Gulf War II:

1
Gulf War II

• Oil or Empire?

2
Official View on Role of Oil

• Bush spokesman Ari Fleisher The only interest
  the United States has in the region is furthering
  the cause of peace and stability, not Iraqs
  ability to generate oil.

3
Oil War?

• Did the Bush Administration Invade Iraq to grab
  its oil fields?
• Whats there to grab? DOE says
• 112 b barrels of oil, 2nd biggest proven reserves
  in world, probably much, much more
• 110 trillion cubic feet of natural gas
• Oil production costs among lowest in world
• Lots of high quality crude, e.g., low sulfur
• Reduction of OPEC, increased power for MNCs
• Billions of dollars in reconstruction contracts
• E.g., Bechtel, Halliburton, etc. profits.

4
Who Holds this View?

• Popular view throughout Middle East
• Not surprising in view of history
• CIA overthrow of Iranian Govt in 1953
• Controlled by MNC until 1972 nationalization
• Belief reinforced by priorities of invasion
• Guarding of oil fields and oil ministry, not
  hospitals
• Also view elsewhere
• Nelson Mandela of South Africa
• All Bush wants is Iraqi oil.
• Global Policy Forum World Watch Institute see
  articles in syllabus

5
Global Policy Forum

• Detailed, on-going analysis of history of oil
  industry connections of Bush Administration
  policy makers their policy statements.
• Paul articles from 2002 on how US victory in Iraq
  will lead to take over of Iraqi oil by
  Anglo-American oil companies.
• Concludes that free access to Iraqi oil, I.e.,
  control over it is real reason for invasion.
• Post-invasion report Ex-CEO of Royal/Dutch
  Shell, Philip Carroll, to run Iraq Oil Industry.

6
World Watch Institute

• Set up by Lester Brown of food crisis fame.
• Liberal think tank, pro-alternative/renewable
  energy policies.
• Renner article traces US-Iraqi history, including
  US money and aid to Hussein government, Rumsfeld
  connection, 100 billion in arms 1990-2001 to
  Gulf States.
• Objective cheap oil
• to reinforce global economy
• To undermine alternative /renewable energy
• To undermine pro-environmental policies, kill
  Kyoto

7
War for Empire?

• Policy materials associated with Bush
  Administration call overtly for Pax Americana
  (Pax Britannia was peace of British Empire)
• See Bookman reading and Kagan response
• Edward Kennedy The administrations doctrine is
  a call for 21st century American imperialism that
  no other nation can or should accept (October 7,
  2002).

8
Monthly Review (New York, Left Wing)

• New phase in history of imperialism
• Quotes Bookman, invasion to demonstrate that the
  U.S. is now prepared to use its power at will
• Defensive war, from Roman Empire to American
  Empire
• Control of oil oil profits not enough.
• Control of Iraq means
• control of Mideast, safety of Caspian pipelines
• Leverage over china and Japan
• Unlimited Imperial dominance
• Will be challenged and undermined by other
  capitalists in other countries, competition is
  always unstable
• Will be challenged by people who suffer the
  consequences

9
Empire

• Antonio Negri and Michael Hardt, Empire
• Capitalist Empire vs multitude
• Preventive War Constituent Strategy
• American power asymmetric, intransive
• Monarchial power forms of hegemony
• Vs a vis Europe, Russia, China
• Iraq is question of Europe (Japan) control of
  oil is control of biopolitical power
• Iran/Caspian is question of Russia
• Korea is question of China

10
Resistance?

• Choice of field of struggle for multitude
• Must be global networks of resistance
• Not nationalist
• Not fundamentalist networks
• Must be anti-capitalist
• Not social democratic
• No participation as subjugated people or as
  corporatist masses
• Must accompany exodus
• Must be democracy of multitude, but how?
• Council with computers?

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