Oil & the bigger picture

In case you were wondering, oil prices will stop rising... eventually.

Now more than ever it's looking like only one thing can stop this uncontrollable rally.

A recession in the U.S. economy.

While this is not likely to happen soon, it will become an ever-growing reality by early 2005.

A global economic slowdown has been in the works since the start of 2004.

Rising oil prices will likely be the last straw.

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The idea of a confluence of factors giving rise to the recent surge in oil prices is a very worryng predicament.

You would think the world has managed to figure out how to prevent oil prices from rising too rapidly.

It hasn't.

It seems we're just as vulnerable now as we were 10 or even 30 years ago.