You might wonder why the United States is bothering to create a new regional military command, this time for Africa, called Africom. The Washington Institute for Near East Policy tells us why, in a PolicyWatch issued July 10:

Although no African state poses a direct threat to the United States, Washington is concerned about the growth of al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups throughout the continent. Africa has the fastest population growth rate in the world, and several of its countries, such as Nigeria, Angola, Libya, and Sudan, are important sources of crude oil.

Oh, right. The oil.