The Ethanol Papers - Paperturn manuscript - Flipbook - Page 50
interests and led the way to taking away adjacent oil-rich territory from the Turks
(part of which is now known as Iraq).
Later, just before World War II, America's Standard Oil company discovered oil
in the Persian Gulf and peninsula. This discovery rescued the so-called Saudi
royal family from complete financial ruin. The development of all oil production
was financed by Standard Oil, along with other commercial and government
assistance. These oil discoveries and holdings were then secured through the
United States' entry into WWII (defined as the enormous expenditure of financial and human resources).
So, we, the American people, paid for the development and protection of the oil
fields in the Middle East. But then, we gave it all away.
Yeah, I know, there are reasons why we gave it away; excuses for why it could
be said that there is a benefit to giving some of the indigenous people part of
the pie. The problem is that we, the American people, not only gave up the
entire pie, we now have to pay premium rates for every additional piece of the
pie - in addition to continuing to pay for the protection of the pie-making process.
Look at it this way: You start an ice cream business in another town. You need
help running the store because you have other interests and don't live in the
area. Your son-in-law, who is currently out of work needs something to do and
you want to help your only daughter and her kids. So you bring your son-in-law
into the business. You pay for his family's relocation, you give him a salary and
a title, set up distribution for the ice cream in other cities, and you continue to
finance the business. Sometime later you find out that your son-in-law is skimming from the receipts. Alright, you let it pass, figuring that it's okay since it's
going to support your daughter and grandchildren.
But then, on a visit to the ice cream store, when you want a double-scoop of
chocolate fudge swirl, your son-in-law asks you to pay full retail price for the ice
cream cone. Hey, it makes you giggle a little - he's just trying to protect the
business, your business. The only thing is that when you do the year-end accounting you find that there's no money in the bank and that your son-in-law
has a girlfriend on the side (and that the trip he took to the ice cream industry
convention in Las Vegas was really a sex-junket for him and the girlfriend). To
add insult to injury, your son-in-law then changes the name of the business,
changes the locks on the door, and files for divorce from your daughter.
If this happened to you, you would take some kind of action. But no, not the
American government or the British government or the French government, or
