Out-Flanked: A New War on Terra Arrives with Bush-Lula Ethanol

An excellent article overall -- especially in its exposure of the biofuel scam.  Friends who do a lot of work on agriculture issues tell me that the production of most ethanol uses more petroleum in the form of fertilizers and pesticides than it replaces.

I do have questions about one point you make, however. You write:

"A curious side-event that transpired shortly after the visit was the fine imposed Chiquita Banana Brands International back in Cincinnati, Ohio for paying bribes to right wing paramilitaries back in 2003: a sign that this sort of thing (or for certain unfavorable companies) will no longer be tolerated by the Uribe administration."

I don't really think the Uribe administration played any role in convincing the judge to levy the fine.  Chiquita itself approached the U.S. Justice Department in an effort to wash its hands of the issue.

While Uribe did indicate this weekend that he might ask for the extradition of Chiquita executives, I read this primarily as a move to steal the thunder from opposition lawmakers and do a little damage control in the wake of the paramilitary scandal that has rocked his own administration.   And I don't think we should hold our breath waiting for his Fiscal General to begin investigating Coca-Cola, Harken, Drummond, and Exxon-Mobil.

Uribe also knows that he can call for the extradition of U.S. executives all he wants without ever having to worry about having a potentially embarrassing trial play out in Colombia's courts.  After all, India has been waiting for twenty years for the extradition of Union Carbide CEO Warren Anderson, wanted on over 8,000 counts of assault and negligent homicide because of his role in one of the worst industrial accidents in history in Bhopal, India in 1982.