Bush and McCain offer an old plan on oil but no profile in courage there.
The economic snake oil that is being marketed from the back of a rickety electoral wagon.
Israelis and Obama-McCain: what the Right and its religious fanatic followers have done.
Brave youth: Egyptian teen tells it to his ruler and his people like it is. He pays a stiff price.
Arab media tour on Iraq, Syria, al-Qaeda, Iran, and terrorism.
Strange Mideast bedfellows make for interesting pillow talk.




Bush and McCain offer an old plan on oil but no profile in courage:
First there was the gas tax moratorium, for electoral rather than economic purposes. Certainly not for national security purposes.
Now there is the opening of the coastlines, from coast to manifest-destiny coast, for the oil companies. Mr. Bush saw an opening in a worried and un-informed public about the oil crisis, and repeated a litany of his known positions, and the positions of many in his party and its financiers in the oil industry. It was pure electoral gaming, trying to salvage his legacy and his party's electoral chances through the long-term destruction of the beaches. Economic snake oil being marketed from the back of a rickety electoral wagon.

Mr. McCain, the not-so-straight-talker anymore, knows where the money is, and he joined the party before Mr. Bush spoke today. It was coordinated, no doubt. And the public now expects delivery in terms of lower prices. It won't happen before the election, and it wont happen after it, but they think it might gain them some time, some votes.

The common view is that it will take more than five years for any newly opened areas to become productive- they need to be explored first. Even then the price of a gallon of gasoline in the USA will NOT be lower than $4.
This is a political scam that takes the American public for fools. The gas tax gimmick did not work in Indiana and North Carolina a few weeks ago, maybe this one will not work now.

As for the upcoming meeting in Jeddah between energy ministers of oil producers and consumers: it is another public relations move. Besides, does anybody know of a producer that is not a consumer as well?

Israeli media, and politicians, keep signaling their suspicions, or at least discomfort, about Obama. In an odd twist, it is possible that the Israeli public is now one of the few in the world that probably prefers McCain to Obama. That is probably one more legacy of two or more decades of rule by the Israeli right wing and its intolerant religious fanatic followers.

Arab Media Tour:

“Iran is now leader of the Sunni movements. The Iranian regime under Ahmadinejad operates and finances radical Sunni movements. Even al-Qaeda is now part of the Iranian apparatus.” Editor of Asharq alawsat. I sincerely doubt that: he must know something that nobody else knows, for that would be the best kept secret in the Western World. Still, politics makes for some strange bedfellows and some interesting pillow talk- unless he is trying to rile up the (Sunni) faithful.

“Once I had a discussion with Thomas Friedman about education and its importance. I told him that the US spends on weapons and wars in our region huge amounts, and that if she spends 10% of that on education in the Arab region it would make a big difference.” Chief editor of Asharq alawsat, and apparent name-thrower: Saudis think of Friedman as ancient Romans thought of the Greeks Socrates and Plato. I need to check Saudi expenditures on weapons and education: the discrepancy may be even higher than in the case of the USA.

“About the proposed US security pact: we are back to square one. The Americans are repeating what the British did in Iraq decades ago, but they are being more rapacious and less wise.” Rasheed alKheyoon- moderate Iraqi commentator (Asharq alawsat).

“Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef: We have some evidence that might indicate who finances al-Qaeda. Without financial support for thr terrorists, they could not move this freely.” Asharq alawsat. Yep that's about right, pardner: cherchez l'argent.

"Is it an American-Iraqi partnership or a mandate imposed for the sake of oil?" alwatan (Saudi) columnist.

"El-Barade'ie: the agency (IAEA) has no proof that Syria has the technology or the fuel needed to operate a nuclear reactor." Maybe they will start to Hans Blix him through Fox News and other pliable media outlets.

"The Iraqi government is absolutely incapable of settling the issue of the Iranian opposition (Mujadideen Khalq in Iraq). This is one of the issues that are determined by the American administration, especially the Pentagon and its strategy. All the screams and charges in the Iraqi parliament are merely noise, only the Americans master is the final decider. This is the only trurh." Columnist in elaph. This particular columnist ( D. al-Basri) usually reserves his space for heeping praise on petro-potentates, and an occasional villification of the new ruling classes in Iraq.

"Egyptian high (secondary) school launches severe criticism of his government by writing on his math answer sheet during the final exams that the ruler is a tyrant, and that the people are cowards. He was held and questioned by security services for hours and a decision was taken to deprive him from taking the rest of the exams." Arab media. So, he is punished by being forced to remain in high school for another year even if he qualifies to advance to college. This in the moderate New Middle East, the one with the birth pangs mentioned by Condi Rice while Southern Beirut was being cluster-bombed in July 2006.

"US and Britain warn their citizens in the UAE of high risk of imminent terrorist threats. No details given." Arab media

"Iraq shifts from occupation by force to occupation by consent." Asharq alawsat columnist.
Cheers
mhg