The war in Iraq was largely about oil. It’s a phrase that is becoming all too common. If we substitute Iraq for another country, such as Syria, Iran, Ukraine… and substitute oil for another commodity/geographical location essential to Western capitalism and authority, a troubling pattern emerges. We need to connect the dots through our overall awareness of geo-political moves, not so different from a game of chess. Unfortunately, there is a lot of ‘checkmating’ going on while the opponent struggles to stand up against the ulterior motive.
If you connect the dots throughout recent history in light of the Western Oil Agenda, the pattern can be traced as far back as 2001. In an article investigated and written by Dr Narfeez Ahmed,[1] the executive director of the Institute for Policy Research & Development, he discusses the unfolding strategy implemented toward Syria, Iran, and several other countries. He quotes a memo from the Office of the US Secretary of Defense only weeks after 9/11. It reveals the agenda to “attack and destroy the governments in seven countries in five years…Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Iran…” starting off with Iraq. Retired NATO Secretary General Wesley Clark goes on to say this is with the intention of controlling the region’s “vast oil and gas resources…”And we’ve got about 5 to 10 years to clean up those old Soviet regimes …before the next great superpower comes on to challenge us…” [2]
The words are damning.
In 2007, Greenspan, who served as chairman of the US Federal Reserve for close to two decades, wrote in his memoir In The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World, that the “Iraq war was largely about oil.” When confronted about the quote on CNN in an interview with Matt Lauer,[3] Greenspan was quick to back pedal. He stated that if we had not cast war on Saddam Hussein, we would be paying upwards of $120 per barrel of oil as opposed to $80. Yes, it’s about the oil. He admits it. The dollar supersedes human misery.
Today Iraq’s oil production is only .5 million barrels below its peak production before the war. Saying this, eighty percent is exported out of the country, and according to Antonia Juhasz for the CNN, this occurs while “Iraqis struggle to meet basic energy consumption needs.” The statistics are alarming, with a quarter of the population living in poverty while new energy-related jobs are imported labor. Juhasz goes on to expose the discussions in 2000 by Big Oil (consisting of ExxonMobile, Chevron, BP and Shell) for Iraq’s postwar industry. By February 2001 the logistics of invading Iraq were outlined. It was about “not the why (to invade Iraq) but the how and how quickly.”[4]
Today research is being conducted into the Iraq war and the cost to Iraq[5] as a society in terms of loss of life. Depending on the article you read, or the research paper you pull apart, the death toll moves between 500,000 upwards to 1.2 million lives lost in the name of oil. Some deaths are a direct result of the violence of war, and others indirect but “significant.”[6]
As the research continues, one must consider the future impact not only on Iraq, but Syria and surrounding countries. The Korean War resulted in upwards of 1.5 million deaths[7], some still unaccounted for, and Vietnam was in excess of 2.1 million[8]. Iraq, in terms of tolls, now joins the ranks of some of the great wars in history.
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[1] Dr Nafeez Ahmed (31 August 2013) “Syria intervention plan fueled by oil interests, not chemical weapon concern.” http://www.theguardian.com/environment/earth-insight/2013/aug/30/syria-chemical-attack-war-intervention-oil-gas-energy-pipelines (Retrieved 29 October 29, 2014)
[2] Glenn Greenwald (26 November 2013) “Wes Clark and the Neocon Dream.” http://www.salon.com/2011/11/26/wes_clark_and_the_neocon_dream/ (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
[3] Matt Lauer NBC “Greenspan clarifies Iraq War, Oil link” http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20817260/ns/business-oil_and_energy/t/greenspan-clarifies-iraq-war-oil-link/#.VFBmWstxnIU (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
[4] Antonia Juhasz (15 April 2013) “Why the war in Iraq was fought for Big Oil.” CNN http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/19/opinion/iraq-war-oil-juhasz/index.html (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
[5] Peter Beaumont and Joanna Walters. (16 September 2014) “Greenspan Admits Irag was about Oil, as Deaths put as 1.2m.” http://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/sep/16/iraq.iraqtimeline The Observer (Retrieved 28 October 2014)
[6] Kerry Sheridan (23 January 2014) “Iraq Death Toll Reaches 500,000 Since Start of US Led Invasions, New Study Says.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/15/iraq-death-toll_n_4102855.html Agence France Presse (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
[7] “The Forgotten War Remembered” Korean War Statistics http://koreanwarstuff.com/korean-war-death-toll (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
[8] “General Statistics on Vietnam War.” http://www.103fieldbatteryraa.net/documents/74.html (Retrieved 29 October 2014)
Hai guis Ish wannu juin deh Anon
Saw u at occupy Syria.
Along with oil resources another aspect to US invasion, occupations and “regime changes” is the petrodollar, in which the US financial system and economy are deeply integrated with the world oil market. Under the petrodollar system most of the world’s oil supplies are bought and paid for using the US dollar, but now more countries are moving to exchange oil using another alternate currency, including Russia, China, Iran, etc… in 2000 Iraq’s Saddam Hussein had begun selling oil using the Euro, Ghadaffi in Libya was working on a similar system for Africa using an African currency, Libya suffered a US-backed “regime change” in 2011… So even though the US is now a big producer of oil and gas, and has reduced exports from the Middle East, it is deeply concerned with the oil markets and seeks to aggressively protect the petrodollar… any thoughts?
Yes you have summed it up pretty well. Same reason for the ebola outbreak. What is in those countries? Gold, oil, diamonds. Shit, there is already troops there.
How many corrupt police, congress, government employees, bankers would we have to start murdering to reset the system. Is this on the agenda? Remember remember the 5th of November? How was the issue solved fictitiously? Remember? The only way that really seems to get peoples attention unfortunately is through force. Remember V for Vendetta, or Fight Club, or The Boston Tea Party? We have these so called standards where we peacefully protest changing absolutely nothing in the last 100 years. Nothing!!!!
They do things like assassinate JFK, Watergate, Viet Nam. They blow up their own people in the Twin Towers, Invade Iraq! We sit around watching our TVs an get fed our daily dose of brainwashing bullsh!t and just accept it? Are we blind!? What the F$!k are we as the true life blood of aMERICA waiting for. We were once the great nation who was so known to stand up against an oppressive government! Remember that big story in school about aMERICAS independence!!! Wernt we supposed to have the right to form militias against an oppressive government and what have we done? We act in whole as a bitch nation who is to afraid to pus back! Sorry, but shouldn’t somebody say what we are all thinking deep down.
So what do you think can be done, what should we do? Yes It is about time!