What the heck does this mean?
"weren't so unwilling to do what it takes to get past the "Oil Age"
What would it take to get past the 'oil age' as you call it - in dollars, roughly speaking. How does that impact the individual consumer as relates to prices paid, jobs lost, etc.? How long will it take?
And what does the 'oil age' have to do with Iraq? You still haven't answered the question - how would you have handled the problem of Iraq without 'empire' as you call it?
The Iraq conquest is necessary for at least three individually compelling reasons of which one is the interconnected nature of the Iranian, Russian, French-German, African, Chinese, and North Korean situations. The Bush administration is doing this very well.
My use of the word "statecraft" was meant to make my statement clear from the begining. It means the art of power and diplomacy, and the art of government. The "craft" of "state". Perhaps I shouldn't have used "statecraft" as it is not commonly used in America, as it has connotations unpleasant to much of the electorate!
Restating, the Bush administration foreign policy actions show an acute understanding of the international situation. When I first understood what they were doing in it's entirety I was amazed that this could be the American government I was watching! Not the usual doofuss Animal House!
As far as moving out of the "Oil Age", this would be, relative to just continuing to import oil, expensive, politically difficult, time consuming, and a lot of work generally. Many powerful groups and people would prefer the status quo. The science is pretty much there, but the technology would have to be developed, and the implementation would have to be a series of steps. How long it would take depends on the willingness of the people to get the job done. It is a very large project, bigger than World War Two, more the size of what the Chinese have done since 1920. Such a large project that execution definately requires statecraft!
It would be a big job, plenty of work for everybody. I see no reason that adequate food, shelter, clothing, and health care would need to be sacrificed if we make this change. If we wait to do it until we are forced to make the change from the "Oil Age" then the sacrifices will likely be bitter.