Reply #18: Certainly not for oil. [View All]

[Nuclear Unicorn]

BEST SCENARIO: He percieves a genuine threat. He said as much during the campaign

MIDDLE SCENARIO: He's buying political capital with a national electorate still enamored with fantasies of a strong military fighting for God and Country. If he doesn't pick a fight over recaling the troops right now he has the time and political capital to move on healthcare and climate change and other stuff we need.

WORST SCENARIO: If he doesn't keep up the generals quit, the MIC cuts off the money spigot to the dems leaving the door open for the GOP to race in come 2010 or 2012 making Obama impotent or even impeachable (not that he's done anything illegal they'll just have the magic formula of axe to grind plus votes).

I think it's a blend between the BEST and MIDDLE scenarios.

Still, even if the MIC is an issue I cannot imagine any oil company--even one as despotic as Halliburton--going through all this trouble just for oil when there is so much to be found elsewhere for less cost and certainly far less hassle. Even still, pipelines can go around things and one need not pacify an ENTIRE nation for a strip of land that the locals would probably rather have the jobs and money a pipeline would bring. It's not like American companies have had any compunctions to paying 3rd world laborers 1/20th what they pay Americans. That's a big increase for the locals and big savings for the corporations. A pipeline could probably BUY peace in Afghanistan.

Look, I oppose the war. I've never been in the military but the war has touched my life in very personal ways and some nights it leaves me crying it hurts so bad. I want this war to end but I am not ready to buy into the notion our President is a tool of imperialist oil companies. It doesn't make sense for them and it is certainly not the kind of man I voted for last year.