Posts Tagged ‘Iran’
May 13th, 2011 by John Feehery
Two things drive me completely crazy about the debate over higher gas prices.
First, this whole issue of big oil subsidies is complete crap. The oil industry gets the same tax breaks as any other manufacturer. And why shouldn’t they? They manufacture a product here in the U.S.
I am stealing the following four paragraphs from the American Thinker blog (if I say that I am stealing it publicly, then it isn’t plagiarism, right?) because I think the author does a nice job of summing up what these tax credits are:
“Domestic manufacturing tax deduction — $1.7 B. This is a tax deduction given to every manufacturer in the US. Per CNN, it was “designed to keep factories in the United States.” If that deduction were eliminated for oil companies only, it would mean singling out oil companies from all other manufacturers.
Percentage depletion allowance — $1 B. Any industry can write down a portion of the cost of its capital equipment as part of the cost of doing business. Right now, oil in the ground is treated as capital equipment. Again, this “subsidy” amounts to how the cost of doing business is defined. All companies get it, not just oil companies. Read more...
Tags: American Thinker blog, CNN, energy independence, EPA, foriegn oil, gas, gas prices, Government, Iran, Isreal, Obama Administration, oil industry, Saudi Arabia, taxes
Posted in Economy, Financial Crisis, Foreign Relations, GOP, Government, Politics, The Web, Theory, middle-east, national security, spending, taxes, terrorism | No Comments »
November 30th, 2010 by John Feehery
In Roman mythology, Janus (or Ianus) is the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings, endings and time. His most prominent remnant in modern culture is his namesake, the month of January, which begins the new year. Most often he is depicted as having two heads, facing opposite directions; one head looks back at the last year while the other looks forward to the new, simultaneously into the future and the past.
Janus is a fascinating mythical figure. He is honored at the beginning of each year, although most people don’t know it, because January is named after him.
According to Wikipedia: “He was frequently used to symbolize change and transitions such as the progression of past to future, of one condition to another, of one vision to another, the growing up of young people, and of one universe to another. He was also known as the figure representing time because he could see into the past with one face and into the future with the other.”
But invoking Janus can also be an insult. If you are a two-faced Janus, that means you are a hypocrite, a liar, a shifty, no-good, dirty scoundrel. Or perhaps a diplomat. Read more...
Tags: Arab leaders, diplomats, Government, Iran, Iraq, January, Janus, mythology, national security, Politics, two-faced Janus, WikiLeaks, Wikipedia
Posted in Foreign Relations, Government, History, Politics, Scandals, The Web, Theory, corruption | No Comments »
September 22nd, 2010 by John Feehery
I wonder if Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has an early copy of Bob Woodward’s new book.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is currently in New York for the UN General Assembly. (photo courtesy AFP)
The bearded one has been on a successful public relations tour before his United Nations speech tomorrow. Before leaving for the Big Apple, he released one of the American hikers that his government has been holding hostage, and hosted NBC’s Andrea Mitchell in Tehran for an interview last week. He starred in hilarious home-erotic tribute from comedian Adam Samberg on Saturday Night Live over the weekend, and chided the United States for moving forward on the execution of a female murderer. He got Esquire magazine to run an article entitled “5 Reasons Ahmadinejad Might Just Be Good for the World.” And he has done a bunch of other interviews, trying to put himself in a more positive light.
This, my friends, is called strategic communications.
Mr. Obama and his team could learn something from the guy we like to call “crazy”. Read more...
Tags: Barack Obama, Democrats, George W Bush, Government, Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Politics, Presidential election
Posted in Bad Decisions, Book Review, Foreign Relations, Government, History, Politics, Promises, Theory, election | No Comments »
August 31st, 2010 by John Feehery
Photo via the NY Times
The President said he wanted to turn the page on Iraq.
I wonder how that makes the Iraqis feel. My guess is that they are saying, “wait, this chapter isn’t done yet!” About the only Iraqi who wants us out is that Sadr character, who is just looking for a way to grab power for himself.
It was nice that Mr. Obama called former President Bush today, and that he mentioned that conversation in his speech tonight. I wonder if the current President acknowledged that the former President was right when it came to the surge. I doubt it.
Mr. Obama has been pretty consistent that he didn’t like the Iraq War and that he wanted to spend the money that we spent in Iraq on bigger government to “help the middle class.” The irony is that most middle class voters are clamoring for smaller government, lower taxes, and less meddling from the Feds, not for more help from Mr. Obama.
Read more...
Tags: Barack Obama, George W Bush, Iran, Iraq, Oval office
Posted in Bad Decisions, war | No Comments »
March 8th, 2010 by John Feehery
It wasn’t as exciting as the first time that Iraq held democratic elections, but it was probably more significant.
I asked my friend Alex Mistri, who spent a year in Iraq working at the highest levels of the American government, what these elections mean to him.
He told me two things.
First, Iraq is slowly but surely becoming a model of democracy in the Middle East.
Second, that having Iraq become a model of democracy is actually a threat to the Iranians, even if the Iranians have some influence on some of the political parties today.
As Alex puts it: “The road ahead in Iraq no doubt remains uncertain. But the Iraqis have once again demonstrated – not through word but action – their appetite for representative government. Increasingly, it must enter the international consciousness – if it hasn’t already – that Iraq is becoming the most democratic nation in the region.”
As it turns out, President Bush might have been on to something with his crazy belief that a place like Iraq could handle democracy. Alex asked the question, “Might the ‘quixotic’ aims of the previous administration still be within reach?” Read more...
Tags: Alex mistri, democracy, George W Bush, Iran, Iraq, middle-east, Persian, Saudi Arabia
Posted in Foreign Relations, Government, Politics, election | 3 Comments »
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