Now, many of you will know that I am slightly more right-wing and slightly more militaristic than many on the blog (that is to say, "pro-action" rather than taking a more pacifistic stance). However, I am now going to argue FOR war on Iraq, not just for economic reasons (yes, the oil! whee!) but also for strategic and political reasons. Always the one for causing controversy while also trying to talk SOME sense :)
Too true. There is no connection with Iraq and Al Qaeda. Why is this? Because the Deputy Prime Minister is a Christian, and the fundamentalist Islam Al Qaeda won't deal with such "low life scum" who put infidels into such high positions. UP YOURS OSAMA! AND YOUR MUM! But wait, mustn't bitch about his momma, she's in the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia if I recall ;)
So why go out to Iraq and fight a war against people you don't need to, you ask? Well, for a start there is this oil issue. Before you go all skitz and say "we should not go to war for oil!!!!!" I just want to show you why we should, on the contrary, kick the crap out of Iraq for oil.
Okay, so Iraq cuts off the oil supply. What would this mean for us? Well, first the petrol prices would go up. Then, people would start hoarding, and the government would have to step in to control the flow of petrol into the country, making the oil industry in effect nationalised. After this, as oil supply drops more and more, industry would begin to slow down and eventually, heavy industry would collapse. The result? collapse of the economy, your cars not working, planes not flying. Army, Navy and Air Force requisition all fuel, and Britain is effectively starved.
Worst Case Scenario? Yes. But even if we changed our priority to North Sea drilling, as well as the oil at the poles, little could be done and the eventual result would be the draining of those resources MUCH FASTER.
I don't want to go on about the oil. It's a topic that ticks me off. "Don't fight for oil" is not we should be saying. Surely such a vital resource to our economy (and therefore the welfare of the nation's jobs and ultimately you yourselves) as well as consumer and service sectors is worth fighting for? Meh, either way.
Now, strategic problems. Iraq does prove a threat. Not as great a threat as China or North Korea, perhaps, but a sizeable threat. We imposed a no fly zone to curb their military aggression against Kuwait, and they STILL fly into it and attack our units there. Now, you may say that we have unfairly placed a military sanction or military "court order" on them. But Kuwait asked for our help, they have it, and Iraq refuse to accept that. Nasty foreign policy? I think so. Further, the region itself is very unstable, and nasty foreign policy does not support such a move towards stability. Admittedly some of the American puppet governments aren't great, but they add a wee bit more stability to the Middle-East. Israel don't help that situation...
Further, in eliminating foreign threats from the middle east, we can finally relieve an awful lot of machinery and man-power out there, so we can bring them back to man Green Goddesses! Hurray!!
Fingers hurt, and pot noodles beckon. I'm sure I could do something more comprehensive, but I EM HUNGREH! RAWR!!!
Thanks for listening!
Pete C.
Editor's note: Peter, with regard to the Iraqi oil supply, surely there are currently sanctions in place against Iraq that prohibit the export of its oil, aren't there? (I could be wrong here. Feel free to chastise me in whatever manner you feel fit if I am. Horsewhips and a schoolmaster's cane for preference.) Most of the world's oil comes from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait etc (with a special discount for American liberators). Even if Iraq is still supplying the west it would be impossible for it to remove its own oil exports unless it found a lucrative market in sand wholesale, as oil is the main financial resource for the country. It strikes me that America actually wants to gain some sort of monopoly and/or discount on oil supplies with the aquisition of the Iraqi wells and, to be honest, America is already too big for its boots. Still, as they say, oil is thicker than blood as the 50,000 projected deaths that will result from this debacle will soon bear testimony. And now it's back to normal viewing. Please leave your comments in support of or against Mr Cooper's argument in the comments box below. You know you want to...
