49 online
 
Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook 23 Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
OpEdNews Op Eds   

Should Americans Support a Candidate Who Allows or Ignores the Privatization of Iraqi Oil?

By       (Page 1 of 2 pages)   12 comments
Follow Me on Twitter     Message Kevin Gosztola
Become a Fan
  (62 fans)

For people who support Obama, Hillary, John Edwards, and well, let's go down the rest of the line and include Bill Richardson, Joe Biden, and Chris Dodd...

...Do you support the privatization of Iraqi's oil? Let me rephrase that. Do you support plans to allow U.S. corporations to take the wealth of the Iraqi nation, which is its natural resource, oil? And one more time, I will ask. Do you support the "hydrocarbon law" that we are forcing the Iraqi government to pass so that companies can gain control of the Iraqi oil?

Now, I also add, do you realize that this is why we have not defunded the war and allowed our troops to come home? Do you understand that until they do as they are told we will not be bringing our troops home? This continues until they allow us to rape them of a natural resource that allows their country to sustain itself.

I ask you directly and repeatedly because I find little in the way of a response to this matter, privatization of Iraqi oil, on your candidates' website.

On Obama's, I could not find any mention on his campaign site. And in fact, I went to his Senate website and typed in "privatize" "Iraq" "oil" and I got three results. None of them referred to the privatization of Iraqi oil at all.

On Clinton's, apparently, she does not want people snooping around in her records. She does not want people to know what she has said in the Senate because there is no search bar on her Senate website. Or on her campaign site for that matter. However, she does have places to click to read her stances on Iraq on both sites. Sadly, both sites fail to mention the privatization of Iraqi oil.

On Edwards', he does not have a Senate site. But he does have a campaign site. And, finally, I get something that looks like it might mention the privatization of Iraqi oil. You see, what made me write this was that I was reading a response to the GAO report where the "hydrocarbon law" was mentioned. And on Edwards' website, you can go to press releases and read Edwards' statement on it. However, if you do read through it, you will find that he fails to mention the privatization of Iraqi oil or the hydrocarbon law.

On Richardson's, his campaign website does not have a press release on the GAO report. I clicked on his "Iraq" section under the Issues tab. And what I found was his 7 Point plan. I think he may be missing a few steps but anyways, bottom line is that nowhere in this section does he mention the privatization of Iraqi's oil or the "hydrocarbon law".

On Biden's, I found a place where I could "search" so I typed in "privatize" "iraq" "oil" and what I got was nothing. Zero results. And then, I checked out his press releases. No press releases for August 30th. I went to a section under his Issues tab that said "War in Iraq". Nothing. There's a small blurb praising Biden. On his campaign site, no press releases exist on the GAO Report. Alas, I went to "Iraq: A Way Forward" on his website to find out about the privatization of Iraqi's oil. Thankfully, his policy proposal for handling Iraq mentions oil. It even goes as far as to mention oil revenues. But it doesn't mention the privatization of Iraqi oil by U.S. companies. Here, you read:

The plan would bind the Sunnis - who have no oil -- by guaranteeing them a proportionate share of oil revenues. It would convene an international conference to secure support for the power sharing arrangement and produce a regional nonaggression pact, overseen by a Contact Group of major powers. It would call on the U.S. military to withdraw most U.S. troops from Iraq by the summer of 2008, with a residual force to keep Iraqis and their neighbors honest. It would increase economic aid but tie it to the protection of minority rights and the creation of a jobs program and seek funding from the oil-rich Gulf Arab states.


Biden supporters, help me out. I have no clue what he is talking about. Of course, his plan is weird in the first place. I think he supports dividing Iraq into three states---one Kurd, one Sunni, one Shiite. If you scroll down, you can see how step 2 in his plan involves oil.

2. Share Oil Revenues

* Gain agreement for the federal solution from the Sunni Arabs by guaranteeing them 20 percent of all present and future oil revenues -- an amount roughly proportional to their size -- which would make their region economically viable
* Empower the central government to set national oil policy and distribute the revenues, which would attract needed foreign investment and reinforce each community's interest in keeping Iraq intact and protecting the oil infrastructure


Again, Biden supporters, help me out. However, at least his plan references oil. The rest of these plans seem to ignore the fact that this resource is a major source of wealth for Iraqis. (I wonder why that could be? Hmm?) Oh, and there is no mention of the GAO report on Biden's website either.

On Dodd's site, his press release for the day ignores the GAO report and details how we should consider foreign investments impact on national security. In the "search" bar, I typed "privatize" "iraq" "oil" and found nothing. On his campaign website, well...to cut back on the amount of redundance in this article, I will just tell you flat out there is nothing here on the privatization of Iraqi oil.

However...

Next Page  1  |  2

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).

Rate It | View Ratings

Kevin Gosztola Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

Kevin Gosztola is managing editor of Shadowproof Press. He also produces and co-hosts the weekly podcast, "Unauthorized Disclosure." He was an editor for OpEdNews.com
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Follow Me on Twitter     Writers Guidelines

 
Contact AuthorContact Author Contact EditorContact Editor Author PageView Authors' Articles
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

We Do Not Consent to Warrantless "Porno-Scanning" in Airports

How Private Prison Corporations Hope Arizona's SB1070 Will Lead to Internment Camps for Illegals

Do They Put Lipstick on Pigs at the Funny Farm?

Why the Battle Against TSA Groping and Body Scanners is Justified

Give Obama a Chance to Do What?

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend