China Syndrome

I was reading in Businessweek about how the US is screwing the pooch where alternative energies are concerned ("America Sits Out the Race," August 2-August 8, 2010). It's actually been something that keeps popping up in that magazine, one way or another. China has been racing ahead with it, with something like $35 billion invested in alternative energies in 2009. This easily more than double what the US has done. The most frustrating thing about it is that there is a vital market here just waiting to be tapped, and the US's captivity to Big Oil and Big Coal on energy policy is keeping us out of it. Now, maybe it'll be a "panic button" kind of thing ala Sputnik, where the US will be made acutely aware of how behind it is on this (and the likely $100+ barrels of oil will eventually help grease those wheels), and the US will suddenly get serious on this issue. Maybe. But meantime, China's marching steadily onward on it. Now, I'm not one of those scaredy-cats where China is concerned. Our media likes to demonize China, and I'm not that way. They are, however, making the right decisions where alternative energy is concerned, and our country simply isn't.