The real clash of civilizations in the 21st century will be not over religion, but over food. As the emerging East and surging South achieve appreciable amounts of disposable income, they're increasingly taking on a Western-style diet. This bodes poorly for the world on multiple levels, with the most-alarmist Cassandras warning about imminent resource wars. But the more immediate and realistic concern is the resulting health costs, which will inevitably trigger a rule-set clash between nanny-state types hell-bent on "reining in" a number of globalized industries -- agriculture, food and beverages, restaurants, health care and pharmaceuticals -- and those preferring a more free-market/libertarian stance.
Read the entire column at World Politics Review.
Monday, September 26, 2011 at 10:40AM 
Reader Comments (3)
The thing about Cassandra - she was cursed with always being right but always being ignored. Not sure that's what you meant.
Frankly, my bad. Judah, my very fine editor put that in and I let it slide. I don't' use Cassandra as a rule. Sisyphus yes, Cassandra no.
Given her obvious physical fitness, I'm not sure how Mrs Obama would take to being designated Big Mama . . .