Around the world last week, blood was roiling knee high in the streets, a full two weeks before Dia de los Muertos. I was horribly confused.

It seemed some rogue elements in northern Iraq decided to get their jollies by playing piñata with a hornet’s nest known to the rest of the world as Turkey.

After a few lashes, oil rocketed to $90.07, and that was a good thing for the rebel Kurds. No one likes to bleed alone and the bludgeoning of old oil records appeased the Turks just enough to keep them gnashing their teeth while removing glass and gravel from their raw wounds.

It was also a good thing for investors, who--needless to say--lost their nerve and sold off with oil dropping back under $88. But don’t let that fool you, it’s coming back up.

Way up. According to the fund manager of Investec’s Global Energy Fund, oil’s going to hit $150 in the next two years, based on simple supply and demand models.

None of that mattered by Friday, though. It was all done, played out and tired.

What matters today is another example of the futility of American reporting practices.

It seems two more important pieces of yet to be history have been ignored. But that’s why you have me to dig through the doldrums and discover what the Wall Street Journal and New York Times overlook.

So here I am to show you how another move towards hybrid mobilization in a major delivery ring has taken place.

And the company? None other than FedEx Express.

The hybrid truck, made by Iveco--a division of Fiat--and based on a Daily transport van, will be revealed at the European Road Transport Show in Amsterdam October 24 through November 3.

After the show, ten of these trucks will become active in the European fleet, bringing the total number of hybrids operated by FedEx Express to 100 globally.

Now I know 100 vehicles might not sound like a lot, but with major companies like FedEx, which operates 70,000 vehicles, it is imperative that the delivery vehicles be up to snuff, and naturally the switch will be made slowly, as their old vehicles buy the farm.

But already in the U.S. they have been proven to be an overwhelming success and have logged over 100 million miles.

Their success is rooted in the nature of the delivery beast. Incessant stopping, starting and idling have reduced the diesel delivery truck’s miles per gallon to a paltry four. And that’s where the brilliance of a hybrid truck really shines.

When a normal truck would be idling--wasting fuel and spewing out pollution--a hybrid truck shuts off the diesel engine and relies on electric power only, saving 40% to 60% of total fuel consumption.

And like I said, while hybrid trucks have been proven, they were made by different manufacturers.

However, when you look at the laundry list of parts found on the Iveco truck the story pans out the same.

They have. . .

• A Bosch motor and electronics

• A ZF transmission

• And a Johnson Controls battery pack

If you’re not familiar with those companies, let me just say that they’re the crème de la crème when it comes to their fields of expertise in hybrid manufacturing.

Also overlooked by major news outlets so far has been A123Systems.

As a big-time developer and producer of nanophosphate lithium-ion batteries, they’re one of the surest bets when it comes to the development of said technology.

And on Monday an announcement that $30 million in investment support from hard hitters like General Electric, Proctor & Gamble, Alliance Capital and Motorola (to name but a few) has come through the wires.

This $30 million brings the total capital invested in the company to a heartwarming $132 million.

Now if that isn’t news I don’t know what is!

But the best part of this whole rigmarole is that it’s so low on the mainstream media’s radar. While these massive deals are going down they’re always just one step behind, while FedEx and GE fund the development of the future of transportation.

Reminding you as always to keep your hopes in the future but your sense in the present,

Field Palmer