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When is what the world knows as an iconic moment, perhaps not an iconic moment? On April 9, 2003, a large statue of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was taken down by U.S. security forces in Baghdad's Firdos Square. The two-hour toppling took place in front of the Palestine Hotel, where journalists from around the world had been staying. And many reporters hailed it as a sign the U.S. was prevailing in the war and bringing Iraqis closer to liberation.

It's been 100 days since the oil began gushing into the Gulf of Mexico. BP CEO Tony Hayward is being packed off to Russia for his bungling of the explosion's aftermath, but tainted managers aren't the only thing big oil is shipping overseas; they're also moving operations to countries with lax regulations.

Peter Maass, a contributing writer to the New York Times Magazine, explains the consequences of our addiction to oil. In Crude World: The Violent Twilight of Oil, he presents the problems oil has created around the world, from Saudi Arabia to Venezuela to Guatemala and Nigeria.

Events: Peter ...