I have not been very active at blogging the last several days. Instead, I have concentrated on grant writing, hoping to get money to conduct more research. This article from today's NY Times piqued my interest: Oil Experts See Long-Term Risks to Iraq Reserves. Iraq may not have oil available to fund its own reconstruction unless there are investments in preserving the oil fields. The large oil reserves are at risk of becoming satured with water, and US is doing nothing at the moment to prevent it. So, in the debate over whether to make money to Iraq a loan or a grant, the mechanisms for generating revenue within Iraq were not discussed.