In the Pipeline of Fire

Pipeline explosion kills up to 200 in Nigeria

Between 150 and 200 Nigerians were instantly incinerated when locals siphoning gasoline from an overground pipeline near Lagos, Nigeria, caused an explosion today. Nigeria is the biggest oil producer in Africa and the fourth-largest supplier of crude oil to the U.S.; as a consequence, it's become quite wealthy. But in keeping with the notorious "resource curse," that wealth is not widely shared. Most of the country's citizens are poor and desperate, and attempts to siphon off gas and oil from pipelines are common. In other news, citizens of the wealthiest country in the world continued to complain about high gasoline prices, despite those prices being some of the lowest in the developed world.