You can count on the democRATs to oppose mining and refining. The EPA will have to be reigned in and care will have to be taken in refining plant process selection and facility design.
That was an unusually well-reasoned and written piece. The writer is meaured in his rhetoric, and full explians each point without ignoring or dismissing objections. thank you for that.
I think when the right people (which includes the right money) want movement, brifges are made, and bariers are lowered. AI wants electricity, and Google and Amazon and Microsoft are getting movement are micro-nukes that would have been completely out-of-bounds a decade ago.
1) never allow the Gaia Worshipers to sabotage national security and industrial independence like this again.
2) Cooperate with and pool resources with close allies to the greatest extent possible to ensure independent supply
3) Maintain larger stockpiles for national security. We should be doing the same with grains, metals, oil, weapons, medicines and ammunition
Just start the Greenland invasion already
Stop hyperventilating. period.
The 17 rare earth elements (REEs) are: lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, promethium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium, lutetium (the 15 lanthanides), along with scandium and yttrium. Despite their name, most are relatively abundant in the Earth’s crust, but they are difficult to separate from one another and are not often found in concentrated deposits. Most ree deposits do not have all the rees.
“...difficult to separate from one another...” is an understatement. Often they are chemically very similar to other ree’s, so require strong caustic solvents at high temperature and pressure to separate them. Which produces a lot of very toxic pollutants.
Several sites have been proposed, all shut down by treehuggers.
“China accuses U.S. of deliberately causing panic over rare earth controls, says it is open to talks”
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/16/china-trump-xi-rare-earth-tariff-trade-war.html
Not like we don’t have them here, but dims love to practice NIMBY while using their cell phones and driving there coal powered er ah electric cars full of rare earth(actually not so rare) metals
Mining and refining them, however, is often very expensive and very complex.
From memory...
China is the ONLY refiner for many of the most important Rare Earth minerals.
“At its 2023 Investor Day, Tesla engineers announced that the next-generation drive unit will use zero rare earth elements entirely, relying on optimized stator design and high-coercivity ferrite or alternative magnet materials.”
So is Tesla’s use going to be “zero” in December because they’re not needed, or not available?
What about Ford’s need?
GM’s need?
Bkmk
What the Chinese are probably trying to do is to muscle their way into the US motor vehicle market.
If California requires say 10% of SUVs to be EVs, then Ford, GM and Stellantis would have to get them from China.
There’s at least one reason the top Ford guy was gushing over Chinese EVs.
It may be that the Big 3 might not be able to sell into California. Dealerships on their deathbeds will demand Chinese products.
What the UAW lacks in literary skill it will make up for using voice volume.
Economy/stock market related:
“Regional Banks Crash As More Credit “Cockroaches” Emerge”
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/regional-banks-crash-more-credit-cockroaches-emerge
“Just when the market was starting to finally freak out - with a one month delay - about the Tricolor and First Brands bankruptcy following yesterday’s fingerpointing session between JPM’s Jamie Dimon and various private credit firms in which both accused each other of harboring more credit “cockroaches”, this morning the credit freak out went to 11 as two regional US banks crashed after they both disclosed problems with loans involving allegations of fraud, adding to concern that more cockroaches are indeed emerging in borrowers’ creditworthiness.
Shares of Zions Bancorp plunged 10% after it disclosed a $50 million charge-off for a loan underwritten by its wholly-owned subsidiary, California Bank & Trust, in San Diego. And Western Alliance Bancorp tumbled as much as 11% after it said it’s dealing with a borrower that failed “to provide collateral loans in first position.” i.e., there was fraud, just like in the First Brands case.”