--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America is the Saudi Arabia of coal." description: "\"America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.\" — Charles Duhigg" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/charles-duhigg-1088_america_america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal-3727_37271.png" --- # America is the Saudi Arabia of coal. ![“America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.” quote by Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/charles-duhigg-1088_america_america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal-3727_37271.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/charles-duhigg-1088_america_america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal-3727_37271.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b70/charles-duhigg-1088_america_america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal-3727_37271.png) > “America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.” [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The statement draws a parallel between America's reliance on coal and Saudi Arabia's dependence on oil, highlighting a strategic vulnerability in energy policy. **In simple terms:** Energy dependence creates geopolitical risk. Key Takeaway Diversify energy sources. Themes energy policy geopolitics resource dependence environmental risk economic strategy Mood concerned critical urgent Type political analytical warning When to use this quote - national energy planning - policy debates on fossil fuels - strategic investment decisions - environmental advocacy - energy transition initiatives Key Concepts energy security political leverage climate impact market dynamics Practical Applications - Develop renewable energy infrastructure - Implement carbon pricing mechanisms Questions to Reflect On - How can the US reduce reliance on coal without compromising energy stability? - What alternatives can mitigate the strategic risks of a single-resource economy? A Different Perspective While coal is abundant domestically, its environmental costs differ from oil's geopolitical implications. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Arabia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arabia/) [Saudi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saudi/) ## Related quotes > [The notion that a contemporary woman must look mannish in order to be taken seriously as a seeker of power is frankly dismaying. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-wintour/the-notion-that-a-contemporary-woman-must-look-mannish-in-order-to-be/) [Anna Wintour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-wintour/) > [When the Industrial Revolution started, the amount of carbon sitting underneath Britain in the form of coal was as big as the amount of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-j-c-mackay/when-the-industrial-revolution-started-the-amount-of-carbon-sitting/) [David J. C. MacKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-j-c-mackay/) > [Because America is the Saudi Arabia of natural gas. We have the world's largest reserves of natural gas, and the world's most sophisticated production…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/porter-stansberry/because-america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-natural-gas-we-have-the-world/) [Porter Stansberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/porter-stansberry/) > [Why is it that the U.S. has to take refugees? Why doesn't Saudi Arabia take more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-t-flynn/why-is-it-that-the-u-s-has-to-take-refugees-why-doesn-t-saudi-arabia/) [Michael T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-t-flynn/) > [ We are not dictating. We are not telling them \[Saudi Arabia\] how they should do it or who they should look like. We are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/we-are-not-dictating-we-are-not-telling-them-saudi-arabia-how-they/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [Saudi Arabia is an important country to the United States.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-murphy/saudi-arabia-is-an-important-country-to-the-united-states/) [Chris Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-murphy/) > [Making Saudi Arabia a world judge on women's rights and religious freedom would be like naming a pyromaniac as the town fire chief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillel-neuer/making-saudi-arabia-a-world-judge-on-women-s-rights-and-religious/) Hillel Neuer > [Other places are also generators of far-flung violence beyond their own borders - Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are obvious examples - but none has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/other-places-are-also-generators-of-far-flung-violence-beyond-their/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [If Iran obtains nuclear weapons, then almost certainly Saudi Arabia will do the same, as will Egypt, Turkey and perhaps others in the region.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bolton/if-iran-obtains-nuclear-weapons-then-almost-certainly-saudi-arabia/) [John Bolton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bolton/) > [Saudi Arabia has allowed training on its soil of American forces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/saudi-arabia-has-allowed-training-on-its-soil-of-american-forces/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Over the last few years they have done a superb job in their fight against al-Qaida. As you may recall, our embassy in Jedda…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-petraeus/over-the-last-few-years-they-have-done-a-superb-job-in-their-fight/) [David Petraeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-petraeus/) > [Saudi Arabia is a crucial ally in the Middle East, supporting U.S. efforts to fight terrorism and halt the ambitions of a hostile and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-hurd/saudi-arabia-is-a-crucial-ally-in-the-middle-east-supporting-u-s/) [Will Hurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-hurd/) > [I lived in Saudi Arabia in the late 1970s. It was, for a Westerner, pretty idyllic. There were the religious police; there were the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lacey/i-lived-in-saudi-arabia-in-the-late-1970s-it-was-for-a-westerner/) [Robert Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lacey/) > [The Treasury Department would use the interest from these securities to hire U.S. companies to build Saudi Arabia - new cities, new infrastructure -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perkins/the-treasury-department-would-use-the-interest-from-these-securities/) [John Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perkins/) > [In Saudi Arabia, among other countries, Muslims are not free to convert to Christianity, and Christians are not free to practice their faith. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-warraq/in-saudi-arabia-among-other-countries-muslims-are-not-free-to-convert/) [Ibn Warraq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-warraq/) ## More by Charles Duhigg > [“If you want to stop smoking, ask yourself, do you do it because you love nicotine, or because it provides a burst of stimulation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/if-you-want-to-stop-smoking-ask-yourself-do-you-do-it-because-you/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“What matters are five key norms,” he told the audience. Teams need to believe that their work is important. Teams need to feel their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/what-matters-are-five-key-norms-he-told-the-audience-teams-need-to/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [America has always had an apocalyptic strain. 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"the man has never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/i-love-paul-o-neill-but-you-could-not-pay-me-enough-to-work-for-him/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“THE FRAMEWORK: • Identify the routine • Experiment with rewards • Isolate the cue • Have a plan”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/the-framework-identify-the-routine-experiment-with-rewards-isolate/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [Barium, which is commonly found in power plant waste and scrubber wastewater, has been linked to heart problems and diseases in other organs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/barium-which-is-commonly-found-in-power-plant-waste-and-scrubber/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [A movement starts because of the social habits of friendship and the strong ties between close acquaintances. It grows because of the habits of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/a-movement-starts-because-of-the-social-habits-of-friendship-and-the/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“In some sense, he said, a community was a giant collection of habits occurring among thousands of people that, depending on how they’re influenced,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/in-some-sense-he-said-a-community-was-a-giant-collection-of-habits/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [Then one day, we’ll put the reward in the old place, and put in the rat, and, by golloy, the old habit will rememerge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/then-one-day-we-ll-put-the-reward-in-the-old-place-and-put-in-the-rat/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) [Explore all 293 Charles Duhigg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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