www.weeklystandard.com by Irwin M. Stelzer 02/25/2003 12:00:00 AM Irwin M. Stelzer, contributing writer

GASOLINE PRICES are up by over 50 cents per gallon, have passed $2 in some places, and show no signs of moderating. Venezuela, one of our major suppliers, is in an uproar, with unions curtailing oil production. Never mind: We have a reliable supplier to fill the supply gap--Iraq. Our imports from that charter member of the axis of evil rose 24 percent last month, to 1.2 million barrels per day, representing one-third of that country's exports under the U.N. oil-for-food program (or, more aptly, oil-for-Johnnie Walker and aluminum tubes).

Not a good situation. So bad, indeed, that Hollywood types, feeling guilty about the share of the earth's resources that they consume and the pollution that they create (from driving Hummers, not from appearing on television), want us all to give up our safe SUVs and cruise Beverly Hills in prototype vehicles that don't use gasoline.

Meanwhile, we have some 600 million barrels entombed in our Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and are planning to up that to 700 million by 2005. Since we import about 10 million barrels per day, that comes to about a two month supply if all imports are cut off (or four months if we assume that Mexico, Canada, and other non-OPEC suppliers keep the oil flowing).

Unlike the biblical Joseph, who had a plan for the use of his stored-up surpluses when the fat years ended, we only have a plan for putting oil into the SPR, not for getting it out. Just last week Spencer Abraham, our secretary of energy--and no fool--informed us that the Reserve "has nothing to do with price; it's all about meeting shortages." A variation on this theme is the oft-repeated statement that "we shouldn't use the reserve unless we really need it."

This may rankle some economists, but it seems to make sense to Washington policy types whose ability to handle complex economic theories, such as "supply and demand determine price," is minimal. They are after all, too busy studying a stimulus package, formulating an energy policy, and considering how to save Social Security to have time to deal with economic issues!

The cost of our inability to devise a draw-down strategy is far from trivial. The 1991 Gulf war saw crude prices top $40 per barrel, and the economy was in turmoil. But we refused to use the Reserve: After all, it's not about price or, it seems, about recession either. More recently, with prices rising to around $35, and the economy weak, the guardians of our economy and of our energy policy have decided to hold onto every drop of oil in the Reserve. After all, we might "need" it some day.

Unless we get over the notion that the SPR sits in those holes in the ground to cope only with "physical shortages"--a concept too vague to be used as a guide, and one that anyhow gets reflected in the price of crude--we will continue to face costly--and in part unavoidable--price volatility. The SPR should be used as a tool to damp down such volatility, whether that volatility results from a war in the Middle East, an uproar in Venezuela, or any other cause. We have, after all, had periods of volatility without supply disruptions, and it is volatility that imposes huge costs on the macroeconomy.

The problem is that we don't want to turn bureaucrats in the Department of Energy into oil traders, guessing whether an upward movement in price is merely a spike or instead a change induced by durable underlying changes in the supply and/or demand for crude oil. So we might explore the possibility of selling options to buy the oil we have stored, so as to (a) convert the SPR into an earning asset, with the proceeds used to maintain it at the desired level; and (b) let the market signal when withdrawals are indicated--which would be when the options "come into the money."

Is all of this feasible? I'm not certain. But I am certain that we need a rational policy to decide when to use our Strategic Petroleum Reserve, when to add to it, and how large it should be. For when the desert dust settles in Iraq, we will still be heavily dependent on that unstable area of the world for our oil supplies. Russia, Africa, and other regions may be increasing their role in supplying the world with oil, but the Middle East still contains the low-cost supplies and excess capacity that allow it to dominate world oil trade.

Irwin M. Stelzer is director of regulatory studies at the Hudson Institute, a columnist for the Sunday Times (London), a contributing editor to The Weekly Standard, and a contributing writer to The Daily Standard.

www.jacksonvilleprogress.com From the Booth - By Rick Watson

Words like "snow" and "sleet" are in the forecast for some portions of North Texas, so why not think of spring training?

I know, there are state high school basketball playoffs going on. The Region 14 basketball race is in the home stretch, and isn't it wild?

That is all covered so well by the rest of your JDP sports page, I thought maybe we could talk a little baseball. Often, some of you E-mail me, call, or just visit.

Would you share some of your favorite baseball thoughts? Some of you remember back to the Jacksonville Jacks. My friend, Merv Dawson has often talked about the days when J'ville had a pro baseball team. That was before I came to town, but maybe some of you have a memory of that time that is special. Or maybe the old Dallas and Fort Worth minor league teams. Bobby Bragan was a big part of baseball in the D-FW area, and I once had a chance to have lunch with him. It went about four hours and I still didn't get enough of his great baseball stories.

How about the Houston Colt 45's? We went to a game at the old stadium to see the Cardinals, and Stan Musial in his final swing through the National League. I think fans enjoy reminiscing about any sport, but baseball seems to have a special hold on people.

I still remember the first time I walked into what was then Briggs Stadium to see the Detroit Tigers. Even before you walked up the ramp to the seating area, the smells came over your senses. You could sort out hot dogs, sauerkraut, various drinks, popcorn and more. But mixed in was fresh cut grass, and something you could only identify as "old stadium smell". Very pleasant, but very distinctive. The Tigers had been at Trumbull Avenue since the early 1900's.

It was the odor of history.

Walk up the ramp, and through the portal to the seating area, and the first glimpse of the field was literally breathtaking. The grass was greener than any green. The seats, all painted a deeper green. The walls and the signs completed a mosaic that was almost cathedral-like. The Tigers taking infield, leaning on the rails talking to fans, running in the field, were dressed in the most perfect white, with the blue and orange trim. I think for a fan, the first time you see a major league park remains the fondest memory.

That day I saw Joe DiMaggio hit a home run. I saw Hal Newhouser and Whitey Ford pitch. But the all-encompassing first view of the inside of a major league ballpark tops it all.

As years went by, fortune often touched me. I have seen Ted Williams homer. Roberto Clemente just play ball. Ernie Banks at Wrigley Field. I have laughed in the Astros locker room with people like Biggio, Bagwell, Richard, Ryan and other stars that also happen to be very nice people. I have eaten in the Astrodome pressbox with Don Drysdale, Duke Snider, and the diminutive story teller, Donald Davidson. I once had dinner with Yogi Berra, and it was like I had grown up on The Hill in St. Louis, with him, Joe Garagiola and the rest of the gang.

Spring training brings back so many memories. The one piece of mail I look forward to each year, more than any other, is "The Sporting News" spring training issue. I remember playing in the spring. The first workouts when the weather and the gloves are fresh. Everyone on the team thinks "this is our year." It may be the purest feeling in sports. I liked being 13 and of all the hits you got that season, the first one over the hedges and into the coal yard was always the best. I liked the first workouts in high school and college, before the reality of the season set in. Before I found out there were pitchers who lived in a different world than I inhabited.

It was even better than getting traded from a sixth place team to a first place team (although that is one of my best in season memories). Got a favorite from playing...watching...listening? I hope so. It is a little early I guess, but it is time for those spring training dreams.

Rick Watson is sports director for eight area radio stations, including KEBE 1400 AM and KLJT 102.3 FM, where Indians football is broadcast. Watson can be reached by e-mail to rickw@wallerbroadcasting.com.

www.timesstar.com110801203218,00.html By Josh Suchon STAFF WRITER

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Yorvit Torrealba of the San Francisco Giants can't help smiling when he passes an Arizona gas station that is open 24 hours and has no lines. It was much different this past winter back home in Venezuela.

"It would be a day or two that you would wait for the gas to get to the gas station," Torrealba said. "The thing is, once it did arrive, the people made big lines. It would be 3-4 hours long. Where I live, I know everybody, so I don't have to wait in the long lines. But for my friends, it was messed up. Some people would spend the night waiting in line just to get gas in their cars."

Torrealba, who quietly put together a nice rookie season as the backup to Benito Santiago, never feared for his life as the South American nation underwent political and economic turmoil.

But coming off the euphoria of his rookie season in the big leagues and being in the World Series, it was disheartening for him to return home and see what had become of his country.

"It's definitely frustrating," Torrealba said. "I know that Venezuela is a great country. A lot of people don't like the president and don't like the rules. It's tough. I love my country.

"You want to go somewhere, and you are afraid of what's going to happen, whether they are going to be killing people or what. One day, it was all right and everybody was happy. The next day, almost half the country take to the streets and argue about the president."

Torrealba didn't have the misfortune of some major-leaguers.

Houston outfielder Richard Hidalgo was wounded in the left arm in an attempted car jacking. Anaheim Angels pitcher Francisco Rodriguez said his grandmother and uncles were robbed three times in one week at gunpoint because the men thought the World Series hero's family members had money.

Instead, Torrealba stayed mostly in his neighborhood and spent time with his family.

"If I go to a neighborhood that I haven't been before, I definitely have to be careful," he said. "They know ballplayers have more money and they might try to do something to you. Each player in his own neighborhood is all right though. Most of the time, I stay in my neighborhood with my family, my wife, my son."

At Scottsdale Stadium, players arrive and breakfast is waiting for them in the kitchen. After workouts, lunch is waiting for them. A big refrigerator has beers, sodas and waters for the players.

Back in Venezuela, the owner of the biggest beer distributor took part in the strike designed to force President Hugo Chavez's ouster.

"For two months, we didn't have beer, we didn't have soda, we didn't have some food we need to eat," Torrealba said. "What we did was buy big bunches. Like I'd buy the biggest package of rice that I could find. One day, you could buy food. The next day, you couldn't. You would never know what to expect.

"There's been a lot of crime and other stuff. It's tough when you are sitting in your house and you need money to support your family."

RAIN FORECAST: The Giants intrasquad game this morning is in jeopardy because of a storm headed to Arizona that is expected to keep the Phoenix area wet for two days. No veterans were expected to play in the game, but manager Felipe Alou was eager to see some of the youngsters play.

ONE-HOPPERS: Individual game tickets for the 2003 season (opening day excluded) go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the Giants Web site at sfgiants.com, the Pacific Bell Park ticket office, all Giants Dugout Store locations and all Tickets.com locations. ... Thursday's Cactus League opener will be the first of 13 exhibition games airing on 680 AM.

www.caller.com By Janell Ross Caller-Times February 25, 2003

Enyely C. Pachas receives reading help Monday from Carolina Guerrero. Pachas and two other Venezuelans received scholarships from the Pan American Round Tables of Texas.

When Enyely Pachas, a second-year hotel-motel management major at Del Mar College, sits down to work at one of the school's computer stations she looks a lot like the 15 other students in the room.

But until a Monday afternoon scholarship ceremony, Pachas was one of a small group of Del Mar College students caught in the middle of a political and economic crisis in Venezuela, her home country.

"I cannot begin to tell you how grateful I am for this help," Pachas said. "If I didn't have some kind of support soon, I could not be here."

A general strike in Venezuela, which officially began Dec. 2 and ended Feb. 4, aimed at forcing the country's president to call for new elections, thrust the country into economic turmoil. Despite the end of the strike, many bank accounts are frozen to prevent bank runs and many Venezuelans have lost their jobs. And there is no gasoline to get people to the few remaining jobs.

Pachas, along with fellow Venezuelans Ingrid Merrick and Natasha De Campos, were granted emergency scholarships, totaling $4,800, from the local membership of the Pan American Round Tables of Texas. The scholarships will cover the cost of each woman's tuition this semester.

Pan American Round Tables is a non-profit organization founded in 1944 by women wanting to encourage people living in every part of the American continent to better understand one another.

"With this help, I fell like I can breathe again," De Campos said Monday at a press conference at Del Mar. "Like I can think again."

The three women, in their 20s, had been able to finance their studies at Del Mar with campus work-study jobs, savings and family assistance until late last year.

"The people in my country, they want to work," said Pachas. "But, we are also a democratic people who want to live under a democratic government. So people are willing to make incredible sacrifices."

For Pachas' family, the strike has meant that her mother's Venezuelan school uniform and decoration company has no new orders to fill, no workers and no income.

For Merrick, Venezuela's woes have meant that her mother, who teaches Spanish literature, and father, who is a contractor, have been utterly unable to send her any money since December. In fact, when Merrick tried to return to Venezuela to look for work, her older sister called and asked her not to come home.

The family could not scrape together enough money to buy enough gas to get the family's car from their Caracas home to the airport in the same city.

De Campos' situation is similar. Her mother's Caracas boutique has sold almost no merchandise for months and has been closed since early December.

Del Mar Development Office staff approached the Pan American Round Tables of Texas with the three women's stories.

While the group provides scholarships to Del Mar students each semester, the scholarships granted to the three Venezuelan women are the first round of emergency aid group members at Monday's ceremony can recall granting.

Contact Janell Ross at 886-3758 or rossj@caller.com

abcnews.go.com — By Patrick Markey

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - An explosion rocked a Spanish Embassy building and another blast hit the front of the Colombian consulate in the Venezuelan capital Caracas early on Tuesday, buckling steel gates and blowing out windows in nearby buildings. Five people were injured.

A security guard and two people were injured at the Colombian consulate building, where shards of glass and concrete debris from the badly damaged facade lay scattered across the street, authorities said. Two others were also hurt by fragments at the Spanish embassy site.

The blasts came after President Hugo Chavez, whose self-styled "Bolivarian Revolution" promises to ease poverty, accused the United States and Spain of siding with his enemies and warned Colombia he may break off diplomatic ties.

"If this had not been at two in the morning and instead at two in the afternoon we would have had a lot of dead from the impact," Chacao district mayor Leopoldo Lopez told reporters.

Police officials could not immediately say what caused the two explosions.

At the cooperation suboffice of the Spanish embassy in the east of the capital, the gate of the building was blown off and a hole punched in its wall; across the street, windows of another building were smashed. The blast at the Colombian consulate, not far from the Spanish embassy site, ripped into the glass facade of the four-story building.

Leaflets scattered at both sites referred to the "Bolivarian Liberation Front," a previously unheard of group.

"Our revolution will not be negotiated, only deepened," one of the leaflets read.

Venezuela's bitter political struggle between Chavez and his opponents has often flared into violence and street clashes; media outlets critical of the president have been the targets of grenade attacks.

INTERNATIONAL CONCERN OVER ARREST

The Venezuelan leader's criticisms of the United States and Spain on Sunday followed expressions of international concern over the arrest of Carlos Fernandez, a prominent opposition businessman who was charged with rebellion for leading a two-month strike to pressure Chavez into accepting elections.

Venezuela's crisis has drawn in the international community, with leaders fearing the world's fifth largest oil supplier could slide deeper into violence as Chavez allies and enemies battle over his government.

The U.S., Spain and four other countries have backed efforts by the Organization of American States (OAS) to broker a deal on elections to defuse the crisis. But the talks have been caught up in wrangling and Chavez on Sunday appeared to brush aside members of the six-nation group.

He warned OAS chief Cesar Gaviria, who is chairing the talks for three months, not to "step out of line."

Chavez on Sunday also criticized Colombia after a cabinet minister in the neighboring country said the Venezuelan leader had met with left-wing rebel leaders.

Chavez and his foes have been locked in a fierce political battle over his rule since April when he survived a short-lived coup by rebel military officers. The president has recently hardened his stance against critics he brands "terrorists" trying to topple him by sabotaging the oil industry.

The opposition strike began on Dec. 2; it severely disrupted the vital oil exports that account for half of Venezuelan government revenues. The shutdown fizzled out in February though the oil sector is still struggling to recover.

But Chavez, elected in 1998, has so far resisted calls for an early vote of confidence on his leadership from opponents. They accuse him of ruling like a dictator and inspiring supporters to violence with his fiery speeches laced with threats and class warfare rhetoric.

His self-styled "revolutionary" government mingles left-leaning policies, such as land reform and cheap credits for the poor, with nationalism styled after 19th century South American liberation hero Simon Bolivar.

A grenade exploded in January at the Venezuelan residence of the ambassador from Algeria. That explosion followed bomb threats made against several foreign embassies in Caracas and the German, Canadian and Australian embassies were evacuated.