Saudi Arabia: Pay us now or pay us later.
Saudi Arabia is trying to enlist other oil-producing countries to support a provocative idea: if wealthy countries reduce their oil consumption to combat global warming, they should pay compensation to oil producers.
via nytimes.com
Amazing, yet as ridiculous as it sounds I'm not sure what other options they think they have.
Without oil their economy is all but nonexistent. The rest of the world needs the oil and, for better or worse, is in a much better place when the Saudi's are more cooperative than less. That's one heck of a bargaining chip.
Of course, it's easy to say we'll just tell them to piss off, and either go with more expensive energy sources or higher prices on theirs. But this ignores the fact that peoples' hatred of "big oil" clashes with their love of "cheap gas" (especially in the US). People talk tough until their wallet gets involved.
