For almost a week now, since the craziness in Libya has unfolded and the true extent of the carnage is becoming known, oil futures covering April have risen steadily, including a greater than 2% jump after Col. Death’s male spawn declared that “civil war” would result unless the protesters returned to their homes.

Libya is the 8th biggest exporter in the OPEC cartel, and there is substantial concern that the pandemonium on the streets will spill over into the regular business of cranking out the oil. This has driven prices over $91 a barrel, gaining almost two dollars today alone. All this while it’s still only theoretical. Should things actually affect production or export of black gold, then the prices will shoot up even more dramatically.

All this will translate into higher gas prices back here at home, since oil companies can always be counted on to add a little bit of profit (or a lot of profit) on top of the additional expenses incurred, since they’ve got the perfect excuse to jack up the rates and just shrug and say “wadda you want, there’s a crisis?”

Here’s the latest video on the Libyan crisis:

Finally, a version of the 9/11 First Responders Health Care bill has passed Congress by a vote of 206-60. This will finally give additional long-term medical care and benefits to the firefighters, police, and other emergency crews and other people who were on the site of the World Trade Center bombing, even before the buildings began to come down.

Much like Tricare’s refusal to provide Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy for enlisted personnel and veterans suffering from head-trauma and brain injuries, the refusal and foot-dragging over this initiative was a source of national shame. So many of the Republican party War Hawks, the Tea Party, FoxNews, etc., love talking the big “Let’s go bomb the enemies of freedom!” talk, but are cowards and misers when it comes to supplying the care for those who actually went out and got the job(s) done.

Not surprising. Lots of people like to speak tough from far-away.