General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forumshey kids, do you understand that we're now officially in a proxy war with Iran?
do you actually think that's a good thing?
fuck, this is scary and stupid.
--Brent and WTI crude-oil futures moved out of their recent range in Friday morning trade in London, breaking above recent tight ranges as geopolitics replaced macroeconomics as the key price-driver.
News that U.S. President Barack Obama authorized his administration to provide arms to rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad significantly raised the risk of the two-year old conflict in that country spilling out into the broader Middle East. Analysts expressed concern that arming the rebels would mean the internal battle turns into a proxy war between the U.S. and Iran/Hezbollah.
ICE Brent and Nymex WTI breached key resistance levels--the former hit a five-week high, while the latter reached a level not seen since the start of April. A weaker dollar against the euro also helped the price gains - any fall in the greenback makes it cheaper for holders of other currencies to buy dollar-denominated oil.
At 1003 GMT, the front-month August Brent contract on London's ICE futures exchange was up 32 cents at $105.27 a barrel.
The front-month July light, sweet crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange was trading 30 cents higher at $96.99 a barrel.
Although Syria produced and exported relatively little crude oil even before the war, its proximity to major producing nations such as Iran and Iraq and regional hub nation Turkey, combined with a febrile regional political and sectarian situation, threaten to extend the bloody conflict outside its borders.
<snip>
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20130614-703056.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
roamer65
(36,739 posts)It's on knife's edge now.
cali
(114,904 posts)You don't want the President to look like a "wuss" do you?
datasuspect
(26,591 posts)here's hoping he won't have to admit taking a shellacking.
graham4anything
(11,464 posts)cali
(114,904 posts)The U.S. is sided with the rebels.
duh.
graham4anything
(11,464 posts)Junkdrawer
(27,993 posts)Oops. Shouldn't post such discredited conspiracy woo here. Sorry.
Laelth
(32,017 posts)This article, as you know, explains that we have been at war with Iran for some time: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/06/general-keith-alexander-cyberwar/all/
We have attacked them. They have attacked our allies (and they did significant damage). So far, it's a cold war. Taking out Syria appears to be the first step in neutralizing Iran.
Sigh.
-Laelth
Harmony Blue
(3,978 posts)ended up strengthening Iran, so don't be surprised if this is what happens with Syria as well.
KharmaTrain
(31,706 posts)...and better a proxy war than one with our own troops on the ground. As usual every world conflict is viewed through what I call American "myopia"...or "how does this effect the U.S.". The media is the most complicit in this...or was...every international story is always skewed in this filter but that's when the media is paying attention. With their downscaling of foreign bureaus over the last decade we get precious little reporting from many hot spots around the world and Syria is a prime example.
The Syrian situation was not of our making...it's decades of the Assads repressing their population and the fractured nature of a country drawn up by Europeans is once again leading to civil war and bloodletting. It's tribal with all outside sources...Russia, the U.S., Al Queda, Israel and Saudi Arabia playing gun dealers...all hoping to gain some kind of future political leverage if and when the dust settles. American weapons are already part of the conflict and all I'm reading is that we'll be selling even more. But so will the Russians and the Iranians and the others. The UN reports 90,000 people have already been killed and now Assad is using sarin...I see this as an escalation that could, just like in Libya, bring to an end a ruthless regime. How it turns out from there is another issue...the damn thing about revolutions and civil wars are they rarely turn out as their "planners" expect.
If anything...the Syrian situation has cooled down the tensions about Iran's nuclear program. The neo-cons are too busy playing tin soldier in Syria to be concerned with bombing Iran.
Monkie
(1,301 posts)you may not like iran´s version of democracy, i may not like it, but can you really say voting is fairer in the US?
the hatred of iran goes so deep that the US wants to arm al-qaida in syria?
you might not like hezbollah, i may not like it, but in lebanon they run schools, hospitals, social services, and protect their people.
people here may have missed the little fact that the war in syria was spilling over INTO lebanon before hezbollah officially joined in.
if you wish to understand the situation in the ME it is a good idea to read the writings of someone who has covered the region for 30 odd years, robert fisk.
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
Harmony Blue
(3,978 posts)because Hezbollah isn't on good terms with Hamas now. But yes both Hezbollah and Hamas have the support of the local populace because they provide goods and services to local civilian communities.
To fight terrorism it will require compassion by supplying these low income communities with services and goods. In doing so, you undermine the support that these local give to these terrorists. Some of this approach was applied in Iraq and the Philippines but I would like to see this approach expanded.