Americans Have Complex Attitudes About Energy

No country uses more energy than the United States. However, the result of a new poll new poll results from the Pew Research Center shows that energy use that doesn’t prevent Americans U.S. from feeling ambivalent about energy issues. On the one hand, Americans are against hydraulic fracking. Forty-nine percent of poll respondents oppose it, […]

The Energy Of Nations

Jeremy Leggett has a new book out called “The Energy Of Nations” on “Risk Blindness and the Road to Renaissance”. The preface and first chapter are here (pdf). Jeremy also has some news article posted – Why governments are blind to fossil fuel energy risk and A grim future if our oil-dependent society refuses to […]

Are there too many people?

Whatever the answer, we need a population policy How many people do we need? How many do we want? The astonishing announcement last year that the population of England and Wales increased by more than 3.7 million between 2001 and 2011 brought population to the forefront of political debate here in Britain. Two recently published […]

How Falling Oil Imports Doubled the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve

Falling oil imports have greatly expanded the capability of the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to replace oil imports in a crisis, although prices would still rise. The SPR remains an imperfect backstop. Post-Syria, it is high time for Congress and the White House to address its gaps after four decades of change. Last week’s deal between the US […]

Saudi Arabia Threatens to “End Career” of AP Reporter Over Chemical Weapons Story

Journalist who exposed how rebels were behind August 21st attack faces intimidation Associated Press reporter Dale Gavlak has been threatened over her involvement in a story which exposed how Syrian rebels were responsible for the August 21st chemical weapons attack after being handed the weapons by Saudi intelligence agents. Image: Saudi Prince Bandar bin Sultan […]

Iraq ‘to switch focus from oil’

Iraq is aiming for nearly $360 billion in investment in new development projects as the Opec member nation hatches a plan to move its economy away from such a heavy dependence on oil revenues. The major hydrocarbons producer is to focus on developing its industrial sector under a new plan running until 2017, Reuters reported. […]

After coal, W.Va. ponders gas trust fund

For decades, coal from West Virginia’s vast deposits was mined, loaded on rail cars and hauled off — without leaving behind a lasting trust fund financed by the state’s best-known commodity. Big coal’s days are waning, but now a new bonanza in the natural gas fields has state leaders working to ensure history doesn’t repeat […]

US Embraces Cruel Dictators Who Host the Navy and Supply Our Oil

Although normally the Washington Post (WP) editorial board hawks war, it sharply criticized the White House for its hypocrisy on denouncing cruel dictators who defy the United States while embracing cruel dictators who are pro-US, particularly when they ship us a lot of oil and allow the Navy’s 5th fleet to establish headquarters there. The […]

Iraqi Kurds vote as oil-rich region seeks greater autonomy

Iraqi Kurds voted on Saturday for a new parliament that analysts said was poised to lead the oil-producing region further down the road to greater autonomy from Baghdad. The region’s rulers have been at odds with the central government over control of crude reserves, and have infuriated Baghdad by negotiating their own deals with oil […]

Oil Thieves Bleed Nigeria, Officials Profit

Oil is being stolen on an “industrial scale” in Nigeria, the world’s 13th largest producer, and the country’s politicians and security officials are among those profiting, according to a new report from a prominent British research group. Thieves steal an estimated average of 100,000 barrels a day, the report said; working in elaborate networks and […]

Will the U.S. Squander Its Energy Bounty?

Almost every aspect of the U.S. energy landscape is changing drastically — except government policy. Consider: The global price of oil has soared to more than $100 today from $30 a barrel in 2004. As a result, the U.S.’s annual bill for oil imports has risen to $365 billion, even though domestic oil production has […]

Saudi, UAE in migrant boom

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are in the top five nations for international migrants as demand for foreign labour in the oil-producing countries grows, figures show. The data released by the United Nations found 232 million people, or 3.2 per cent of the world’s population, were international migrants in 2013. This compared to 175 million […]

Behind Syria’s Crisis: How Oil & Gas Limits Contributed To The Civil Unrest

The Syrian civil war has been ongoing since 15 March 2011. Though the roots of the conflict are political by nature, Syria’s depleting oil and gas reserves also played a major role in sparking the unrest: When oil exports dropped, the government suddenly found itself unable able to pay for programs that had been placating […]

U.S., Russia Reach Deal On Syria Chemical Weapons

Following two days of negotiations in Geneva, this morning John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov announced they have reached an agreement for a framework on how Syria would destroy its chemical weapons, and would also seek a UN Security Council resolution that would authorize sanctions, but not military action as per Russia’s demand, […]

Sex-selection abortions cause of missing girls in India

Promotion of sex-selection abortions as a population control strategy, crafted in the US and then exported worldwide, has resulted in millions of missing girls in India, China and elsewhere, a Congressional human rights panel has been told. “It was development professionals who first promoted sex-selective abortion as a potential solution to what they saw as […]

What should Canada do to prepare for the day oil runs out?

When we’ll hit peak oil – or whether we already have – is the stuff of hot debate. But no one’s questioning the ultimately finite nature of oil and gas reserves. So, what should Canada start investing in now, to prepare for the inevitable day that the wells run dry? We asked a range of […]

Peak Petroleum Follie

Two primary arguments are put forward as ways of justifying various economic schemes for reducing oil and gas use (e.g., carbon pricing by way of taxes, subsidies for green energy, emissions trading schemes):   (1) Anthropogenic catastrophic climate change will occur if humans do not reduce their use of fossil fuels and the associated greenhouse […]

Rohani Says Iran Plans to Restart Nuclear Talks in New York

Iranian president Hassan Rohani said his government plans to restart nuclear talks with world powers in New York, where he will attend the United Nations General Assembly this month. The “serious talks” should help lead to a “win-win” final outcome in the dispute over the Islamic republic’s nuclear program, Rohani said in an interview on […]

Collapse of American Influence Recalls Disintegration of Soviet Union, Fall of France

Not since the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, and prior to that the fall of France in 1940, has there been so swift an erosion of the world influence of a Great Power as we are witnessing with the United States. The Soviet Union crumbled jurisdictionally: In 1990-1991, one country became the 16 […]

Syria Accepts Russian Weapons Proposal

Syria said Tuesday it has accepted Russia’s proposal to place its chemical weapons under international control for subsequent dismantling. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Tuesday after meeting with Russian parliament speaker that his government quickly “agreed to the Russian initiative.” Al-Moallem added that Syria did so to “uproot U.S. aggression.” His statement sounded more […]

UK Energy Secretary Urges Caution about Shale ‘Hyberbole’

UK Energy Secretary Ed Davey has urged caution regarding hype around the country’s burgeoning shale gas industry, warning that the UK cannot rely on shale has to solve its energy challenges during the current decade. In a speech titled “The Myths and Realities of Shale Gas Exploration” given Monday to The Royal Society, London, Davey […]

Syria Crisis: Will U.S. Tap Strategic Oil Reserves?

Bloomberg’s Alix Steel explains how the United States’ strategic petroleum reserves work and looks at whether or not President Barack Obama will tap the reserves in conjunction with a potential military strike on Syria. She speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “In The Loop.”

Natural Gas: What the War in Syria is Really About

The US President is currently undertaking a massive sales pitch for war. We heard on the radio this morning that President Obama was set to front about six different media outlets today to make his case for war with Syria. He’ll be out perpetuating the lie that it’s all about chemical weapons and defending the […]

New Australian Prime Minister is sceptical that peak oil has value for policy making

The Australian electorate has voted for a Prime Minister who 3 years ago said he was sceptical that the concept of peak oil has any value as tool for policy makers. That is in addition to him being a climate sceptic which is well known. So Australia has a leader who is in denial of […]

U.S. plans for ’3 days of attack’ on Syria

The Pentagon is readying more intense and longer attacks on Syria than originally planned, set to last three days, the Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday. War planners now aim to unleash a heavy barrage of missile strikes to be followed swiftly by additional attacks on targets that may have been missed or remain standing […]

Will Syria bring an oil shock?

Is the Middle East about to deliver another oil shock to the global economy? The U.S. military has targets picked out in Syria and President Obama is trying to convince Congress that America needs to intervene. If the U.S. does go ahead with tactical strikes against the Assad regime, oil markets will be caught in […]

US Exempts EU Nations From Iran Oil Sanctions

The U.S. granted exemption from Iran sanctions to 10 European countries and Japan on Friday because all of them have significantly reduced or halted oil imports from the Islamic Republic. Japan continues to import oil from Iran but all European Union countries halted them a year ago. American sanctions are designed to pressure Iran to […]

Necessary And Unnecessary Wars

As I write this article the United States is moving toward a military strike on the nation of Syria. This article is not about the finer geo-political aspects of this decision, thorny and poorly-contrived as they may be. I assume that most readers of these words are well aware that we live in an empire […]

China: Military strike against Syria would hurt global economy

Zhu said estimates from the International Monetary Fund indicate that a military strike would lead to a $10 jump in the price of a barrel of oil, which in turn would cut global economic growth by 0.25%. A senior Chinese official, backing Russia in opposing a U.S.-led military strike in Syria, warned that such action […]

Terrorists Launch Rocket Attack at Commercial Ship in Suez Canal

An Islamist terror group has taken responsibility for a Saturday rocket propelled grenade (RPG) attack on a merchant ship transiting the Suez Canal, USNI News has learned. A video posted on YouTube Wednesday — alleged to have been issued by the group Al-Furqan along with a letter of responsibility — show two men with rocket […]

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