Oil

Kucinich: “Support the Iraqi Desire to Keep its own Oil Revenue”

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:47:33 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2008

Congressman Dennis Kucinich

Following a declaration by President Bush that he would like the U.S. to have the ability to control Iraq's oil, Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today sent a letter to Members of Congress calling on his colleagues to co-sponsor H.R. 6710, the Oil for Iraq Liberation Act of 2008 which prohibits U.S.-based oil companies from owning, financing or controlling the petroleum resources of Iraq.

McCain Said It, Why Don't We?

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:23:29 -0400

by Suzanne Smith

John McCain said it. Right out loud in the third debate.

"Obviously, we had to take Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait or it would've threatened the Middle Eastern oil supply."

The first gulf war was about defending access to oil after all. McCain reiterated the theme later on, as he has in past debates, when he said that we need to "eliminate our dependence on the places in the world that harm our national security."

President Bush Asserts Right to Control Iraqi Oil

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 09:28:25 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2008

Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL)

President George Bush this week rejected a Congressional effort to bar the United States military from controlling Iraq's oil resources.

Before signing a military funding bill earlier this week, the president issued a "signing statement", barring any expenditure of funds to "To exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq."

Green Group: BLM Ignored Laws in Oil Shale Plans

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 10:53:55 -0400

by Thomas Burr

WASHINGTON - The Bureau of Land Management is running roughshod over federal laws to push out oil shale development without a chance for public comment, The Wilderness Society charged Tuesday.

Nigerian Conflict A Warning for Big Oil in Iraq

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 11:40:21 -0400

by Sebastian Abbott

Recurrent violence in oil-rich parts of Nigeria may provide a sobering lesson for oil companies hoping to work in Iraq - a place that is much more dangerous despite the fact that attacks are at their lowest level in more than four years.

Representatives of 35 international oil companies will meet with Iraqi government officials in London on Monday to discuss the bidding process for eight enormous oil and gas fields. If the contracts are approved, they could lead to the biggest foreign stake in Iraq since the industry was nationalized more than 30 years ago.

Companies Scramble for Ever-Scarcer Resources

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 12:16:37 -0400

by Wolfgang Kerler

NEW YORK - As humanity runs out of oil and minerals, the extraction of previously untouched deposits suddenly pays off -- financially. But experts warn that it will likely further accelerate climate change and seriously damage the environment.

Don’t Hold Your Breath on Lower Gasoline Prices from Oil Shale

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 11:17:22 -0400

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2008

The Wilderness Society

The spending limitation on the Bush Administration's proposed commercial oil shale development program ends today despite the oil shale industry's inability to develop an efficient and safe process for squeezing oil from oil shale rock. In coming days and weeks, the Bush administration will finalize their leasing regulations, which taxpayer groups and conservationists assert will ultimately cost taxpayers money and could create enormous environmental problems, while failing to lower fuel prices.

US Great Place for the Oil Business

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 11:14:52 -0400

by Stephen Leahy

UXBRIDGE, Canada - Why do U.S. oil companies -- some of the most profitable corporations on the planet -- receive 20 to 40 billion dollars a year in subsidies from the U.S. government?

And, in a time of skyrocketing oil prices and profits, why did the George W. Bush administration in 2005 authorise an additional 32.9 billion dollars in new subsidies over a five-year period?

"Those are very good questions," said Doug Koplow of Earth Track, Inc., an independent energy information research organisation in Boston, Massachusetts.

Human Rights Advocates: Oil Companies' "Self-Policing" a Dismal Failure

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 10:59:53 -0400

by Alison Raphael

WASHINGTON - The intersection of human rights, the environment and corporate responsibility was highlighted today at a Capitol Hill hearing featuring activists from Burma and Nigeria who underlined the failure to date of "voluntary" controls over major oil companies operating in their countries.

700 Billion Fluffy Nothings

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:48:31 -0400

by Mark Morford

Relax, people, it's just a number.

It's just a bunch of zeroes. It's merely 700,000,000,000, and if you look closely and blur your eyes just right and then hit yourself in the face with a brick, you'll soon see that each and every one of those cute little circles is filled with goodness and candy and the sweet sighs of puppies and pie.