Operation Iraqi Liberation

Craig Barnes, noted essayist and international crisis negotiator, read an essay last week on the local NPR outlet here (kunm.org, though it is not yet in their archives), in which he described, finally, and flatly, the direct connection between the ICORP* of Iraq and OIL as well as petroleum.

It started with Cheney's Energy 'Task Force' meeting in Feb, 2001, at which the hungry wolves of the USer energy establishment were forced to gnash and snarl over the fact that all of Iraq's oil concessions were already held by folks who were NOT IN THE ROOM.

Everybody present knew that the only way these concessions could be overturned, and that enormous wealth could be re-appropriated, was if Saddam, who was signatory to 'em all, was ousted.

So, in the fullnes of time, Saddam was ousted. And all the pre-existing concessions were voided. And Ahmed Chalabi--who, in March, 2003, marched into Bagdhad at the head of his own private army of 700 well-armed loyalists AHEAD of the invading, victorious USer 'Liberators'-- was installed as interim Oil Minister for just long enough for viceroy Paul Bremer to affix his signature to new concessions, which were awarded to (guess who)...yeah, the very same guys who were in the room sith Darth Cheney, back in Feb 2001.

Everything that has happened in Iraq--and, arguendo, to the USofA and the world--since that day in 2001, when the USer oil cabal decided they wanted--indeed, were entitled to--the oil in Iraq, is the result of decisions reached that day. From which you can ascertain why it was so important that the words exchanged that day remain secret--a judgment in which the SCROTUS was agreement, even before the Busheviks installed their own Chief and another lickspittle factotum.

Barnes, a very thoughtful and perspicuous individual (whom I have had the opportunity to meet on several occasions) also noted that, if you took a map and marked out upon it the locations of all the (allegedly 14) 'permanent' US bases in Iraq, and laid that map over one which showed the richest oil fields in Iraq (see above), there you would find an almost exact homology (except for the base in Basra, which is Iraq's only port, by the way).

From that map, it also possible to understand why it has become so important to bring Syria into the sphere of war, too: pipelines.

BTW: I still think it a very good possibility that, if he lives, Chalabi will eventually become the next Iraqi strongman.




*ICORP: Invasion, Conquest, Occupation, Rape, Pillage