Tension rises as China scours the globe for energy

Yet another Alert Reader has drawn attention tothis article about China's ravenous appetite for energy. We would be interested to hear the thoughts of you readers who are in Taiwan or Hong Kong on this issue . . . if you are still reading! One of the problems I have with the media is the simplistic way in which they describe world energy markets and the actors therein. Even the most basic understanding of the way the vast energy market works is adequate to debunk such statements as, "The US is only in the Middle East for oil." If oil is what "we" need, then "we" can buy it, and forego bloody and expensive wars. I add quotations to the "we" because this too is a problem in most of these stories: no differentiation is made between the US government, the US economy, and the multi-national corporations that supply energy to world markets. The result is the idea that somehow all of these three categories of varied actors with varied agendas are under the control of one single, unitary "we." This is just not the case. Having said that, the idea that there is a "they" representing "China" is much more plausible given the number of Chinese firms, both energy-related and otherwise, that are state-run enterprises, and not private entities. Just something that bothers me about a lot of these types of articles. UPDATE: I meant to bring up the mention of Iran in this story . . . certainly doesn't bode well for a multi-lateral diplomatic resolution to the Iranian nuke problem.