Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

       
Its provisions have almost nothing to do with bringing peace and well-being to the people of Iraq nor with promoting democracy. The House of Representatives passed the bill by 221 to 205 on May 10th, and has sent it to the Senate. While it will certainly go through many adjustments, it could eventually be approved by the President as he sees his political assets crumbling and Republicans intent upon saving their own skins in 2008.  Upon first reading, Pelosi's bill seems to accomplish the following:

1    Supports our troops.
2    Provides 3 months of war funding at a time and makes the president accountable to Congress.
3    Better equips the Iraqi Army and police force, providing a huge fresh supply of small arms, artillery, helicopters, and armored equipment.
4    Increases training for the Iraqi Army to defeat the armed militias.
5    Brings former Ba'ath Party members back into government to strengthen leadership.
6    Increases privatization of the petroleum sector to attract foreign investment for new oil field development.
7    Allows Production Sharing Contracts with foreign oil companies to encourage their participation and gain their expertise.

These seemingly wholesome provisions would actually accomplish far darker purpose of continued United States control of Middle Eastern oil resources through military dominance. Following the same numbered goals listed above, the Pelosi bill would actually:  

1    Continue to feed the war machine.
2    Force the President to bring sufficient troops home by next year to quiet down the growing political unrest around the US.
3    The Army and police owe their loyalty first to their religious and ethnic factions, and serve as a conduit for arms. Distributing more armaments at this time will merely re-supply the militias and assure that the Iraqis can keep slaughtering each other as long as necessary and discourage their reuniting to push the US out.  
4    An attempt to build a national army that will suppress those local trouble-makers who ask for freedom from foreign domination and can't be bought off.
5    The Sunni leaders who most effectively repressed Shi'ite and Kurdish troublemakers under Saddam Hussein are needed once again to suppress freedom and ensure that the US can permanently occupy those five huge military bases we've just built.  
6    Give foreign oil companies greater control over oil exploitation and ensures the oil tap will never be closed to the US.
7    Assure US and British oil companies an enormous share of profits from future oil development - well beyond the levels they happily accept in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. This in turn ensures that they will continue to contribute to the US political campaigns of their friends in Congress and running for the White House. Iraq's huge oil wealth could allow its long-experienced National Oil Company to attract all the capital needed for new development without funding by foreign oil companies. Technical expertise can always be purchased abroad.