A few years ago, corn-based ethanol fuel was all the rage. Farmers shelved crops like wheat and soybeans and planted more corn instead in order to cash in on the new revolution. Bill Gates and Richard Branson pumped in billions in funding. And ethanol stocks soared.

For the third time in my lifetime, a storm of revulsion against foreign investment in the United States is beginning to gather. Only this time the clouds appear much more ominous.