A stunning and revealing examination of oil s indelible impact on the countries that produce it and the people who possess it. Every unhappy oil-producing nation is unhappy in its own way, but all are touched by the resource curse the power of oil to exacerbate existing problems and create new ones. In Crude World, Peter Maass presents a vivid portrait of the troubled world oil has created. He takes us to Saudi Arabia, where officials deflect inquiries about the amount of petroleum remaining in the country s largest reservoir; to Equatorial Guinea, where two tennis courts grace an oil-rich dictator s estate but bandages and aspirin are a hospital s only supplies; and to Venezuela, where Hugo Chávez s campaign to redistribute oil wealth creates new economic and political crises. Maass, a New York Times Magazine writer, also introduces us to Iraqi oilmen trying to rebuild their industry after the...

Introduction 3 1 Scarcity 9 2 Plunder 26 3 Rot 53 4 Contamination 81 5 Fear 101 6 Greed 120 7 Desire 136 8 Alienation 165 9 Empire 185 10 Mirage 199 Conclusion 217 Acknowledgments 227 Appendix A World Crude Oil Reserves 231 Appendix B U.S. Crude Oil Imports 232 Notes 233 Bibliography 259 Index 263