The Lion, the Switch, and the ... Oh, Forget It

Neoconservatives and greens find common cause on energy conservation

And the lion shall lie down with the lamb indeed. A strange political alliance is taking shape in Washington, D.C., as neoconservatives anxious to sap political strength from their Middle Eastern nemeses form common cause with enviros anxious to slow global warming. What unites them? A desire to reduce oil consumption. The neocons who pushed for the Iraq invasion largely come out of the academy and think-tank circuit, and do not have the political and economic ties to the oil and gas industry that, well, just about everybody else in the administration does. So, being idealists, they are looking for ways to reduce oil use and the disproportionate geopolitical power of Islamic theocracies, particularly Saudi Arabia. Thus, an Institute for the Analysis of Global Security proposal to invest heavily in clean cars, plant-based fuels, and fuel-cell technology is being supported by both the Natural Resources Defense Council and ex-CIA director James Woolsey. Strange times, these.