when bad thinking happens to good people...

Here's an example of the superficial thinking that plagues political thinking. The caption in the picture reads "we get to the point". But what, exactly, is the point? We know that:
1. the Middle East has oil. And,
2. the U.S. uses oil. And,
3. the U.S. has troops in the Middle East.

For many people, these three propositions somehow cohere into a necessary causal relationship, i.e. sentiments such as "No blood for oil." Now, I see how these 3 propositions are tangentially related: the word "oil" is in 1 + 2, the word "U.S." is in 2 + 3, and the word "Middle East" is in 1 + 3. And apparently, that's the extent of the analysis needed.

But every economist says that the best guarantee of cheap oil is to coddle Middle East dictators and always maintain the status quo. In other words, the best way to get cheap oil is to never interfere in the Middle East. Basically the opposite of the theory that is exemplified by this advertisement. Nevermind, that kind of thinking doesn't fit on a poster.

- dane