Chevron's got someheadaches to deal with: inNigeria it facesongoinghostilities from local thugs, and in Ecuador, it's fighting claims that itsTexaco unit engaged in toxic-waste dumping.
Moreover, the alacrity with which other Arab governments have jumped to back the Khalifas and the silence of Western governments suggest that the real aim of Bahrain's rulers may be to forestall local Shia repercussions should hostilities between the West and Iran break out.