Bringing the Free Market to Iraq...NOT

QAYYARAH, Iraq -- U.S. forces are cracking down on an unexpected problem in this oil-rich country -- gasoline bootlegging.


Long lines at an inadequate number of gas stations -- a result of decades of underinvestment by dictator Saddam Hussein's government -- have given rise to thousands of illicit gas stands.
In Nineveh and Diyala provinces, U.S. troops are shutting down bootleggers and giving their gas away for free in an effort to control the price of gasoline, protect the livelihoods of gas-station owners and employees, and in the long term, reduce the wait and encourage investment in gas distribution.

The last thing the Bush administration wants to see is small business solving problems that Socialism and CronyCapitalism need to justify their existence.

I can see the ads now:

Small Business opportunity. Prime Locations available! Unlimited growth potential. Benefits include the right to possess weapons up to and including shoulder-fired rockets for protection.

Experience in counter-insurgency, riot-suppression, and bunker construction a plus.

What we need are people with experience in oil and gas and who own a huge cache of weapons.

I suggest we run the ad in Texas.

and in the long term, reduce the wait and encourage investment in gas distribution.

Encourage whom? They're shutting down the people that have. WTF? :smack:

precisely