The Root of All Evil 08 April 2003 10:22 P.M.
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Over the weekend I read a disturbing article in the LA Times. It was in the business section, and it discussed the domestic financial situation in Iraq and the challenges that would be present in a post-war Iraq. Specifically, the external debt position is very high. A lot of those debts are contracts Saddam Hussein signed with mostly French and Russian and firms during the 90s. Once the administration installs the viceroy, the US can decide who gets paid back and who doesn't. Given that the administration wants to use oil revenues to pay for reconstruction, the european firms will not get paid for work already done, and exclusively US (and a few toekn UK) firms will capture the future revenue stream of Iraqi oil. At least as long as it takes to "democratize" Iraq, or te suicide bombers drive King George II out of the middle east.
"Never get involved in a land-war in Asia!" -- The Princess Bride
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