Nick Fountain

So that is the what and why of OPEC, an organization of the biggest oil countries that got together in order to fight back against the Seven Sisters, this sort of cartel of oil companies.

And at first, the OPEC countries thought they would wield their power by negotiating, kind of like collective bargaining for better contracts.

It was a grievance organization?

Or at least wouldn't give them what they wanted.

The power was still with the oil companies.

And OPEC was kind of just an industry group.

It would be more than a decade before OPEC countries would realize their power.

Together, they could control oil prices.

Which gets us to our next question from listener Valerie.

Why and how did OPEC start to control oil prices?

Why?

What?

When?

How?

Why, what, when, how did OPEC start to control oil prices?

Well, it turns out there was kind of a breakout moment.

It is an all-out war.

Shortly after the war started, the U.S.

sent plane loads of arms and supplies to support Israel.

And a bunch of the Arab oil producing countries did not like this.