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Page added on April 20, 2013
Condoleezza Rice: Russia Really Just a Large Oil, Gas Syndicate
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice received a warm welcome from a receptive audience at TD Ameritrade Institutional’s annual conference in San Diego on Thursday morning. Introduced by Kate Healy, the company’s managing director of institutional marketing, Rice began by noting the difference between working in the public and private sectors.
“When I left government, I realized I could get up in the morning, read the paper and say, ‘Gee, isn’t that interesting,’” she said. “It’s nice to read the paper and not have to be responsible for what’s actually in the paper.”
Acknowledging that the world is in a “chaotic” state, she noted three major shocks that occurred in our recent lifetime that still are influencing events.
The first is Sept. 11: for anyone holding a position of authority on that day, she said, every day feels like Sept. 12. The second shock was the 2008-2009 financial crisis. What Sept. 11 was to the country’s feelings about physical security, the financial crisis was to its sense of financial security. The last shock is what is happening in the Middle East.
Concentrating on the financial shock, she noted that the European Union has a common monetary policy but not a common fiscal policy.
“It makes it very hard to harmonize the two,” Rice explained. “There really isn’t any underlying political union either, which can cause tension. A newspaper in Germany recently suggested that Greece sell the Acropolis in order to help pay its debt. Greece said that if Germany wants the Acropolis they should come and get it, which was a not-so-nice reference to Germany’s recent past.”
Moving on to the so-called BRIC countries, she said she actually calls them the BIC countries, since she believes Russia’s economy is really an oil and gas syndicate. “It’s a 19th century economy,” she said.
“Fully 80% of the economy is oil, gas and minerals,” she said. “Vladimir Putin is the head of the syndicate.”
She related the story of a dinner she attended with a deputy minister of Russia. She noted she was once on the board of Chevron. Her Russian counterpart asked her if she was still on the board of Chevron, to which she responded, “No, I am secretary of state.”
“He was a deputy minister while at the same time he was also a director of Gazprom, so things work a little different over there,” she said to laughter from the audience.
She added that Dimitry Medvedev once said Russia should lead the knowledge revolution because he claimed the country had the best mathematicians and engineers.
“I had to hold my tongue but thought to myself, ‘Yeah, they are all in Tel Aviv and Palo Alto,’” she said.
India and Brazil have a lot in common, she explained; some good and some bad. Both countries retain the moniker of “potential,” which is good. But they also suffer from extreme income inequality. India also resides in a neighborhood that isn’t particularly safe, especially with Pakistan on its border.
Turning to China, she noted that the country came through the financial shock very well. The issue is that India and Brazil are large multiethnic democracies, while China is not. China is experiencing one of the greatest social revolutions in history, she said. “They have moved millions of people out of poverty and will move 300 million more out of the villages and into the cities in the next few years; that equates to a new New York City every few months. But, she added, they don’t have the political system to accommodate that urban growth.
“They are having a lot of trouble with product safety; remember baby formula and bullet trains that are falling off the tracks,” she said. “Their solution was to execute the guy in charge of product safety, so they won’t have a lot of people lining up to take his place. Quite frankly, they don’t have legal resources in place for recourse. They understand that they need to release some of the pressure, but also are afraid if they do they will lose control. They’re afraid of a Gorbachev-type situation,” referring to when the Soviet leader allowed some free expression, which then led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
She argued that a country so afraid of the Internet and its own population will not be in position to lead the information revolution.
So if China, Brazil, India, Russia and the European Union do not offer a serious challenge to American leadership, who will, she asked rhetorically.
“The only real competition to the U.S. is a U.S. gone bad,” she said to applause from the audience. “It is a U.S. that does not deal with its debt, doesn’t deal with its entitlements and one that doesn’t realize it is the private sector that drives innovation and growth.”
She noted three major periods of innovation in American history. The first was harvesting what came out of the ground. The second was all about how efficient a production line could be. The third is the innovation and creativity the country is now experiencing.
“It doesn’t matter where you came from” in this country, she said, “it only matters where you are going. We have to remember that the founder of Google came from Russia to start his company here. But the country also attracts those that want to make $5 an hour instead of 50 cents.”
Referencing the rumblings of bipartisan immigration reform, she said “We have to get immigration reform right; if we don’t we won’t lead.”
Referencing the issue of leadership, she said that “today’s headlines and the judgment of history are rarely the same. If we focus on the judgment of history long-term rather than short-term headlines, we will be fine.”
During the question and answer follow-up session, Kate Healy asked about Rice being the first woman admitted to Augusta Nationa golf club.
“Thank goodness they made me a woman’s green jacket,” she said. “Augusta is doing a lot to bring kids into the game of golf. I am a big proponent of sports and exercise as a way to engage children.”
She was then asked about Iran and North Korea. Calling Iran “the poster child for state-sponsored terrorism,” she noted that 70% of Iranians are under the age of 30 and that the current repressive government regime—”It’s the ayatollahs who in charge, not Ahmadinejad”—cannot last; “the only question is whether not they will get a nuclear weapon first.”
She noted that the average height of a North Korean is 5 inches shorter than a South Korean, due to 50 years of malnutrition. She believes North Korea is a danger that can be contained. However, “Iran is a very reckless country. They have fired on our ships and they have fired on our planes. They could do something in the Gulf that would mess with the markets, but I think a bigger concern from a financial standpoint is Europe, which is still a mess. Europe with no growth will drag everyone else down.”
Asked about energy policy, she said she is a big proponent of the U.S. energy platform.
“Oil is something that warps power; just look at Putin and Chávez. Even if we become energy independent, who will be able to avoid problems in the Middle East?”
Turning to her thoughts on the killing of Osama bin Laden, Rice said it was a 10-year, multi-administration effort. “It shows what we can get done if we work together over successive administrations.”
She finished by offering advice for Republicans that are looking to re-establish themselves as the majority party. “We can’t turn off large constituencies. We can’t insult large parts of the population and expect to get elected. Republicans are on the right side of education; we can’t continue with bad teachers that we can’t fire” and put up with failing schools where there is “no choice for parents of children in low-income areas.”
“Education was extremely important when I was growing up.” As a child growing up in segregated Alabama, Rice said, she was taught that “we had to be twice as good. We couldn’t sit around and say, ‘That’s not fair.’”
18 Comments on "Condoleezza Rice: Russia Really Just a Large Oil, Gas Syndicate"
cottager on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 9:05 pm
Well, who was then talking about advantages of XIX century level, theft based economy? C’mon 🙂 Russia is not the goal, it’s rather a hole in the earth.
doug nicodemus on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 9:18 pm
this woman is so full of crap…when ever can you tell if she is telling truth…
Plantagenet on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 10:01 pm
Thanks for posting the story about Prof. Rice. Its nice to read the opinions of a grown-up for a change.
Norm on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 11:07 pm
HEY PEAK OILERS. One of you guys ought to post this article.
http://www.news.com.au/world-news/huge-landslide-shuts-kennecott-utah-coppers-bingham-canyon-mine/story-fndir2ev-1226619124124
I never figured out how to post here. Well…. its not quite oil. Its resources. But its kinda similar aint it? So they keep digging more and more copper outta the ground, finally the whole thing cave in on itself. Why? So that fat lazy butt americans can throw their frayed extension cords into the dump. That aint sustainable! So if its unsustainable, its something for ‘peakoil’ hope somebody will post it.
it is an extraordinary photograph, yes?
AND i know somebody who is a hardcore geologist, he says all that slide, is DIRT its not ORE and all that DIRT must be moved away. Whoops! Ran outta oil, no more oil for the dozer. I thought conservatives should conserve resources? Naah. Just dig the ore until the walls cave in, thats conservative.
Others on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 11:34 pm
Colin Powell was a gentleman.
This lady is a Oil woman who dragged USA to wasteful war on Iraq along with other gangsters.
Its all bad past.
PrestonSturges on Sat, 20th Apr 2013 11:45 pm
Can someone name anything good that happened on Condi’s watch?
She helped lead the charge to lie us into the Iraq war, specifically claiming Saddam had nukes.
What about all the embassy attacks that occurred on her watch?
Also, you may remember the Oil-For-Food bribery scandal that conservatives called the “Scandal Of The Century” as long as they thought they could pin it on Clinton. But then it turned out Chevron was paying bribes to Saddam and Condi was almost certainly involved, and the “Scandal Of The Century” went down the memory hole.
BillT on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 1:21 am
Yep! Russia is an oil and gas syndicate with nukes. Something like the Imperial US. The cold war never ended, it only paused to make some changes in structure.
Rice is not stupid. That she was not a good Sec. of State could be said of all in Washington. And she IS still responsible for much of what is in the news. Her and that other bitch, the fat what’s-her-name. But they are just puppets for their masters, kinda like we are. But, she is correct. The US is toast.
dissident on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 1:30 am
Opinions of a grown up who has the IQ of a child. Russia (including the private sector such as Lukoil) makes $270 billion from oil and natural gas sales but its nominal GDP is $2 trillion dollars ( and %2.5 trillion PPP according to the IMF, CIA). So 13.5% of the GDP makes Russia a gas and oil syndicate. What a joke! I have never heard this neocon bimbo call Saudi Arabia an oil and gas syndicate even though it is exactly that.
Beery on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 3:00 am
“He was a deputy minister while at the same time he was also a director of Gazprom, so things work a little different over there,” she said to laughter from the audience.
Yeah. They manage without the hypocrisy.
Beery on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 3:07 am
“Can someone name anything good that happened on Condi’s watch?”
My daughter was born. However, I think that was despite Condoleeza Rice’s influence.
Ms. Rice is a politician in the Thatcher mold – a complete waste of life who has done nothing but harm.
DC on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 4:36 am
What a load of crap. Serial War Criminal and flat-out liar Condi rice calling Russia an ‘oil syndicate’? What is the US Of Exxon\Chevron\BP then? Ill tell you what really honks her off. Is that the US’s plans to turn Russia into an impoverished energy colony of the US didnt turn out anything like they way they had planned. Mr Putin, single-handedly saved Russia from that fate and the US has never forgiven him for that.
Russian oil is firmly under Russian control and is used to finance Russia’s gov’t and services her people rely on. Sure one could make the argument Russia relies to heavily on those sectors, but thats not whats bothering Condi.
If the rule of law existed anywhere in the US, Rice would be behind bars, not getting admitted to a swanky old white dude golf clubs and giving paid speaking engagements(where she does little more than spread the same falsehoods and mis-characterizations that she did when she was being paid to do that).
mark on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 7:25 am
Feeling smug over a railway accident where people lost their lives. An extremely distasteful human being.
Arthur on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 9:15 am
Ahh, la Rice awoke from the dead, the junior partner in crime of Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld, the European facade, covering the real powerbrokers in Washington and their AIPAC/Leo Strauss empire, carrying out the global imperial agenda as defined in the PNAC/CleanBreak documents, initiated by 9/11, after top-zionist Larry Silverstein had a few coordinating phone calls with his buddies in Jerusalem like Sharon, Barak and Netanyahoo, those that command the Mossad. What a treasure trove of lies and insinuations this article is…
This woman is far from stupid, she is probably the only black woman in the world who speaks fluent Russian and can play Mozart on near-Concert Hall level (chapeau!), her problems lies more in a total lack of scrupule when it comes to carrying out genocidal agendas as defined by her superiors.
“Greece said that if Germany wants the Acropolis they should come and get it, which was a not-so-nice reference to Germany’s recent past.””
Germany never had any appetit invading Greece, but was forced to do so after the British had occupied northern Greece one month earlier, threatening the vital sole source of oil in Ploesti/Romania. The British move was intended to give Stalin more time to prepare for his final assault against Europe, scheduled for July 10, 1941 and force the Germans to spread their forces thin.
“Moving on to the so-called BRIC countries, she said she actually calls them the BIC countries, since she believes Russia’s economy is really an oil and gas syndicate. “It’s a 19th century economy,” she said.”
Suggesting that Russia is not a real country is a daring statement from an African woman, roaming US soil, together with Europeans, Asians, Africans and Latin-Americans. That same US soil that is being turned around on a continental scale to extract the last unconsumed carbon fuel molecule and now Rice is accusing another country of being nothing but an ‘oil & gas syndicate’. That same Condoleezza Rice even had an oil tanker named after her.lol, after she worked for Chevron in Russia, so how hypocritical do you want to have it!?
““I had to hold my tongue but thought to myself, ‘Yeah, they are all in Tel Aviv and Palo Alto,’” she said.”
La Rice sucking up to her real zionist masters. Meanwhile the Russians are the only ones capable of still bringing a man in orbit on a regular basis, have their budget and debt under control and is not morphing into a third world country, like the US, where the remaining economic activities consist of attaching Apple stickers to Korean hardware and wasting the remaining creativity on a useless military industrial complex that can only be used against it’s own population. That is not to say that Russia is not indeed too carbon centric. Fortunately for them they still have an EU on their doorstep that can deliver everything Russia can’t produce itself and swap that for carbon fuel of which Europe has almost none (does anybody smell a future alliance?).
“So if China, Brazil, India, Russia and the European Union do not offer a serious challenge to American leadership, who will, she asked rhetorically.”
Haha, she does not even discuss the EU, which already surpassed the US economically, even without owning a reserve currency and without any resources worth mentioning, apart from it’s population. That’s why the EU and Russia will growth nearer to each other with every passing year and every new pipeline installed, certainly with a ‘Chinese threat’ looming in the background. La Rice, for ethnic reasons, is obviously blind for suggestions from former fellow GOP-er Paul Craig Roberts that the US are going to be a third world country in 11 years. Now, who needs leadership from a third world country, I ask rhetorically? The 21st century will be a multipolar world where nobody will provide global leadership. The dominating poles are going to be the Euro-Siberian and Han-Chinese worlds, where the Atlantic will be European and Pacific Chinese, including the north-American west-coast. The only real open question is going to be what the US will be in that world:
– AIPAC dethroned, isolationalist/balkanized
– AIPAC dethroned, Euro-America carved out of the US-carcass and allied to Euro-Siberia, containing China
– jews hold on to power and establish a new USSR, based on ‘anti-racism’, where aging Euro-America until the end of their days can provide valet services for third world invaders, the proletariat that every USSR needs. And Euro’s with an attitude will be locked up in a FEMA-Gulag. The US currently btw is on the third track.
That’s how it is going to be, regardless what la Rice dreams.
Arthur75 on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 9:22 am
“She noted three major periods of innovation in American history. The first was harvesting what came out of the ground. The second was all about how efficient a production line could be. The third is the innovation and creativity the country is now experiencing.”
Always this same joke, as if the GDP wasn’t has dependant on energy or oil as it ever been.
J-Gav on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 9:50 am
Pretty much true about the Russian sydicate. What she fails to mention is that the US is basically a financial crime syndicate.
cottager on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 10:24 am
Dissident, you’re wrong, it is not joke. Where have you find those 13,5%? Oil, gas and metals accounts for ~80% of russian exports, about 1/3 of budget. They are totally dependent on gas and oil.
Arthur75 on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 10:34 am
If the Russians are an oil and gas syndicate, what to say about the US, whose defense spending is more than half the world total, and whose Army could be said to be responsible for the OECD oil and gas input security.
And with the $ as reserve currency as a valuable “consequence”.
dissident on Sun, 21st Apr 2013 12:51 pm
Cottager, what are you smoking? Russian exports in 2012 were $542 billion which include $270 billion from oil and gas. So you pulled the 80% of exports out of your a**. And read my post again, I am comparing the total oil and gas export to the size of Russia’s economy. You can’t explain a $2000 billion GDP with $270 billion of exports. If you think one explains the other then Saudi Arabia should have a GDP of $2.6 trillion instead of $0.9 trillion.
Russia exported 239.644 million tons of oil in 2012 which sold for a discount compared to Brent and averaged $110.78. This amount to $196 billion in exports. Russia exported 178.7 billion cubic meters of gas in 2012 for a total income of $63 billion. So the actual export revenue for 2012 was $259 billion dollars, which is 48% of exports and 12.95% of GDP. (The $270 billion figure was based on outdated gas export data).