We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Erdoğan, Salman and the Coming ‘Sunni’ War for Oil

Click here to access article by F. William Engdahl from New Eastern Outlook.

After speculating on a conspiracy led by King Salman of Saudi Arabia and President Erdoğan of Turkey to control oil resources in the Middle East, he launches into his concerns about the recent UN Resolution 2254 (see also this and this) which calls for a Syrian ceasefire by all belligerents except the terrorist armies backed by Saudi Arabia and Turkey. You might want to skip down to the section entitled "Deceptive US Peace Offer in UN". He warns:
The reality is that the agreed UN ceasefire and simultaneous political transition to Washington’s “moderate Syrian opposition” will force Russia, the Assad Syrian government, Hezbollah and Iran military actions to halt, while Saudi-Turkish-Qatari DAESH and Al Qaeda Al Nusra Front and allied terror bands will have free reign to grab the oil riches of Syria and then of northern Iraq.

At that point, the trap will have been set and Washington will no doubt spring it, with Russia, Iran and Assad at that point able to do little to prevent it.