I spent quite a while this evening reading lots of things on the BBC website. I like the way their news isn't biased either way. Yes, there are reasons for wanting to overthrown the regime in Iraq, but is war the answer? I think I'm fundamentally opposed to war because I think the reasons behind it are wrong. Reading Michael Moore's book Stupid White Men just made me see more conflicts of interest. There are so many things, when you dig deeper, that are terrifyingly selfish and... unsettling.
I did a bit of research. Here are a few of the things that I turned up. They kind of make you think. Well, they make me think, anyway...
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Excerpt from: Oil industry facts
- Halliburton is the largest oil field services provider in the world and provides services to Chevron.
- George Bush Sr. was a former director of Halliburton.
- Dick Cheney was Halliburton's CEO.
- Chevron is the #1 importer of Iraqi oil.
- There are Bush Administration plans to reduce demand for Saudi oil and use Iraqi oil in place.
- Bush wants to invade Iraq.
- War brings immense profit to defense contractors.
- George Bush Sr. is currently on the director's board of one of the largest defense contractors in the world.
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Excerpt from: The Guardian: A Matter of Life, Oil and Death
US administration's foot on the gas
George W Bush
Unsuccessful Texas oilman. His prospecting company, Arbusto, was on the point of going bankrupt when it was bought out by another company, Spectrum, which in turn was bought out by another oil firm, Harken, which kept Bush on the board for his contacts, primarily with his father.
Dick Cheney
Before becoming vice-president, Cheney, below, was the chief executive of Halliburton, the world's largest oilfield services company. Halliburton does not drill for oil but it sells everything to the corporations that do the drilling. It also provides housing and services for the US military.
Condoleezza Rice
Before coming to the White House the national security adviser sat on the board of Chevron. They were clearly happy with her strategic advice and Bush family contacts as they named an oil tanker after her.
Don Evans
Old Bush friend from Texas oil days. Evans stayed in the oil business. Before becoming commerce secretary, he was the chairman of Tom Brown Inc, a $1.2bn oil and gas company based in Denver, and also sat on the board of TMBR/Sharp Drilling, an oil and gas drilling operation.
Gale Norton
Environmentalists objected to her appointment as interior secretary because of her oil links. As a lawyer she had represented Delta Petroleum. She also ran an organisation called the Coalition of Republican Environmental Advocates, co-funded by BP Amoco.
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The Arizona Republic: Not about oil? Yeah, right...
Mar. 19, 2003 12:00 AM
President Bush's "get out of Dodge" speech Monday night let the cat out of the bag on his prime and only logical motivation for going to war at this time.
For months the administration has been denying that its close personal ties to the oil industry have anything to do with the Iraqi policy.
Yet the very first specific action that Bush addressed to Iraqi military and civilian personnel was a warning, "In any conflict, your fate will depend on your actions. Do not destroy oil wells."
Our Texas oilman president did not tell the Iraqis to stop supporting terrorism or even to throw down their arms and surrender. Instead, his first piece of advice showed his true colors.
Like always, bad news was followed by a new security alert designed to scare the public into support. This new pastel alert included "increased Coast Guard patrols of major seaports."
I hadn't realized that the Iraqis had developed that sophisticated a navy. Perhaps it is their U-boats that George is afraid of, or perhaps he has been staying up watching too many World War II movies.
The logic of the oil situation is now becoming clear. If this war is not about oil, then we can't afford it. The $100 billion to $200 billion cost estimates on top of the $300 billion Bush has already run up will bring us to the verge of bankruptcy. The only thing that makes any sense in this entire scenario is to grab the estimated $3,000 billion in oil reserves in Iraq.
The conservative-dominated news media has allowed the Bush leaguers to get away with 42 percent of Americans believing that Iraq and al-Qaida are closely allied, on the basis of no evidence at all. They have hidden their heads whenever the oil motive has been presented.
It is time for us to reject the spilling of American blood for Halliburton profits.
Gordon Weiner
Tempe
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The last one was particularly well written, I thought. And from my point of view, it was interesting to read an American article about the war. Tony Blair seems to want us to believe that the American people are all totally behind the war effort.
There's no clear answer, true, but I don't want the blood of innocent Iraqis on my hands.
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