What is a "hydrocarbon law"?

The Iraq oil law, also referred to as the Iraq hydrocarbon law,[1] is a proposed piece of legislation submitted to the Iraqi Council of Representatives in May 2007.[2][3]


The Iraqi government has yet to reach an agreement on the law. In June 2008, the Iraqi Oil Ministry announced plans to go ahead with small one or two year no-bid contracts to Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP — once partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company — along with Chevron and smaller firms to service Iraq’s largest fields.[4] These plans were canceled in September because negotiations had stalled for so long that the work could not be completed within th...

What is a "hydrocarbon law"?

The Iraq oil law, also referred to as the Iraq hydrocarbon law,[1] is a proposed piece of legislation submitted to the Iraqi Council of Representatives in May 2007.[2][3]


The Iraqi government has yet to reach an agreement on the law. In June 2008, the Iraqi Oil Ministry announced plans to go ahead with small one or two year no-bid contracts to Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP — once partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company — along with Chevron and smaller firms to service Iraq’s largest fields.[4] These plans were canceled in September because negotiations had stalled for so long that the work could not be completed within the time frame, according to Iraqi oil minister Hussain al-Shahristani. Several United States senators had also criticized the deal, arguing it was hindering efforts to pass the hydrocarbon law.[5]

pkronfield- democrats like republicans realize congress will not act responsibly, and if they do, it is only in a full out crisis such as the financial meltdown. Although it has been talked about for 4 years, the congress ignored it until now, a lot late, but at a moment of crisis. Same for the oil situation. Instead of assuming democrats enjoy higher oil, maybe look at it like they realize nothing would be done to move us away from our dependence on foreign oil were it not for these price spikes. Maybe democrats see hope that we will stop going to war over oil (Russia next?) and start spending money and become leaders in alternative energy. It's just being realitic, as a result of the i...

pkronfield- democrats like republicans realize congress will not act responsibly, and if they do, it is only in a full out crisis such as the financial meltdown. Although it has been talked about for 4 years, the congress ignored it until now, a lot late, but at a moment of crisis. Same for the oil situation. Instead of assuming democrats enjoy higher oil, maybe look at it like they realize nothing would be done to move us away from our dependence on foreign oil were it not for these price spikes. Maybe democrats see hope that we will stop going to war over oil (Russia next?) and start spending money and become leaders in alternative energy. It's just being realitic, as a result of the innefectiveness of congress. Surely you can't really believe there is a democrat alive who enjoys paying high gas prices. 10 billion a month in Iraq is not reflective of the true cost of this war. Add to the cost the spike in oil, which is a result of instability in the region, fear, and real depletion of this resource. It would cost a lot less to focus on alternative energy, instead of saber rattling around the world for what everyone knows is OIL.

Deb2012 naively pointed out:

Surely you can't really believe there is a democrat alive who enjoys paying high gas prices

Do you remember a comment from a Democrat a little while back that if the war turns positive - this would not be good for Democrats? I'm sure you do, since everyone heard it... and if that being the case - why do you think your comment above wouldn't be 'believable'? Of course the Democrats in power love the concept of souring economy, high gas prices, war effort going sideways... all good things as far as they're concerned, since what they really want is to gain power, regardless of anything else. To be fair, one could easily state that Republicans wa...

Deb2012 naively pointed out:

Surely you can't really believe there is a democrat alive who enjoys paying high gas prices

Do you remember a comment from a Democrat a little while back that if the war turns positive - this would not be good for Democrats? I'm sure you do, since everyone heard it... and if that being the case - why do you think your comment above wouldn't be 'believable'? Of course the Democrats in power love the concept of souring economy, high gas prices, war effort going sideways... all good things as far as they're concerned, since what they really want is to gain power, regardless of anything else. To be fair, one could easily state that Republicans want to gain power as well, but certainly not under the same circumstances. Both parties are certainly responsible for the current financial troubles. It started with Jimmy Carter and ended with George Bush, with every President in between doing nothing to prevent this mess. So, both parties are to blame.

As for your comment about alternative energy etc. - again the same 2 parties are to blame and even though your putting some blame on the expensive war as if that was strictly over oil - you're totally wrong. Where IS this oil that we supposedly were after? Did our dependence on buying foreign oil diminished at all since the war? Of course not. And about doing something to get us out of this situation and get much more aggressively into alternative energy - has Democrat Congress done anything? And I'm not counting them finally caving under public pressure to allow offshore drilling, something they get no credit for, since they were against it... nor their 9% pathetic approval rating. And with that - you still think the Democrats are somehow an answer to our country's problems? Again, try to get back to the logical & common sense end of the spectrum, not political one.

I don't have any more faith in Republicans at this point, to be honest with you, based on what they hav

Do you remember a comment from a Democrat a little while back that if the war turns positive - this would not be good for Democrats?

Record Sage- I do not wish to go tit for tat on party strategies but as Obama regains the lead in the polls, Republicans have said the financial mess is not good for the Republicans also. That is very different to me than saying Republicans are happy we have had to add billions of dollars to the nations debt in order to keep the market from crashing and give McCain a chance to win. Those are divisive comments and not what I was talking about anyway. Americans are not happy about higher oil prices, but some are realistic that at least...

Do you remember a comment from a Democrat a little while back that if the war turns positive - this would not be good for Democrats?

Record Sage- I do not wish to go tit for tat on party strategies but as Obama regains the lead in the polls, Republicans have said the financial mess is not good for the Republicans also. That is very different to me than saying Republicans are happy we have had to add billions of dollars to the nations debt in order to keep the market from crashing and give McCain a chance to win. Those are divisive comments and not what I was talking about anyway. Americans are not happy about higher oil prices, but some are realistic that at least it opens the door, finally, for new solutions to be more cost effective.

You say none of the goals of the Iraq war or sabre rattling about Russia is about oil. Cheney and McCain thought the war would end quickly and we'd have a permanent base in Iraq. Had that happened oil would be lower, not higher. It's the failure of their policies, and the quagmire, along with world demand among the countries not leading the charge for alternative energy (US and the third world) who are causing oil prices to stay high. Check out France and Germany who are racing headlong into replacing oil with new sources; not coincidentally their financial systems are holding up the best right now as well. We need to get with the program,and not focus (spend a boatlod) on drilling-it's a lie that it will solve anything. It's a very little band aid. Alternative energy heals, and we'll only pursue it if oil prices stay high-I'm a realist. I don't enjoy the high prices.

Repubs are quickly earning a reputation as socialists. Maybe capitalism is dead.

What I can't believe that you actually believe that this 'fix' was done to help McCain win. The Iraq war was NOT about oil, it didn't go as initially planned (most wars don't, if you look at the history) and if you've heard the report about what is coming out with that Ft. Dicks terrorist investigation - it's very clear that there are forces out there that want to kill you and me. Clinton had it thrown in his face a number of times and he chose to concentrate on Monica... Bush gets kudos for NOT letting those bastards do another attack on the US soil (although clearly they wanted to and certainly do so outside, as have been plain to see in Pakistan yesterday). One thing you fail to unders...

What I can't believe that you actually believe that this 'fix' was done to help McCain win. The Iraq war was NOT about oil, it didn't go as initially planned (most wars don't, if you look at the history) and if you've heard the report about what is coming out with that Ft. Dicks terrorist investigation - it's very clear that there are forces out there that want to kill you and me. Clinton had it thrown in his face a number of times and he chose to concentrate on Monica... Bush gets kudos for NOT letting those bastards do another attack on the US soil (although clearly they wanted to and certainly do so outside, as have been plain to see in Pakistan yesterday). One thing you fail to understand that when you're dealing with people who are more than willing, enthusiastically so actually, to send their own kids to die... INTENTIONALLY... you tell me what can possibly work against that kind of thinking (or complete lack thereof in their case). I know it's easy to be against sabre-rattling, but you need to be aware of the world around you, with a painfully clear understanding that your moral approach to things isn't the same with many others.

I'm not happy with the latest financial situation. It's another one of those (as Russians would say) "we wanted to make it better and it turned out as it always does". It's funny, but true. Both parties have more than enough blame on this, not that it diminishes the gravity of the problem or makes anyone feel better, but clearly both parties are to blame. The high oil prices have nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans in this case... and they have everything to do with India, China, OPEC & American people. Yep, the last category, unfortunately is also to blame. You see all this 'green' mentality everywhere and desire for alternate energy all of a sudden... why is that? Because people just became enlightened? Definitely not... it's because they've had it with these prices and that they have...

we will finally see some progress. No question that the Government is to blame for not taking the action years ago. I remember standing in line to get gas in the late seventies when we came to the US. That should've been a wake-up call... soon after I saw an electric car dealership spring up with the ugliest cars I've ever seen... and then they closed down a few months later and status quo continued... of course then we were paying about a dollar a gallon, so apparently it wasn't painful enough. Now when we went to $4+, I guess that became so, thus all the talk etc.

A friend of mine told me that in the early 80's Texaco bought a patent for electric battery that was exceptional in terms ...

we will finally see some progress. No question that the Government is to blame for not taking the action years ago. I remember standing in line to get gas in the late seventies when we came to the US. That should've been a wake-up call... soon after I saw an electric car dealership spring up with the ugliest cars I've ever seen... and then they closed down a few months later and status quo continued... of course then we were paying about a dollar a gallon, so apparently it wasn't painful enough. Now when we went to $4+, I guess that became so, thus all the talk etc.

A friend of mine told me that in the early 80's Texaco bought a patent for electric battery that was exceptional in terms of weight, longevity etc. Even now we don't have the batteries that would match it. Clearly nobody has seen this since and for understandable reasons.

So, what we need is someone with balls in the government (and Mrs. Palin qualifies here, btw), to push through laws that mandate that these kinds of patents be implemented for national security reasons. Then the government needs to create a program to develop alternate fuels & energy sources, similar to the initiative that was used to go to the moon and create Internet. That, of course, is longer term prospect, and in the meantime let the oil companies drill. It makes no sense to keep buying oil from OPEC while we could be using our own. India & China have very hungry energy needs as they grow and expand their economies. That was one of the reasons the prices jumped... certainly wasn't due to the fact that you started driving more (I know I didn't and America didn't), in fact we drove less and increasingly doing the same. In the meantime our 'buddies' at OPEC just announced that they may cut production. I'm sure you know what that means.

Unfortunately, terrorism still tops the list of what we, as a nation need to squash. Therefore we need to elect somebody with that as a top priority. Obviously other topics need to be addressed, but if this is gets overlooked (ala Clinton) - everything else falls apart.

I have no doubt that USA can do its enemies in economically, if we really try it. Terrorists will have no means to buy weapons, training etc. if we stop the money flow to them. If we develop solid new energy sources - do you think other countries will be buying their oil? I highly doubt it. Russia can collapse relatively easily economically (if you followed them last week - you can easily see why). They don't produce ...

Unfortunately, terrorism still tops the list of what we, as a nation need to squash. Therefore we need to elect somebody with that as a top priority. Obviously other topics need to be addressed, but if this is gets overlooked (ala Clinton) - everything else falls apart.

I have no doubt that USA can do its enemies in economically, if we really try it. Terrorists will have no means to buy weapons, training etc. if we stop the money flow to them. If we develop solid new energy sources - do you think other countries will be buying their oil? I highly doubt it. Russia can collapse relatively easily economically (if you followed them last week - you can easily see why). They don't produce anything of value... they only live another day due to their natural resources. I read a report yesterday that stated if oil dips below $80 - Russia stops making money on their oil. That is not en encouraging report for them. Anyway, back to work...

whoa, down boy. First of all Record Sage, I did not say this fix was done to help mcCain win. I used it as an analogy. Re-read in context.

I'm very aware of the world around me, and that the terrorists have chosen to attack our way of life, and attempt to kill me, my children, my friends, you, and all Americans for a reason, one our governments through the years helped to create. The solution to me lies in a completely different realm than war profiteering and refereeing in civil wars, and is by no means a quick fix. But starting with real homeland security instead of invading a sovereign country where the 9/11 attackers were not, probably could have saved 4000 of our best young Ameri...

whoa, down boy. First of all Record Sage, I did not say this fix was done to help mcCain win. I used it as an analogy. Re-read in context.

I'm very aware of the world around me, and that the terrorists have chosen to attack our way of life, and attempt to kill me, my children, my friends, you, and all Americans for a reason, one our governments through the years helped to create. The solution to me lies in a completely different realm than war profiteering and refereeing in civil wars, and is by no means a quick fix. But starting with real homeland security instead of invading a sovereign country where the 9/11 attackers were not, probably could have saved 4000 of our best young American lives. I see Afghanastan differently and would have preferred we attack the terrorsts there with the full force of the American military might. Things might look very different today. Carter tried to take the lead on energy independence and was defeated handily. The tide is finally beginning to swing to that new paradigm. You make my arguments when you say the American people are fed up with high oil prices and now are clamoring for alternative energy. That's what i've been saying, thanks to high oil prices, (not that I enjoy high oil prices), change is coming. I appreciate your comments and have learned many things from conservative viewpoints.

@deb2012 - let's not get into justifications here... Whatever the US government did or didn't do - there's NOTHING that was done that deserves 9/11. So, please don't go there, you'll NEVER convince me otherwise. There are other ways to display displeasure, etc. - 9/11-type attack is NOT justifiable AFAIC.

The Afghanistan attack is again a political jab. They need to be attacked, and defeated, everywhere they might be. I may disagree with the President on some issue, but on this one - I'm in total agreement. Anyone who sponsors or aids should be held responsible. Iraq was one such country. So is Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan.

I agree with you that no question that 9/11 could've been p...

@deb2012 - let's not get into justifications here... Whatever the US government did or didn't do - there's NOTHING that was done that deserves 9/11. So, please don't go there, you'll NEVER convince me otherwise. There are other ways to display displeasure, etc. - 9/11-type attack is NOT justifiable AFAIC.

The Afghanistan attack is again a political jab. They need to be attacked, and defeated, everywhere they might be. I may disagree with the President on some issue, but on this one - I'm in total agreement. Anyone who sponsors or aids should be held responsible. Iraq was one such country. So is Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan.

I agree with you that no question that 9/11 could've been prevented and since it could've been - it should've been. I don't know if those were our '4000 best' or not, but the fact that they were American is sufficient. Unfortunately, reiterating the past & pinpointing the blame doesn't bring any of those 4000 back, but we, as a country, should most definitely do whatever possible to prevent another 9/11. I just realized you were referring to the fallen soldiers, not 9/11 victims... but 3000+ were lost there, just as American. Wars suck, there's no question there... we lost 40,000+ on the first DAY of WW2 in Normandy... obviously a stark difference in numbers with this war, but any life lost is too many.

Part of the problem with 'attack with full force of US military might' is that there's no political backbone to do such. I totally in agreement with you that this should've been done, but...

The biggest problem, in my view, is the divide in America between the left and the right. It's sad that we seem to only stand together as Americans when we have two huges piles of burning people & buildings behind us... and even that unity doesn't seem to last more than a few months.

I wish I could say that reading typical leftist comments was educational, but unfortunately it's more of a disappointment than education. Don't get me wrong -