Retired military Colonel Ann Wright’s recent editorial in Truthout should be front and center on the debate over Iraq. And why it’s not, raises a lot of questions that our elected democrats haven’t answered. Colonel Wright’s lead-in:
On Thursday, May 24, the US Congress voted to continue the war in Iraq. The members called it "supporting the troops." I call it stealing Iraq's oil - the second largest reserves in the world. The "benchmark," or goal, the Bush administration has been working on furiously since the US invaded Iraq is privatization of Iraq's oil. Now they have Congress blackmailing the Iraqi Parliament and the Iraqi people: no privatization of Iraqi oil, no reconstruction funds.
This threat could not be clearer. If the Iraqi Parliament refuses to pass the privatization legislation, Congress will withhold US reconstruction funds that were promised to the Iraqis to rebuild what the United States has destroyed there.
Why wasn’t her theme front and center of political coverage last week? Instead it got framed by Bush and MSM into which democrat supported the troops and which didn’t, with overwrought self explanations on both sides of this self inflicted democratic debate. Where is the outrage of putting oil over the lives of Americans? Where is the honest discussion? How long do we want American troops in Iraq to protect US Oil Company Interests? Why aren't alternatives to this arrangement being discussed? This truthout editorial was brought up here on Saturday, w/o links, on the diary by betson08 in "It’s the Oil, Stupid": http://www.dailykos.com/...
Different diarists on Dkos have long been bringing up the issue of the democrats and their position on the oil contracts:
Professor Smartass, in a comment on Sen. John Kerry’s recent Dkos diary asks about the oil contracts, but gets no response:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Diarist jim d asks if Pelosi will stop the oil theft:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Diarist Daisy Cutter has Kucinich’s take on the privatization of Iraqi oil. It has a transcript of Kucinich’s long speech to Congress:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Other Dkos diarists have been concerned about the corporate takeover of Iraqi Oil by US Companies:
Diarist eve stated last year in her diary title, "Bush, the symptom not the disease. " Or in my words, this is what we get when we have oil men running the show:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Various commentors have brought up this book by John Perkins, "The Confessions of an Economic Hit Man" I haven’t read it, but it sounds like it’s the manual being used by Congress to push Iraqi’s into the oil contracts:
http://www.amazon.com/...
Diarist Profmarcus is also curious why there is so little in the media about the oil contracts, in "The truth about Iraq’s Oil Law":
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Hekebolos predicted earlier this month that "benchmarks" = oil contracts with US companies. Looks like he was right.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
FishOutofWater’s diary with emphasis on the Kurd’s and Sunni’s positions
http://www.dailykos.com/...
One commenter suggested looking at the article "Our Man in Iraq" at American Lawyer on Ronald Jonkers, the lawyer working on the oil contracts:
http://www.law.com/...
There have also been a number of diaries linking Cheney’s recent trip to the Middle East to putting the fix on pushing the oil contracts through the Iraqi Parliament:
Kavip’s diary on Cheney’s visit to the Middle East, explains the PSA, Production Sharing Agreements. Comments also discuss some errors in the diary:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
LithiumCola’s diary, " The Dark, Sticky Secret ...", details the oil contracts and has many comments:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
There has been plenty of discussion here in the last year on the Iraqi Oil Contracts, but besides Kucinich, we haven’t heard much from our elected democrats on their position for handling this issue. This should change.
Update: I missed thisearlier diary on the truthout article, which emphasizes alternatives and the motives of Bush/Cheney. Since my diary has a lot of links to previous diaries on the subject, I will leave mine up.