Detrás das aparências

Há indícios de que a escalada retórica do presidente Iraniano, afinal, não é tão destrambelhada quanto parece.
Pelo contrário, «his provocative rhetoric has paid off. He has strengthened his position at home and made himself the toast of the Muslim street. And panic over a possible war sent the Dow plunging 200 points last Friday, wiping out $200 billion in U.S. shareholders' equity, a loss almost equal to the cost of the Iraq war.
And with the price of a barrel of oil spiking $10 to near $70, Iran, which exports 2.5 million barrels daily, has seen revenues rise $25 million a day. Other oil-producing nations, like Hugo Chavez's Venezuela, also are reaping windfall profits.
The jolts to the Dow and NASDAQ, and Tehran's warnings that sanctions could be met with an oil embargo that could send prices to $100 a barrel, seem to have caused second thoughts in the Bush camp about the wisdom of a confrontation.»

Vale a pena ler o artigo completo de Patrick J. Buchanan. Com a lucidez do costume.

Naturalmente, tudo isto também não é um mau negócio para as petrolíferas. E para o petrodólar, por enquanto, também não vai nada mal.