Plan C from outer space  

A few years ago I mocked Glenn "Instapundit" Reynolds' lunatic proposal to revive Henry Kissinger's "Plan B" to invade Saudi Arabia and seize their oil fields.

Some ideas, no matter how crazy, never seem to die though, with the pajama clad madmen at PJMedia unearthing an ex-WSJ editor keen to promote the idea.

Its worth bearing in mind reports (mostly stuffed down the memory hole now) from a few years ago about Saudi plans to destroy the oil fields in such an event, in an operation dubbed "petroleum scorched earth" (which Jamais also picked up at WorldChanging).

Instead of saying pretty please, the president could have suggested what his irate citizens may demand if they do not get relief.

It is worthwhile remembering Iraq was invaded when gasoline stood at only $2 a gallon.

It seems the president did try to explain this to the King. During his last visit, Bush — whose major expertise is as an oilman– told ABC News he explained to his majesty that “when consumers have less purchasing power because of high prices of gasoline, in other words when it affects their families, it could cause this economy to slow down.”

A follow-up can be delivered in inimitable Bush style like: “Hey King, time to fork it out. You’ve got it. We need it. What do you not understand?”

In a famous historic deal struck just after World War II on an American destroyer, President Roosevelt and King Abdulaziz al-Saud pledged America would help the Saudis find and produce their oil and protect them in return for fair and secure supplies. The meeting is recorded in abundant grainy documentaries and numerous official documents.

America and the West have kept their end of that deal for 60 years. Neocons might argue it is time for payback. Crazy as they can be sometimes, they may argue to some sympathy that the health of world economies, indeed world order, demands cheaper oil. One sure way of doing this is by invading and occupying Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, the mother of all oil reserves.

This seems an insane scenario now, but maybe not by summer’s end. As Mr. and Mrs. Smith drive into gas stations to be greeted by $5 or $6 a gallon signs and hundreds of homes prepare next winter for a doubling of heating costs, the Saudis should not sleep too soundly.

No war-mongering intended, but we invaded Grenada in 1983 and Iraq in 2003 for a lot less. Holding that Saudi Eastern Province pumping station under “Western stewardship” for, say, a 99-year lease may sound like fair compensation, once we go past $10 at the pump — which is what Europeans already pay.