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Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Patricia Trinchero who wrote (58811)	2/20/2006 5:09:56 PM
From: illyia	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 362428

February 20, 2006 Oil Prices Leap After Attacks in Nigeria By JAD MOUAWAD Oil prices rose 2.6 percent today after a series of violent attacks by militants in the Niger Delta that shut down nearly a fifth of Nigeria's oil production. Brent crude oil for April delivery rose $1.57 a barrel to $61.46 a barrel on London's ICE Futures exchange. Trading in the United States was closed because of Presidents' Day. Tensions in the oil-rich delta have flared since Saturday after militants kidnapped nine foreign oil workers, set pipelines on fire, and disrupted a major export terminal in the latest series of clashes against the central government. As a result, Nigeria's oil production has been cut by 455,000 barrels a day out of a total of about 2.5 million barrels a day, according to Royal Dutch Shell, the main foreign producer in Nigeria. The threat to oil supplies from Africa's largest producer comes at a time of heightened concerns over the security of supplies given the global tightness in production and the rising demand for oil. News agencies reported that the rebels had threatened more violence in a campaign to free two ethnic leaders. Nigeria is the fifth-largest importer to the United States, after Mexico, Venezuela, Canada and Saudi Arabia. Nearly half of Nigeria's oil exports go to the United States. "The incidents in Nigeria are happening at a time when geopolitical events seem to be happening at a near-continuous rhythm — such as production problems in Iraq, tensions in Iran and in Venezuela," said Frédéric Lasserre, the head of commodity research at Société Générale in Paris. "It's a long list and it fosters a climate of very volatile oil markets." Nigerian oil is particularly prized by refiners, especially in the United States, because it is of a light, sweet variety that is easier and cheaper to refine than the thicker and sulfur-rich kind that comes from the Middle East or Venezuela. According to Royal Dutch Shell, the Forcados loading platform, which is about 20 kilometers offshore, was set on fire and a pipeline was blown on Saturday. As a sign that the attacks seemed well coordinated, nine foreign contractors who were working on a pipe-laying barge were kidnapped, also on Saturday. They were three Americans, two Egyptians, two Thai, and British and one Filipino national, working for Houston-based Willbros Group. Another pipeline was damaged by an attack today, said Caroline Wittgen, a spokeswoman for Shell in London. Analysts said that the weekend attacks showed that the armed groups were willing to step up their pressure on the government by targeting offshore oil facilities, which had largely been spared so far. "We would expect the potential for further chaos in Nigeria to provide a floor for prices above $60, and we expect that Nigeria will continue to be a major issue in terms of supply security," Kevin Norrish, an analyst at Barclays Capital in London wrote in a note to investors. Armed ethnic groups in the Niger Delta, one of the country's poorest areas, have been fighting for years for a better distribution of the country's oil wealth. Recently, they've stepped up their attacks against foreign oil companies, in protest against the government's crackdown on the theft of oil, a common practice known as "bunkering," and the arrest of a prominent militia leader. Since mid-December, regular attacks in the Western part of the delta have regularly shut down about 10 percent of the country's crude oil production. Four foreign workers were abducted in January by a splinter group called the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta and were held three weeks before being released. "Such escalating attacks are likely going to be the norm, rather than the exception, for the remainder of 2006," said the Eurasia Group, a New York based consultant. It said that the "well organized and sophisticated attacks against oil installations this year will likely regularly disrupt about 10 percent to 20 percent" of Nigeria's supplies. One mitigating factor might be the high level of commercial stocks held in consuming countries, which is having a muting effect on the oil markets. "The markets are very well supplies right now," said Mr. Lasserre. "Stocks are at a high level and buyers are not queuing up at the door of producers asking for more oil." nytimes.com

To: Patricia Trinchero who wrote (58811)	2/20/2006 5:10:22 PM
From: Karen Lawrence	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 362428

With ONE exception, can't find even any Republicans who support Bush's latest traitorous move.

To: Patricia Trinchero who wrote (58811)	2/21/2006 11:17:46 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 362428

The Buckshot Stops Here By Jan Phillips huffingtonpost.com 02.21.2006 I can't turn around without running into an image or story of Cheney and his gun, and every day, the plot sickens. Now we're wondering not just was he drinking, but was he having an affair with the Swiss Miss, Pam Willeford, who was standing at his side when the gun went off. It seems that Willeford, the ambassador to Switzerland and Litchenstein, could be more than his hunting partner, but do I care? No. Do I want to read any more about it? No. Would I like to see the headlines devoted to more pressing concerns? Yes. I've been thinking a lot about leadership these days and would like, more than anything, for a few good people to stand up and take it. Since I have the floor for a few precious minutes here, I'll take a shot at it. I think a true leader is one who evokes the leadership capacity in everyone s/he communicates with. The point is to forward the action, to provoke a kind of thinking that is useful, original, positive -- that will lead us toward solution and resolution. We are a country making big mistakes and everyone knows it. Our politicians are failing us. Our church leaders are failing us. Our institutions are failing us. And much of this is due to the polarization we're all participating in and perpetuating with the potshots we're taking at the ones in power. We all have a certain amount of energy. Every day we wake up and have approximately 16 hours to contribute to the creation of American culture. It is not the leaders who shape the contours of the American canvas. It is you and I, your neighbors and my neighbors, your relatives and my relatives, your synagogue and my church, your mosque and my meeting house. What energy we put into the airwaves becomes the life and spirit of this culture. What words we speak, what articles we write, what music we create, what values we hold and act upon -- these are the flour, the sugar, the apples of the American Pie. Anyone who writes words that anyone else reads has a tremendous power to provoke thought, to evoke spirit, to inspire action. Each of us has a potential for thought leadership, a capacity to turn the rudder of this great Titanic of a nation while we are still afloat. Every blogger has a chance to make a difference, to add light, to spark imaginations, to suggest how it might be if things were working well. Any of us with an audience of any size is a leader in some sense, and the question is: where are you leading people? Our words and our thoughts have an energy, they cause a change in people. They lead people to think and act differently. My question to you is: what are you inspiring? What are you doing with your power? How are people's lives changed by your words? How and what are you contributing to American culture and ultimately, American history? If you had one week left to live, would you spend time writing about Cheney's hunting escapades or would you choose to leave another kind of legacy? I say let the buckshot stop here. Think bigger. Be a leader. Write to inspire.