Tag Archives: oil

Business/Economics, International, Opinion, U.S.

Will Obama attack Ecuador? He kicked out their ambassador, oil is involved

Thanks to a WikiLeaks release, tensions between the United States and Ecuador are heating up.

The WikiLeaks document showed that the U.S. ambassador to Ecuador, Heather M. Hodges, made some not so nice comments about their President. Apparently President Rafael Correa gave her a chance to retract, or explain, her statements, and she allegedly refused. She was then declared persona non grata (unwelcome) in Ecuador, but not officially kicked out.

Now the United States has actually kicked out the ambassador from Ecuador. The U.S. State Department says it’s in retaliation for Ecuador ordering Hodges out of the country, which President Correa disputes. Correa says they simply said she was no longer welcome, but they were not “kicking her out”.

This continues a long list of problems between Ecuador and the U.S. In the past few years the United States was pushing Ecuador to allow U.S. military bases to be set up on their soil. The official reason was to fight drugs in Columbia, but many people believe it was to encircle Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. President Correa responded, in 2009, by saying that the only way the U.S. could build bases in Ecuador, was if Ecuador was allowed to build bases in the United States.

Now we have the WikiLeaks/ambassador fiasco. What’s next, oil? Maybe!

Ecuador has oil! They have been fighting international legal battles to prevent oil companies from coming in and drilling. That’s right, they do NOT want anymore oil pumped out of their ground. Ecuador does have active oil fields, but they don’t want anymore. The oil corporations, backed by governments (Chevron/United States), are saying to bad so sad, you just a piddly country, what you gonna do about it?

So far Ecuador has been petitioning United Nations members, but not getting much support.  There’s estimated to be hundreds of millions of barrels of oil still to be drilled and pumped out in Ecuador.  And with the price of oil making it more tempting, could President Obama (or any other future U.S. president) be planning some kinda humanitarian military intervention in Ecuador?

 

International, Opinion, U.S.

More proof that the Libyan Civil War is about Oil, not Freedom

Libyan rebels have been focusing all their attacks on cities tied to the oil industry. They have already made oil deals with several countries including Qatar, and, they have received their first payment for oil apparently from China.

Now the rebels are complaining that they are losing three oil fields they recently took control of.  Why so upset? They admit they want the oil money.

Just who attacked the rebel held oil fields is unknown. The Libyan government say the British bombed the rebels by mistake (plausible because NATO has done it, twice now). The rebels say some of the attacks where from artillery.

In any case the rebels are really upset about losing control of any oil production that they have captured.  Mmmm. I didn’t realize that oil was an integral part of freedom and Democracy?

International, U.S.

“low likelihood” Libyan Rebels can win, even with NATO support

The U.S. general in charge of the United States Africa Command, Gen Carter Ham, says Libyan rebels probably will not win, even with NATO help.

General Ham also says we should not be arming the rebels until there is “a better understanding of exactly who the opposition force is”. There is evidence that some of the rebels are al Qaeda, the group we’re supposed to be at war with.

 

Business/Economics, Fukushima

Toyota hoping for increased parts supply for Japanese plants

Toyota thinks they might have enough parts built up to open more of its Japanese factories.

Toyota hopes to open more plants, in Japan, by late April. However, they point out that they will not be able to run at full production, and, if parts supplies continue to be a problem then all bets are off.

Fukushima, U.S.

Toyota to close ALL North American plants

Despite trying to be optimistic, Toyota has now admitted that the parts supply problem is so bad that it will have to close ALL its North American plants.

Toyota spokesman Mike Goss, said the shut downs will take place later in April. At least 25,000 employees will be affected. How long the shut downs last depends on parts supply issues.

Goss said that the North American plants, in Mexico, U.S. and Canada, get only 15% of their parts from Japan, but they are crucial for assembly of the vehicles.

There is about one week’s worth of parts for North America. Toyota, as well as other car makers, are scrambling to find factories outside Japan to make the parts.

Business/Economics, Fukushima, Technology

Just how much do we rely on Petroleum? No ink, no bleach, no tape, no Shonen Jump

You wouldn’t believe how much we use petroleum products (oil & natural gas) in our everyday lives. The people of Japan are finding out the hard way.

The 11 March 2011 quake/tsunami has resulted in several petroleum plants closing down, due to damage and power cuts. Those plants turn oil and natural gas into everyday products.

How would you like disposable diapers with no tape to seal it shut? Unicharm Corporation discontinued production of special tape used to wrap diapers because of a lack of the chemical needed to make the tape.

Are you one of those people who just have to have your whites their whitest when doing the laundry? No bleach. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co has stopped production at its Kashima factory, because of lack of electricity.

Love your Manga? The publisher of mangas including Shonen Jump, is delaying publication because there’s no ink. Maruzen Petrochemical Co stopped production of Diisobutylene, a chemical product used to make ink. Amazingly Maruzen is the only producer of Diisobutylene in Japan, so bye, bye Manga.

Business/Economics

Remember the Mexican Gulf Oil disaster? Company officials get bonus for beating “safety” standards!

“Notwithstanding the tragic loss of life in the Gulf of Mexico, we achieved an exemplary statistical safety record as measured by our total recordable incident rate and total potential severity rate.”-Transocean, LTD

Transocean, one of the companies involved with the BP (British Petroleum) oil rig disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, gave it’s executives pay raises and bonuses, for having their “best year” ever for safety!

Can you say “What the F**k!”  Let me remind you that 11 people were killed on 20 April 2010, after an explosion on the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon platform. Nine of those killed were Transocean employees. And they say they had their best year ever?  If that was their best year ever then they need to be investigated big time.  How many other people have died while working for Transocean?

Also, the disaster isn’t over with. There are still plumes of stuff coming up from the bottom of the Gulf. The well that the Deepwater Horizon was drilling at the time of the explosion may have been capped, but there are reports that plumes are coming up from other areas, that might have been caused by previous drilling by the Deepwater Horizon platform.

More proof that corporations don’t give a crap about you.

International, U.S.

Libyan Rebels say they Already are being trained by the United States

Al Jazeera says rebels told them they are being trained at a secret base in eastern Libya (by the way that’s where most of the oil fields are).

The al Jazeera reporter stated that the rebels where being trained how to use weapons: “He said these were state-of-the-art, heat-seeking rockets and that they needed to be trained on how to use them, which was one of the things the American and Egyptian special forces were there to do.”-correspondent Laurence Lee

The reporter went on to question calls for arming and training the rebels by coalition forces, “…when in fact they [rebels] are already being armed covertly.”

According to the report, the Libyan rebels say they are getting training and equipment from Egypt and the United States. This is not the first time the rebels have made such claims. 

International, U.S.

More Proof we’re NOT protecting civilians, not even the REBELS, in Libya. Obama either a Fool or a bold faced lier

UN Security Council Resolution 1973, supposedly is about protecting Libyan civilians, yet there are many claims that civilians have been attacked by the UN mandated NATO led coalition forces. Even the Christian Vatican says civilians are being bombed.

Now the Libyan rebels say coalition aircraft have bombed them!

Rebels are reporting several different attacks on their forces, by NATO. In one attack a convoy of vehicles were bombed, in another rebel positions in an oil town was bombed. At least 13 rebels were killed.

NATO says they’re investigating, and implied that the rebels shot at their aircraft first.

This is so messed up. President Barack Obama insists this is about protecting civilians, which has proven false, or impossible to do. Obama has stated, even before the UN resolution, that he wanted Gaddafi out, so far that’s a failure. Obama said the U.S. would be out in a mater of “…days, not weeks!”, it took at least a week and a half to “officially” turn Operation Odyssey Dawn over to NATO (by the way the U.S. still controls NATO, so did we really give up control?).

I have presented many examples, in other postings, that this is all about oil for Europe, not promoting democracy. It’s so clear that the UN mandated coalition forces have no clear goal.  How could the Commander in Chief of U.S. forces (that’s Obama for those who don’t know) rush into such a tar pit?  Obama is either a fool, or a bold faced lier. (Given his INEXPERIENCE, I think he just a fool)

 

 

International, Opinion

Sweden joins fight for Libya’s Oil, ooops, I mean fight to protect Civilians

Sweden announced they will be sending aircraft to enforce a no fly zone over Libya. The Swedish parliament voted 240-18 in favor of the plan.

They will send up to eight warplanes, including their JAS 39 Gripen, and a transport plane to join the NATO-led coalition.

This is almost getting to be like World War One, where countries jump in on the fight one after another, until the whole world is at war.