What Caught My Eye Today

Fred's note: The political environment in North Africa is almost too incredible for words. It's almost easier to pick out those nations that aren't going through some sort of revolution...so that's exactly what I decided to do. I have to say, pretty slim pickings.

Chad - No political uprising has been report here...yet. I wonder why. Due to its distance from the sea and its largely desert climate, Chad sometimes referred to as the "Dead Heart of Africa". While many political parties are active, power lies firmly in the hands of President Déby and his political party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement. Chad remains plagued by political violence and recurrent attempted coups d'état, the latest occurring in 2008. The country is one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world; most Chadians live in poverty as subsistence herders and farmers. Well, I guess it isn't for lack of trying. Perhaps, someone might be able to explain to me the merits of taking over Chad. From the sound of things, there isn't much to motivate one to want to go there.

Mauritania - Not much going on here either. Apparently, they had their coup in 2009, so they are good to go for now.

Niger - Niger consistently has one of the lowest ranks of the United Nation's Human Development Index (HDI), currently 167th of 169 countries. Much of the non-desert portions of the country are threatened by periodic drought and desertification. The country remains handicapped by its landlocked position, desert terrain, poor education and poverty of its people, lack of infrastructure, poor health care, and environmental degradation. So basically, starvation keeps the people from causing too much trouble. There's a pleasant thought.

Enough about those countries basking in tranquility...

Libya - Simply put, all hell is breaking loose. Here is a sampling of the headlines for just the past 24 hours:

• Kadhafi loses control of east Libya, mass exodus
  Making a run for Egypt, huh? Sure, things are much better there.
• Obama dispatches Clinton for talks on Libya
  Here's a tip, girlfriend--Libya is not stable.
• U.S. evacuation ferry held up in Libya by high seas
  How about using an airlift?
• Britain defends ill-fated Libyan rescue mission
  Scratch that last comment. Apparently, there are snags with this approach too. Maybe Egypt isn't such a bad idea after all.

Oil - Oil prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange hit $100 per barrel for the first time since 2008, driven by growing concerns about global supplies. Which, in case you were curious, are completely bogus concerns. More on that in a moment. Similar uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt earlier this month already had markets on edge before protests escalated in Libya, which has the biggest oil reserves in Africa. Libya produces about 1.7 million barrels per day of oil and natural gas liquids. The production losses will be felt mostly in Europe. Ireland relies on Libya for 23 percent of its oil imports and 22 percent of Italy's oil imports are from Libya. The U.S. imported only about 51,000 barrels per day from Libya, less than 1 percent of its total crude imports. Analysts say concerns about violence in North Africa and the Middle East have added a "fear premium" of about $10 per barrel of oil. Fear over what. We're talking about 1.7 million barrels. While not a trivial amount, Saudia Arabia probably spills that amount of oil in its daily operations. We are not talking about the end of the world here people. We all need to chill out here, people. I've already used one of my kidneys to replenish my retirement account; I'd rather not have to use the other one to fill my gas tank.

Gay Marriage - President Barack Obama has determined that a federal law that barred gay marriages was unconstitutional and told government lawyers to stop defending it, a major reversal that quickly angered conservatives. What's this I hear-- Conservatives up in arms over something the President said? I'm stunned. A U.S. judge in Boston ruled in 2010 that a key provision of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act banning gay marriages was unconstitutional, but the Obama administration appealed, stating that it was obligated to defend U.S. laws. The decision by Obama to drop support for the law in federal courts came after he received a recommendation from Attorney General Eric Holder, who had conducted a detailed review over the past several weeks. Obama's move drew a rebuke from conservative Republicans who argued that he could not pick and choose the laws to defend and some termed his decision partisan politics. Really? Seems to me that government and politics are all about picking and choosing. Otherwise, we wouldn't really need government would we? I'm quite certain my views on this subject are influenced by the generation that I grew up in, but that aside, I truly do not understand the argument against same-sex marriage. The one I hear the most is that same-sex marriage threatens to destroy the traditional definition of marriage between a man and a woman. Dude, think about it. I'm pretty sure, the folks looking for that "same-sex" option gave the heave-ho to that "opposite sex" option a long time ago.

Cricket - The Cricket World Cup, the third-biggest sporting event in the world has now been underway for nearly a week. Who knew? The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup is the tenth Cricket World Cup and is being played in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. It is Bangladesh's first time co-hosting a World Cup. The tournament will be watched by an estimated 2.2 billion people in more than 200 countries kicked off last Saturday and will continue for the next six weeks. For purposes of comparison for my American compatriots, this year's Super Bowl was watched by 111 million viewers, 110 million of those happen to live in the U.S.Group A consists of hosts Sri Lanka and along with them, Pakistan, Canada, Kenya, New Zealand, Australia and Zimbabwe. Group B consists of hosts India and Bangladesh, along with England, Ireland, Netherlands, West Indies and South Africa. the top for teams from each group will advance to the quarterfinals. I'm going to go way out on a limb and pick England to win over India in the final. England beat in Australia on their home turf last month to retain the Ashes. Might as well go for a clean sweep of all the top shelf silverware.