to China’s growing military that is ever increasing Asian hegemonic power.
India is not happy with China’s emerging military via a nuclear navy in the Bay of Bengal.
India is competing for oil and gas exports from Burma by selling military arms. India is loosing that wooing game because Burma is allowing China into the Bay of Bengal and Russia is fulfilling a nuclear aspiration. This means India has a nuclear competitor in Pakistan and China and potentially Burma and Iran. India is being surrounded. India has been in Russia’s orbit for years. I am thinking this nuclear power encircling of India may force India to become a full partner of America.
The Scotsman.com reports one other tidbit about Burma wanting into the Axis of Evil club. Burma has normalized relations with North Korea: The bad boy that relies on China and threatens South Korea, Japan and America.
