Architect of the Iran Oil Bourse responds to criticism

[Leopolds Ghost]

Link: http://www.eurotrib.com/story/2006/2/24/7575/84230#16

Chris Cook, the Architect of the Iran Oil Bourse, posted a series of messages on a Kos-affiliated weblog in a thread discussing the economics and practical feasibility of an Iran Oil Bourse.

This was in response to a thread on a weblog full of liberal economists
who are critical of the whole "Iran Oil Bourse" theory:

http://www.eurotrib.com/story/2006/2/24/7575/84230

Most of the people on this thread (who seem to be experts on the subject) seem to think that the Iran Oil Bourse will either be inconsequential to the value of the dollar, or will actually fail outright. They do not seem to be worried about us going to war over it.

(Their reasoning seems to be circumstantially borne out by the suggestion that Iran may locate the Bourse in the militarily vulnerable but politically and economically-strategic location of an island in the Strait of Hormuz, which lies off the coast of Dubai.)

The architect of the Bourse disagrees with the skeptics, but not for the reasons suggested. Basically he hints that if people begin dumping the dollar, it is because the dollar is unsound as a reserve currency and has nothing to do with which currency people trade in.

His involvement in the attempt to create an Iran Oil Bourse seems to be motivated by idealistic reasons of reforming the global commodities market by putting it back in the hands of buyers and sellers and creating what he describes as "Islamically sound" (meaning non-usurious, I guess) not-for-profit "Clearing Unions" to fix prices between buyers and sellers.

(please read the whole thread, it is very informative)

More background on Cook, who is the former director of the IPE in London, is in Response #12 to the thread:

http://www.eurotrib.com/story/2006/2/24/7575/84230#12

[kaygore]

1. Very informative--thank you

[sweetheart]

2. Russia and energy nationalism

Russia is working behind the scenes to create an energy-block
in asia that charges the west for its addiction, beneath an umbrella
of missile protection. Europe is taking it hard from the russians
in the natural gas sector, and the new backroom opec is a squeeze
on energy imperialism and its rich-world addicts... make'm pay.