At the end of the day, the choice to continue as a destitute, international pariah or chart a new course is North Korea's alone to make.

VOA: standard.2009.05.30

GTL, tar sands, ethanol and other alternatives will become more economic by the day (see chart 2).

ECONOMIST: Why the world is not about to run out of oil

Trouble is, if spare capacity is all up to the Saudis now, and the most they can do is 3 million barrels a day, the chart is already out of date.

FORBES: OPEC Quota Flap Illustrates Deep Divisions

That 50-day moving average on the daily chart crossed below the 200-day in early May and continued downward.

FORBES: 3 Stocks To Unload (Or Possibly Short)