Kurdish Leader: Oil Law Is a Deal Breaker [Iraq Government Dead in the Water]

UPI via Kurdish Aspect ^ | May 15, 2007 | Ben Lando

[Sleeping Beauty]

Create a number of viable separate oil businesses. Issue every adult Iraqi citizen ownership shares in all of these separate operations. Allow these shares to be bought & sold on an Iraqi stock exchange. Those who want to stay in the oil business keep their shares and buy more. Those who prefer cash now sell their shares. Once oil is in the marketplace, the need to fight over control of the government will be reduced.

Makes way too much sense to ever happen. (Plus, you gotta know that outside interests already have dibbs on most of the oil profits.)

But, John, if you ever discover a logical utopian reality here on earth -- the kind that you describe once in awhile -- please email me. I wanna go.

[Sleeping Beauty]

We make it clear to the Kurds if they torpedo a reasonable oil deal, that we need to end the Sunni insurgency, they will forfeit our protection and we will not defend them against Sunni, Turkish or Iranian incursions.

I totally share your frustration. The problem is that the Kurds happen to be sitting right on top of our financial future.

Remember the old battle cry about Saddham --> "He gassed the Kurds!" We went running in there hellbent with that justification in our hearts. Those Arabs are mighty sneaky -- and their loyalties are thousands of years old.

[Sleeping Beauty]

It is how things work in a parliamentary system. It is how they jostle for power.

Fair enough, my friend. We'll continue to watch it together.

[null and void]

Turkey's fear is that the Turkish Kurds, upon seeing the southern third of Kurdistan freed, will revolt to unify the Kurdish nation. Given the long running Kurdish rebellion in Turkey, it's not a misplaced fear.

I'm not seeing the downside here. Turkey wouldn't help when we needed them as a staging ground for eliminating Saddam.

This is a fitting acknowledgment of that aid...