MIDDLE EAST OIL: SLIPPERY SLOPE TO TERRORISM

While we struggle with the horrific attack against America and the high probability of future attacks, as war is waged against terrorism, we should come to terms with the inescapable conclusion that our dependence on Middle East oil is the root cause of the deadly dilemma. The Gulf War is still smoking and indelible proof of that.

There is simply no excuse for fanatics to pursue decades of terrorism against the United States, from the Iran hostage crisis to the dastardly acts resulting in the loss of so many innocent lives. However, the fact remains that their unholy war has been directly and indirectly financed by oil and most of the gas we buy and pump into our tanks every day.

We should have learned from the gas lines of the 1970's Arab Oil Embargo and the resulting recession. We should have reduced our dependence on Middle Eastern oil in every conceivable way. Instead, we doubled the addiction, our involvement in the Mideast, and now it's come to a reckoning.

Worse, rather than getting our act together, America and other industrialized nations could easily exacerbate hostilities and exploit the oil-rich region of the Caspian Sea, next door to Afghanistan. Question is, do we put the other foot on the slippery slope to the possibility of a final world war, or do we step back and do the right thing?

Daniel B. Jeffs, founder
The Direct Democracy Center