Political Science

Klares interview on global resource wars talk about the declining global energy supplies to satisfies global requirements. His premise in his argument was that the world has moved from a point in which energy was sufficient to meet the world need to a point in which, the supplies of energy is insufficient to satisfy the global demand. Klare goes on to discuss the serious problem not only relating to the declining oil supply but also about the consequence on the increasing energy consumption which is the global warming. He calls for a different way of using energy suggesting that this issue should not just be an international problem but should also be an international affair.

Klares major theoretical underpinnings for this discussion can be summed in two factors. First is the worlds growing consumption of energy. Klare noted that oil has been the source of energy and since the world war two the worlds consumption of energy has increased from 10 million barrels per day to 85 million barrel per day today, and is projected to increase by 117 million barrels per day in 2030. This increasing use of energy not only creates with meeting the demand but it also increase global warming at fast pace. Second, most of the worlds oil reservoirs are on the verge of serious decline as many of them had already reached their maximum output. The problem is that the rate of new discoveries of new field each year is fewer than those that are in decline and those that are newly discovered are in areas that presents operational or political problems making it difficult for oil companies to operate.

With this problem, Klare pointed out that a new world order is emerging which he calls A new world energy order wherein the privileged country or those with energy surplus for sale to other countries are gaining both power and wealth through their investment abroad using petrodollars. He cited these investments will soon be used by these countries for their advantage, citing the case of Russia which cut the supply of natural gas to Ukraine in 2006.

The global resources war which Klare was referring obviously not only refers to the potential squabble of energy deficit countries on available energy but also the challenge posed by China as the new hypothetical threat driving U.S. military spending on the United States as it established relations in many of the oil rich country. In view of all this, he suggested to hasten the developments of energy alternatives and to re-examine the American way of life being the model for many countries in the world.