Oh wait ... the mic is still on.

Putin's Ruthless Gambit

The Bush Administration Falters in a Geopolitical Chess Match

By Michael T. Klare

Many Western analysts have chosen to interpret the recent fighting in the Caucasus as the onset of a new Cold War, with a small pro-Western democracy bravely resisting a brutal reincarnation of Stalin's jack-booted Soviet Union.
Others have viewed it a throwback to the age-old ethnic politics of southeastern Europe, with assorted minorities using contemporary border disputes to settle ancient scores.

Neither of these explanations is accurate. To fully grasp the recent upheavals in the Caucasus, it is necessary to view the conflict as but a minor skirmish in a far more significant geopolitical struggle between Moscow and Washington over the energy riches of the Caspian Sea basin -- with former Russian President (now Prime Minister) Vladimir Putin emerging as the reigning Grand Master of geostrategic chess and the Bush team turning out to be middling amateurs, at best.

The ultimate prize in this contest is control over the flow of oil and natural gas from the energy-rich Caspian basin to eager markets in Europe and Asia. According to the most recent tally by oil giant BP, the Caspian's leading energy producers, all former "socialist republics" of the Soviet Union -- notably Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan -- together possess approximately 48 billion barrels in proven
oil reserves (roughly equivalent to those left in the U.S. and Canada) and 268 trillion cubic feet of natural gas (essentially equivalent to what Saudi Arabia possesses).

Our Petro-Dollars at Work

We solicited opinions on Sarah Palin as Vice President and we received a boatload of emails (and one photo) ... As usual we like to look at all sides of an issue (and have fun doing it) instead of towing a particular line. We were going to write an article, but the comments were so interesting that we thought we would share them instead. Thanks everyone! So, what are your thoughts on Sarah Palin?

Maybe the most remarkable thing about John McCain's (R) choice of the woefully inexperienced Sarah Palin (R) to be a heartbeat away from the oldest man who would ever be elected to the presidency, and a three-time cancer survivor, is the truly shameless hypocrisy of Republicans over this pick.

It might be instructive to recall what many of these GOP leaders -- who are now praising Palin's complete lack of national and foreign policy experience -- said in 2004 when they blasted John Kerry (D) for picking John Edwards (D) as his running mate.

Despite nearly six years in the United States Senate, these same Republicans ridiculed Edwards as being "too inexperienced" to be a heartbeat away (even as the number two to a very fit and healthy Kerry).

Here are some examples.

Mitt Romney (Washington Times, July 15, 2004):

He doesn't personally dislike Mr. Kerry: "I find him to be a personable fellow," Mr. Romney told me in a recent interview. But Mr. Kerry is too liberal, he says, as is his boyish-looking running mate, John Edwards. Mr. Romney says the North Carolina freshman senator is too inexperienced to be vice president - let alone only an incident away from the presidency.

President Bush (Washington Times, July 8, 2004):

President Bush yesterday criticized Sen. John Edwards for blocking his judicial nominations and bluntly dismissed the one-term North Carolina Democrat as too inexperienced to be a heartbeat away from the presidency.

On last night's Colbert Report, Stephen cut through all of the doom and gloom of the Democratic Convention by profiling someone who's flourishing in the current economy: A repo man.

Others who are probably doing well these days include unemployment-office workers, squatters, pan-handle makers, trashcan-fire emporiums, tumble-weed manufacturers and super-villains.

... and we are all invited! But how did Hillary get in the front seat?