This is an excellent summary of our political relationships with oil producing countries. As one of the commentators notes, it even brings up the Carter Doctrine.

I found a couple of minor inaccuracies, but the article is still a good piece of unbiased reporting. Now that the violence in Iraq has declined for a bit, we may be in a place where a review could be useful.

Here's a question. Was it worth it? If we invaded to avoid the financial crisis of being cut off from oil and natural gas, have we instead created a financial crisis from the conflict itself? If that is the case, then would we have been better off to have invested the money in energy independence and paid out the investment debt from lowered energy costs and freedom from the political affairs of the middle east?

You be the judge.

Here's the link.

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/10/31/4922/