IF the global economy is stripped down to its most basic, we will find that chemicals power the economy. Energy is combusted hydrocarbons. Food is digested carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Even a smartphone is a neatly arranged pile of refined elements – gallium, neodymium, lithium – each a chemical asset.
The scramble for oil defined the 20th century. I believe the conflict over rare earths will define this one. But there’s a flaw in this logic: We’re fighting over chemicals that take millions of years to form while ignoring the ones we can grow in a single season.
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