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21 replies

lemmy.ml

These rare-earths embargos are going to cause so many shakeups of western-aligned governments, alienating their domestic capitalists from the pro-US ruling parties.

The US cannot transmute USD into rare-earth minerals, and these countries are going to have to come down from the clouds to reality, and either pick China over the US, or accept ruin of their economies.

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☂️-reply
lemmy.ml

they can also coup latin america for it's reserves.

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sp3ctr4lreply
lemmy.dbzer0.com

True as well, but afaik, Canada has a considerably large amount of proven RE reserves, basically the most after China and Russia.

My numbers there might be slightly off, but I'd be thinking Central and South America would be primarily getting couped for oil or perhaps farm/pasture land.

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sh.itjust.works

The bottleneck is refining capacity, not ore. A bunch of countries have rare earths, but only China has the factories, skilled workforce and scientists.

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sp3ctr4lreply
lemmy.dbzer0.com

This is also true and very immediately relevant for the near/medium term.

But, if the US as a state/cabal of rulers is even still at all capable of long term planning, presumably they would realize the near medium and long term... 'problems' that could be 'solved' by at least starting the process of controlling the territory with the thing they need now and almost certainly will need in the future.

I mean this is simplifying but think of it like iron in a civilization game. Its a critical strategic resource... very likely 'worth' fighting over, unless you are exceedingly competent in many other realms of statecraft.

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lemmy.ml

There's no near term solution to the problem.

Unlike a strategy game where you can just seize a strategic resource and immediately begin using it, in the real world it would be many years or possibly even decades after seizing a territory before they'd be able to actually get any use out of it. Everything from finding workers to developing infrastructure to buying insurance becomes really hard once a territory becomes disputed.

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I agree with all that.

But we are both, or each, more rational than rabid US Christian Fascists and Neoliberal Zionist/Corporate Fascists.

As I think is well evidenced by the US's objectively delusional uh, 'foreign policy stance', toward Iran.

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TimeRoninreply
lemmy.world

What is RE in this context? I genuinely have never have heard of it before

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lemmy.ml

Rare earth as in rare earth metals I'd assume based on context.

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Yttrium’s most critical use is in thermal barrier coatings that protect jet engines from extreme heat, as well as in in heat-resistant coatings for semiconductor manufacturing tools, ceramics, phosphors and lasers.

the shovel makers won't be happy about this.

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Japan months away from running out of yttrium as China cuts exports 98% | Spyke