The U.S, Oil and the Iraq War

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the United States' dependence on oil and how a dependence on foreign sources of oil results in severe political, military, and humanitarian problems like the current crisis in Iraq. The paper explains that the United States currently remains the planet's biggest consumer of petroleum resources and has done little to nothing to reduce its dependence on oil. The paper notes that this in itself creates significant environmental policy problems and practical problems like pollution. The paper looks at how Iraq and its oil reserves provide potential future resources as the world's total supply of petroleum dries up. The paper then discusses the Bush administration and the crisis in Iraq. The writer believes that the United States may have dug itself into a hole - in addition to fomenting more anti-American sentiment throughout the world than existed prior to the invasion, the United States has been responsible for a humanitarian crisis in Iraq that rivals only that of Saddam himself. The writer concludes that invading Iran would obviously prove to be another costly political, economic, and humanitarian error.

From the Paper:

"Access to Iraq's oil wells serves a more direct economic function. A member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Iraq is a key to crude oil pricing. Interestingly, OPEC was founded in Baghdad in 1960, proving the centrality of Iraq in the American quest for oil. In the 1970s, OPEC declared an embargo and proceeded to control the production of oil as a means to control its price per barrel. As a result, OPEC has been frankly described as "a cartel with the purpose of maximizing the price of wholesale petroleum to world markets."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Baker, Peter. (2006). "Bush Says U.S. Pullout Would Let Iraq Radicals Use Oil as a Weapon." Washington Post. Nov 5, 2006. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/04/AR2006110401025.html
• Bush, GW. (2006). State of the Union Address. July 31, 2006. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/01/20060131-10.html
• Buzzanco, Robert. (2002). "How Did Iraq and the United States Become Enemies?" History News Network. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from http://hnn.us/articles/1066.html
• Cave, Damien (2001). "The United States of Oil." Salon.com Nov 19, 2001. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from http://archive.salon.com/tech/feature/2001/11/19/bush_oil/
• Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). "CIA World Factbook: United States." 17 April 2007. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/us.html

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