Watching China Run

           While looking through the Opinion Pages of the New York Times I came across an article by Rob Herbert titled Watching China Run. Since I have always been intrigued about most things involving china I wonder what this super power of a country is going to do next. Rob Herbert now a columnist on politics and urban affairs for the New York Times gained much of his credibility while reporting regularly for TV shows such as the "Today Show" and NBC "Nightly News".

           Herbert claims that ever since Ronald Reagan took down the solar panels from the roof of the white house in 1982, which had been put there by Jimmy Carter mostly as a symbolic gesture, we have missed the opportunity to be the leaders in this race to a new form of energy. In this column Rob Herbert is speaking out to all those who are passionate about this subject but mainly to as he puts it "our esteemed leaders in Washington who can’t figure out how to do anything more difficult than line up for a group photo".

           His argument is that China has leaped past competitors in Denmark, Germany, Spain and the United Sates last year to become the world's largest maker of wind turbines and they are not stopping there. China also has become the world's largest manufacturer of solar panels and is pushing hard on other forms of clean energy. Herbert mentions that it is "stupid" to allow china, a country with nothing comparable to the tremendous research, industrial and economic resources of the U.S to be blowing us out of this race.

          While the U.S seems to be stuck in this "never-ending-story" that we call recession, other countries such as china are moving full speed ahead in developing new energy. Herbert makes a great point in saying that the U.S is losing a great deal of opportunities since many leaders and investors of large companies who want to be a part of this new flourishing market, are all taking their interests overseas.

           The new era of energy is coming no matter what. We in the United States have the choice of either being dragged by another country to this new generation where the world is powered by a newer/greener energy or we can take back the reigns and lead the world to a new form of energy ourselves.