Will oil be the cause of the third world war?

According to some specialist, as the oil reserves diminish, the tension between the big power nations will grow up.

[edit on 28-4-2006 by tipapa]

I don't think its a question of will it be the cause, rather than has it already been the cause?

Deffinately not a good situation we are in at the moment, and it seems with every passing day it grows worse and worse.

They don't call it resource war for nothing. With only 1/3rd of the earths resources left it's a high stakes game.

Agreed, chissler. From the way I see it, combatively WW3 began on the second of August, 1990, when Iraq invaded Kuwait. It went cold and became hot again on 9/11/01. Now the only question is: how hot is it going to get?

I think it will either be oil, or some country using a nuclear weapon against another; starting the nuclear war.

Well said apc. We need more WATS votes around this damn place. If I had one remaining it would be to you for that. Short post but very well said.

USA has been attacking for a period of time know, this will only turn into an all out war when somebody finally fires back. Personally I only see it as a matter of time.

World War II was fought to defend our freedom, World War III is going to be used to fight for a recourse that will only be around for another while anyways. Personally I think we all adapt, and turn to a new recourse.

World war III? I think it will be more a case of more lies and sitting back watching the Middle East implode. Personally, I can't wait. This is all such a disgraceful mess that no longer has any one source of blame. To the leaders that desire blood - do what you will, just don't waste our time with b.s. reasoning. Do it already. There's no good or evil, just too many brain dead bullies fighting in the sandpit. And yell and scream about your god or our god or freedom, whatever... it's all about money. Open a book, find a quote, and off you go to kill. Oops, I mean, send someone else off to kill.

Id imagine that we wont see anything like the scale of world war two, but a series of regionalised conflicts like iraq, occuring wherever theres an abundance (or was an abundance) of natural recources. I think that the western worlds industialised economies will fold long before it gets to the level of a world war.

We in the west are only rich and industrialised becuase theres fuel to put in our machines. Take that away and were dead in the water, we cant go off invading otther nations with no oil to put in our tanks, we cant import cabbages from argentina that grow naturally in our backyards, we cant take holidays to the costa del sol twice a year, and we cant chomp our way through thousands of disposable plastic goods each year. Of course there are alternatives in the form of biomass, wind power, nuclear, electric mass transit, permaculture etc, but its too comlicated and fiddley an alternative to replace the "one size fits all" characteristic that oil has (as in itl fuel everything).

The question isnt so much a technical question but a lifestyle one. People dont want to go to work on electric trains or buses, or dig over their gardens for potatoes, or give up their starbucks coffes fixes, their sweatshop produced Gap jeans, their disposable razors and drinks bottles, their cars, their stereos.
Sustainable energy and culture makes NO PROFITS for the capitalist west. at least not enough to ensure that the american/western economy ticks over and keeps us as the rich men at the top of the world. Theres just too much to loose for them.
No oil will stay until its too late. altetnatives will come, but it will be peicemeal token gestures, too little to late.

The biggest wars well see are civil ones as hundreds of businesses collapese from the reciession caused by oil, and people are left with to means of supporting themelsves or their families. It wont be nice