Oil is one thing they understand, intimately.
Colin Powell's thankless task is to present U.S. demands in tones that sound like diplomacy - the equivalent of describing a TV wrestling match with a straight face. Powell is an amazing person, endowed with a special kind of genius. What a horrible waste of African American manhood, that it be harnessed to imperial enterprise. Powell, alone among U.S. emissaries, is respected in world capitals as a man of reason. Yet he is the point person in a criminal offensive against civilization's highest achievement: a near-universal desire for a world ruled by law rather than brute force.
Europeans and Russians, especially, understand the language of empire. In case they didn't get the picture, a leading figure in the unofficial Bush War Cabinet spelled it out to the Washington Post:
"It's pretty straightforward," said former CIA director R. James Woolsey, who has been one of the leading advocates of forcing Hussein from power. "France and Russia have oil companies and interests in Iraq. They should be told that if they are of assistance in moving Iraq toward decent government, we'll do the best we can to ensure that the new government and American companies work closely with them."
Colin Powell's thankless task is to present U.S. demands in tones that sound like diplomacy - the equivalent of describing a TV wrestling match with a straight face. Powell is an amazing person, endowed with a special kind of genius. What a horrible waste of African American manhood, that it be harnessed to imperial enterprise. Powell, alone among U.S. emissaries, is respected in world capitals as a man of reason. Yet he is the point person in a criminal offensive against civilization's highest achievement: a near-universal desire for a world ruled by law rather than brute force.
Europeans and Russians, especially, understand the language of empire. In case they didn't get the picture, a leading figure in the unofficial Bush War Cabinet spelled it out to the Washington Post:
"It's pretty straightforward," said former CIA director R. James Woolsey, who has been one of the leading advocates of forcing Hussein from power. "France and Russia have oil companies and interests in Iraq. They should be told that if they are of assistance in moving Iraq toward decent government, we'll do the best we can to ensure that the new government and American companies work closely with them."