codeorama Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 NO... I'm not saying this is proof of anything, but I wonder how this will spin. U.S. Plans to Run Iraqi Oil for a While WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States plans to run Iraq (news - web sites)'s oil industry until an Iraqi interim authority can be formed to take it over, sources familiar with the evolving plan said on Friday. It is uncertain how long the United States would operate Iraq's oil industry, the country's main source of revenue. U.S. officials say they want to turn over Iraqi ministries to Iraqis as quickly as possible. "The whole purpose is to transition all these ministries to the Iraqi Interim Authority as quickly as possible. The oil ministry is one of them," said one official. The U.N. oil-for-food program is continuing under a new U.N. resolution, using oil revenues to pay for humanitarian assistance for the Iraqi people. The Defense Department is considering putting in place an advisory board of former U.S. oil industry executives to help run Iraq's oil industry, the head of which is likely to be Philip Carroll, a former chief executive of Shell Oil Co., sources said. Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) said on Wednesday that Iraq's oil production could rise as much as 50 percent from 2002 levels by the end of the year if the country is given outside help in restoring its fields' capacity to pump crude. Last year, Iraq was producing about 2 million barrels of oil per day, down from a high of about 3 million barrels in 1988, according to the U.S. Energy Department. Even though the country will need outside help, Cheney said Iraqis will have to "make decisions on how much they want to reinvest" in their oil sector. The country controls more than 112 billion barrels of oil, second only to Saudi Arabia in proven reserves. Sketching out a postwar scenario now that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) appears to have lost power, Cheney, a former oil company executive, spoke of "an organization to oversee the functioning of their oil ministry." That body, he said, "will be composed primarily of Iraqis. It may have international advisers from outside." Does the United States want Iraq to remain in OPEC (news - web sites)? "It will be up to their government to decide. Our position is we have no position. It's up to the Iraqi people," said one U.S. official. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 What should they have done instead? This has been part of the plan all along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted April 11, 2003 Author Share Posted April 11, 2003 Originally posted by Kilmer17 What should they have done instead? This has been part of the plan all along. Seriously, Like I said in my post, I'm not criticizing, I'm asking how this will be spun in the media. IE: Will CNN say: "HAHA... Caught redhanded" What will fox say? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redman Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 It's funny, but when there's chaos and looting, we get blamed. When we try to restore order in the most lucrative and dominant and important Iraqi industry to have the Iraqis pay for their aid and rebuilding, we get blamed. This gets a bit ridiculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarhog Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 From some of the reports I've read, their oil infrastructure is in a pretty bad state of disrepair. They'll be better off in the long term if we do get things up to speed before turning over the reigns. I've never bought that we're there for the oil. We'll benefit from some stability in the region, no doubt, but if we'd just wanted their oil, we could have taken it long ago (specifically in 1991 when we were 10 miles from it, watching their pathetic army drag-@ss back to Baghdad). Sure we could 'give them back their oil fields' now, but judging from some of the chaos were seeing now, not sure that would be very productive, nor do they have the assets to get them up and running to current production standards. No shock that we'll control them for awhile. I wouldn't even be shocked if we use their oil revenues to pay for some of the costs of the war. You could justify it (if they'd had a responsible govt we wouldn't have had to take action, etc...), but I don't think we'll do that as the media would crucify us for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratoman Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Originally posted by codeorama What will fox say? The truth! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redman Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Here's your standard issue left-wing interpretation: http://www.democraticunderground.com/cgi-bin/duforum/duboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=23426&forum=DCForumID61 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted April 11, 2003 Author Share Posted April 11, 2003 redman... good post. I'm curious if the major networks will make a big deal about it tonight one way or the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redman Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Originally posted by codeorama I'm curious if the major networks will make a big deal about it tonight one way or the other. Depends on how you mean that. If you mean that they'll editorialize against it, I doubt it. However, I'd figure that they give this aspect of our control more attention (nightly updates, details, etc.) than other, nicer aspects of our control (e.g. humanitarian assistance), which will carry with it the implicit message that it is a big deal and is an expose' about corruption in post-war Iraq. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeypeet Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Seriously, Like I said in my post, I'm not criticizing, I'm asking how this will be spun in the media. Seriously, if you really are not criticizing then why title your thread "how convienient"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratoman Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Originally posted by codeorama I'm curious if the major networks will make a big deal about it tonight one way or the other. you can bet CNN will! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted April 11, 2003 Author Share Posted April 11, 2003 Originally posted by Whiskeypeet Seriously, if you really are not criticizing then why title your thread "how convienient"? Sarcasm...ever heard of it? Besides, it made you look didn't it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TennesseeCarl Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 The media pretty much allowed the U.S. and the administration a day of victory. Now it's back to the gloom 'n doom headlines. "Looters Reign in Mosul" "No Iraqi Leaders Caught As Yet" "Another False Lead On WMD" "Bradley Fighting Vehicle Runs Over Cat - Family Pet Brutally Murdered" and so on and so forth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeypeet Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Comming from someone who is obviously as anti-war as you are you could see how it could be construne as something other than sarcasm. Either way....your sarcasm is noted...although skeptically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted April 11, 2003 Share Posted April 11, 2003 Who cares how anybody at CNN spins it? We ARE in control, and will be for awhile. Now, once we get the oil infastructure back in action, we pump enough to pay for the costs of the war. That way we don't have to hear the democrats whine and fret and spout the tired line of "How are we are going to pay for the waaaaaaaaar" Of course, then they will whine about how it was all for the oil to begin with and we are only using the assets of those poor oppressed people. After that dies down, we pump enough oil to crash the oil market, thus cutting off the money flow for other oil states that give big bucks to terrorist a$$holes. Then, we'll have them all by the nuts. By the way,I'll be running for President when I retire:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted April 12, 2003 Author Share Posted April 12, 2003 Originally posted by Whiskeypeet Comming from someone who is obviously as anti-war as you are you could see how it could be construne as something other than sarcasm. Either way....your sarcasm is noted...although skeptically. My point is that I have not been one saying that the war is only about oil. Oil has a part, but I haven't been on the extreme left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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