How about this - thirteen myths about the Iraq War available at htttp://13myths.org. The most interesting to me is Myth 11: "War will reduce energy prices and make the U.S. more independent, because oil from Iraq would reduce the current U.S. dependence on Saudi Arabian oil (and prevent the Saudis from pushing us around). "

This site claims that "since 1970, oil imports have been responsible for nearly 75 percent of the U.S. trade deficit and have resulted in a net outflow of $1 trillion to the OPEC nations." Hmnn... isn't Bush offering "1 trillion dollar" tax cuts to the rich? Of course that's just a coincidence, but certainly the two are tied together. The US has been getting a whole lot of that oil money back through arms sales, which almost makes you wonder whether there has been a concerted US effort to maintain political instability in the Middle East for the last 40 years. Is that too extreme an idea? Such instability has certainly maintained a steady demand for arms and intelligence. It has also served Israel well over the years, with no gang of stabilised, oil-enriched Arab neighbours ever forming a unified opposition.

Another interesting article at The Spectator explores some healthy differences between the US and Canada - vive les Canadiens! As an Aussie, I wish our government had such a healthy scepticism about the White House... http://www.spectator.co.uk/article.php3?table=old§ion=current&issue=2003-05-31&id=3149