Financing GI Joe and Al Qaeda
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Sometimes, a person writes with such clarity and intelligence that I just want to tell everyone I know.
Many of you have probably already heard of the brilliant foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times, Thomas Friedman, who recently wrote a book that is already on the best seller list called "The World Is Flat."
In my opinion, here's the most important thing that Friedman has to say: We are financing both sides of the war on terror. On the one hand, we will end up spending at least $150 billion in Iraq (estimates vary widely, but $150 billion is a good minimum). But on the other hand, our insatiable demand for oil, coupled with increasing demand from other countries, is helping to create gigantic windfall profits that get channeled, in part, to terrorist organizations.
When oil prices are this high, (mid $50's per barrel) it creates giant gushers of cash for the governments and the oil barons of countries like Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Venezuela. While it's hard to get agreement on the exact cost of extraction, most estimates range from $5-$15 per barrel for Saudi Arabia. When oil prices go from $30 to $55 per barrel, it's an absurd bonanza for the countries with the lowest extraction costs....and it's widely agreed upon that no one has lower costs of extraction than Saudi Arabia. On top of all this, Goldman Sachs recently predicted that oil prices are going to $105 per barrel.
So, worldwide demand for oil is putting mountains of money into the hands of the Saudi government and oil sheiks. Saudi Arabia, where women still can't vote or drive. Saudi Arabia, home to some of the most radical anti-western terrorists in the world. Saudi Arabia, where religious police stopped girls from exiting a burning school because the girls were not wearing proper Islamic gear. (Of course, the religious police were later absolved of any wrongdoing by the government).
What can we do? Friedman has an answer: A massive national focus on developing fuel-efficient transportation, like our effort to get a man to the moon in the 1960's. Transportation is paramount because it accounts for roughly 2/3 of petroleum consumption in the United States. Developing this technology would be a huge win/win--for our national security and our environment. What are we waiting for?
Many of you have probably already heard of the brilliant foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times, Thomas Friedman, who recently wrote a book that is already on the best seller list called "The World Is Flat."
In my opinion, here's the most important thing that Friedman has to say: We are financing both sides of the war on terror. On the one hand, we will end up spending at least $150 billion in Iraq (estimates vary widely, but $150 billion is a good minimum). But on the other hand, our insatiable demand for oil, coupled with increasing demand from other countries, is helping to create gigantic windfall profits that get channeled, in part, to terrorist organizations.
When oil prices are this high, (mid $50's per barrel) it creates giant gushers of cash for the governments and the oil barons of countries like Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Venezuela. While it's hard to get agreement on the exact cost of extraction, most estimates range from $5-$15 per barrel for Saudi Arabia. When oil prices go from $30 to $55 per barrel, it's an absurd bonanza for the countries with the lowest extraction costs....and it's widely agreed upon that no one has lower costs of extraction than Saudi Arabia. On top of all this, Goldman Sachs recently predicted that oil prices are going to $105 per barrel.
So, worldwide demand for oil is putting mountains of money into the hands of the Saudi government and oil sheiks. Saudi Arabia, where women still can't vote or drive. Saudi Arabia, home to some of the most radical anti-western terrorists in the world. Saudi Arabia, where religious police stopped girls from exiting a burning school because the girls were not wearing proper Islamic gear. (Of course, the religious police were later absolved of any wrongdoing by the government).
What can we do? Friedman has an answer: A massive national focus on developing fuel-efficient transportation, like our effort to get a man to the moon in the 1960's. Transportation is paramount because it accounts for roughly 2/3 of petroleum consumption in the United States. Developing this technology would be a huge win/win--for our national security and our environment. What are we waiting for?
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