Black Gold and Blackmail seeks to explain why great powers adopt such different strategies to protect their oil access from politically motivated disruptions. In extreme cases, such as Imperial Japan in 1941, great powers fought wars to grab oil territory in anticipation of a potential embargo by the Allies; in other instances, such as Germany in the early Nazi period, states chose relatively subdued measures like oil alliances or domestic policies to conserve oil. What accounts for this variation? Fundamentally, it is puzzling that great powers fear oil coercion at all because the global market makes oil sanctions very difficult to enforce. Rosemary A. Kelanic argues that two variables determine what strategy a great power will adopt: the petroleum deficit, which measures how much oil the state produces domestically compared to what it needs for its strategic objectives; and disruptibility, which estimates the susceptibility of a state's oil imports to military interdiction—that is, blockade. Because global markets undercut the effectiveness of oil sanctions, blockade is in practice the only true threat to great power oil access. That, combined with the devastating consequences of oil deprivation to a state's military power, explains why states fear oil coercion deeply despite the adaptive functions of the market. Together, these two variables predict a state's coercive vulnerability, which determines how willing the state will be to accept the costs and risks attendant on various potential strategies. Only those great powers with large deficits and highly disruptible imports will adopt the most extreme strategy: direct control of oil through territorial conquest.

For a state to be at risk of oil coercion, it must have some degree of baseline vulnerability. I hypothesize that three variables determine a state's vulnerability to oil coercion. The first is its degree of dependence on foreign sources of oil. For oil coercion to be effective, the target must depend heavily on foreign sources of petroleum. Second, the target's geography matters greatly, because it affects a coercer's ability to block the flow of oil. Island states are particularly susceptible to military blockade. The third variable is the country's relative power, which determines whether or not the state can protect its supply lines.

It is estimated that Americans consume more than 25 percent of the world's oil but have control over less than 3 percent of its proven supply. This extremely unbalanced pattern of consumption makes it possible for foreign governments, corrupt political leaders, terrorist organizations, and oil conglomerates to place the citizens of the United States in a stranglehold of supply and demand. There is no greater proof of this than the direct relationship between skyrocketing gas prices and the exploding wealth of those who control the supply of oil. In Black Gold Stranglehold, Jerome R. Corsi and Craig R. Smith expose the fraudulent science that has been sold to the American people in order to enslave them: the belief that oil is a fossil fuel and a finite resource. On the contrary, this book presents authoritative research, currently known mostly in the scientific community, that oil is not a product of decaying dinosaurs and prehistoric forests. Rather, it is a natural product of the earth. The scientific evidence cited by Corsi and Smith suggests that oil is constantly being produced by the earth, far below the planet's surface, and that it is brought to attainable depths by the centrifugal forces of the earth's rotation. In great detail Corsi and Smith explore the international and domestic politics of oil production and consumption. This includes the wealth and power of major oil conglomerates, the manipulation of world economies by oil-producing states and rogue terrorist regimes, and the political agenda of radical environmentalists and conservationists who obstruct the use of oil reserves currently controlled by the U.S. government. The authors offer an understanding of the dangerous situation America faces because its currency is no longer tied to any precious and truly scarce metals such as gold, as it was until 1973. This situation could easily lead to the devastation of the U.S. economy if Middle Eastern countries are able to enact current plans to accept only the Euro or gold-backed currencies such as the Gold Dinar instead of the U.S. dollar as the standard currency for oil. Black Gold Stranglehold will dramatically change the debate about oil. The significance of its message is sure to cause thoughtful people to reconsider the current dependence of the U.S. economy on imported oil.

The world has changed and evolved variedly since the discovery of oil as a source of energy. And for the most of this evolution, world has exploited and processed oil in more than a thousand ways. The diverse utilities of oil are as magnanimous as water, but its scarce availability makes it a fiercely contested resource. A commodity, which has both political and economic implications. A fuel that holds the infamy of igniting wars more than all other geological resources combined. Even in today's peacetime, the tussle over it continues. International law has failed to reign the abrasive and ugly fight of oil that has ranged over decades. This book holistically analyzes "oil" on the pedestals of politics, economy and law, citing its unmatched relevance to the global discourse.

"In many ways, everything we once knew about energy resources and technologies has been impacted by: the longstanding scientific consensus on climate change and related support for renewable energy; the affordability of extraction of unconventional fuels; increasing demand for energy resources by middle- and low-income nations; new regional and global stakeholders; fossil fuel discoveries and emerging renewable technologies; awareness of (trans)local politics; and rising interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the need for energy justice. Research on these and related topics now appears frequently in social science academic journals-in broad-based journals, such as International Organization, International Studies Quarterly, and Review of International Political Economy, as well as those focused specifically on energy (e.g., Energy Research & Social Science and Energy Policy), the environment (Global Environmental Politics), natural resources (Resources Policy), and extractive industries (Extractive Industries and Society). The Oxford Handbook of Energy Politics synthesizes and aggregates this substantively diverse literature to provide insights into, and a foundation for teaching and research on, critical energy issues primarily in the areas of international relations and comparative politics. Its primary goals are to further develop the energy politics scholarship and community, and generate sophisticated new work that will benefit a variety of scholars working on energy issues"--

Looks at the clash between gas/oil proponents and supports of alternative energies and offers a plan for the future that combines the best of both worlds.

Markets and Conflict: Economics of War and Peace explores the causes, impacts, and linkages of contemporary geopolitics, markets, and conflict along with their economic impacts on all stakeholders. It compiles the most current research and insights about market behaviours during conflicts of different types and severity, detailing how markets actually respond and what readers can do to implement a proactive early-response strategy. Today’s international “order” is one characterized by instability and pervasive danger. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, escalating tension over the status of Taiwan, frozen and active civil wars across dozens of countries, and continued turmoil in the Middle East, including in Syria, Yemen, and Israel, are only some examples of ongoing or potential conflicts. Major and minor armed conflicts flare up or threaten to do so on a continual basis. Market responses to this instability are often irrational and shortsighted. Fear induces volatility in markets, based on panicked efforts to protect individual interests. Markets and Conflict: Economics of War and Peace presents a comprehensive understanding of conflict and market dynamics to enable market participants to make informed judgments. Additionally, it provides lessons related to macro-level dynamics useful to governments and policy analysts. Compiles and analyzes extant literature on how confl ict and markets interact Offers strategies to ease or prevent the effects of confl ict Utilizes a well-structured, clearly written, comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach Presents self-contained chapters each with conceptual overviews and defi nitions