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Robert Newman – History of Oil DVD review

Comedian, author, and political activist Robert Newman delivers an impressive mix of part stand up, part lecture on 100 years of oil.

He is one of the growing number of comedians that are casting a shrewd eye over British politics and policies. Newman challenges school-taught history and gives a superb insight into how oil has affected British foreign policy for over a hundred years.

Based around his stand up act, the DVD features archive footage, props and hilarious satire of prominent politicians and historical figures.

Newman’s historical knowledge is impressive as he charts over 100 years of British and American foreign policy in Iraq and boldly states that the Second World War should be taught in schools as an invasion of Iraq. Whist slightly controversial, Newman is very persuasive and convincing in his arguments as he points out little know facts such as “The FIRST British regiment to be deployed in the First World War, the Dorset regiment, goes to….Basra, 1914, where it is joined by 51 other British divisions.”

Another theory Newman puts forward is the Euro Dollar theory, or as he likes to call it, the ‘magic check book theory’. Newman speculates that the reason for the current invasion of Iraq has little to do with the threat of terrorism and has everything to do with the control of oil. He goes on to explain that in 1971 OPEC decided that the sale of oil barrels had to be conducted in US dollars only. This decision means that the Federal Reserve has in effect, a blank check, as dollars go round the world but the checks never return to the bank.

Then in 2000 the Iraqis changed their Oil for Food program money from a dollar denominated account to a Euro denominated account. This causes the Euro to gain 25% against the dollar which spurs Iran to change to the Euro and then North Korea changes not just its oil transactions into Euros but the entirety of its business transactions. This according to Newman is the worst nightmare of the Federal Reserve as world banks would start flushing out dollars to purchase Euros. Newman believes that this is the real reason America invades Iraq to make an example as it were of the Iraqis.

Newman also asks some serious questions of the how we are to survive when oil has run out. To highlight his concern for our increasing energy consumption he has a bicycle powered streetlamp on stage to really drive the point home. He then points out that that societies have previously collapsed because “their strategies for energy capture became subject to the law of diminishing returns”, not because they just got ‘bored’ of being Romans. Whist his survival suggestions for modern society are amusing I am not entirely sure they are plausible.

Newman’s quirky mannerisms and commanding stage presence makes this DVD an entertaining watch, as he makes the information and his various speculations and theories accessible and indeed entirely acceptable to the viewer. This is defiantly political commentary at its finest.