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US wants effective control of Middle East oil: Chomsky
For the United States, the primary issue in the Middle East has been and remains effective control of its energy resources, according to Noam Chomsky.
That's why oil's at $77 a barrel. The man's a friggin' genius!
He writes in his new book Interventions that control is understood to be an instrument of global dominance. Iranian influence in what the US calls the Shia “crescent” challenges US control. By an accident of geography, the world’s major oil resources are in largely Shia areas of the Middle East: southern Iraq, adjacent regions of Saudi Arabia and Iran, with some of the major reserves of natural gas as well. Washington’s worst nightmare would be a loose Shia alliance controlling most of the world’s oil and independent of the United States.

Chomsky believes that such a bloc, if it emerges, might even join the Asian Energy Security Grid and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), based in China. Iran, which already had observer status, is to be admitted as a member of the SCO. He writes, “To Washington, Tehran’s principal offense has been its defiance, going back to the overthrow of the Shah in 1979 and the hostage crisis at the US embassy.” Under Bush, there has been a rejection of Iranian diplomatic efforts in favour of increasing threats of direct attack on Iran. However, despite the sabre-rattling, the US is unlikely to attack Iran because of strong world opposition and 75 percent Americans in favour diplomacy over military threats against Iran. The US military and intelligence community is also opposed to an attack.

Chomsky points out that Iran cannot defend itself against US attack, but it can respond by inciting even more havoc in Iraq. He quotes British military historian Corelli Barnett who has said, “An attack on Iran would effectively launch World War III.”

Posted by: Fred 2007-07-31
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=194925