[null and void]

With platinum and palladium mined in just two other countries, Russia and South Africa, Schweitzer said GM's cancellation would put the U.S. at a strategic risk and hurt the mining industry.

That is precisely the goal.

[Smokin' Joe]

With platinum and palladium mined in just two other countries, Russia and South Africa, Schweitzer said GM's cancellation would put the U.S. at a strategic risk and hurt the mining industry.

That is precisely the goal.

Yep. As we have seen in the oil industry every time there is a price runup and spike with a subsequent collapse in prices, experienced people leave or get shut out by the implosion and either retire or go find work in another field to feed their families.

The drain of experienced people makes it hard to restart operations later, makes it unnecessarily expensive to do so, and damages the industry.

Platinum group metal production is as much a part of national security as oil, especially with the metal needed as a catalyst in many industries, not just catalytic converters for automobiles.

[cookcounty]

"With platinum and palladium mined in just two other countries, Russia and South Africa, Schweitzer said GM's cancellation would put the U.S. at a strategic risk and hurt the mining industry."

And for those worried about the environment and wanting to "think globally":

Which of the three US, South Africa, Russia, or the US mines with far greater sensitivity to the environment than the other two?????

[Gondring]

I recall, nearly 2 decades ago, pointing out how South Africa was forced to change when Russia opened up to us as a source for these and other metals. Economic geology has geopolitical effects, no pun intended.