Occidental Petroleum’s (NYSE:OXY) management has been pummeled since the deal with Anadarko Petroleum was announced last spring. Investors and stock analysts alike decried the purchase as being a “value destroyer,” lambasting OXY’s leadership in the process. Of course, over the short run, they’ve been right. OXY’s stock fell from the upper $60’s to the middle $30’s as the deal closed. The magnitude of the deal, the early potential for a fight with Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and the surprise $10 billion buy-in from Warren Buffett to save the day all served to enhance the market’s interest in this tie-up between the two Permian oil giants. Given the stakes, it came as no surprise to savvy market watchers when Carl Icahn entered the fray, with a plan to replace OXY’s board with his own slate of directors. With a billion dollars of his own at stake, and his position “under water,” Mr. […]