Abizaid: Middle East Conflict Will Take Another 25-50 Years

Former commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, Army General John Abizaid, says the U.S. conflict in the Middle East could take up to 25-50 years to resolve and that America's been lucky not to have had another 9/11 incident.

The AP quotes Abizaid, speaking to students at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh:

"It's going to be hard, it's going to be long, it's going to be arduous, dangerous, bloody and expensive," Abizaid said Wednesday. "But, on the other hand, I do believe it's workable, provided that we have conversations like this and understand the dynamics that are at play out there.

"And it's not so one-dimensional as to be all-Iraq all the time," he said.

Abizaid also spoke about U.S. interests--and the number one U.S. interest in the Persian Gulf area is oil.

"I'm not saying this is a war for oil, but I am saying that oil fuels an awful lot of geopolitical moves that political powers may have there," Abizaid said. "And it is absolutely essential that we in the United States of America figure out how, in the long run, to lessen our dependency on foreign energy."

It's not hard to see that this story will be another brick in the wall by the owners of Trendy Left shops selling "No Blood for Oil" T-shirts. John Abisaid is a general; the general said "oil". The lightbulb will go off and another T-shirt, bearing the likeness of the general and a slogan such as, "I need a fill-up--Kill another kid", will be born.

The fact remains that unless Americans wants to park their cars or spend $15 for a gallon of gasoline, oil is an important component of the U.S. economy and to its way of life. And the Middle East does have plenty of oil. It may be their only exportable commodity--outside of hate and extremists bent on avenging the ills of the 12th Century.

by Mondoreb
& Little Baby Ginn



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