World

China wants to take care of what it has

by YankeeJim | January 31, 2010 at 06:05 am

388 views | 30 Recommendations | 7 comments

“China’s strident tone raises concerns in West
Beijing finds that ‘people have come to view them as a major global player’

“China's indignant reaction to the announcement of U.S. plans to sell weapons to Taiwan appears to be in keeping with a new triumphalist attitude from Beijing that is worrying governments and analysts across the globe.”

All of my adult life, I have watched China develop into a superpower under a communist system of government. China has a population of over 1,325,639,982 compared with the United States population of 304,059,724. That is, China is over three times larger than the USA and the ratio of population to useable land mass is considerably greater than the same metric in the USA. What China wants is more resources, not more population.

We democratic people criticize China’s people policies because the communists place greater value on what is good for the whole over what is good for individuals. They are repressive against freedom of speech and human rights as democracies define them.

Yet, education, technology, and globalization in a small world make us neighbors, and sometimes trading partners. The USA’s economic dependence on China has increased as everyone knows.

The USA has a legacy of issues regarding places and peoples around the world, dating to WWII, Korean War, and Vietnam War. It involves the US presence in places distant from our nation, though with some military, economic, and therefore strategic value and interest. We fear change in these places because it truly has an impact.

In the instance of Taiwan, the USA has always supported the free people. Yet, in reality, Taiwan is a small bastion of freedom within the grasp of mainland China, and arguably, it is a part of China. Like Hong Kong without the British, Taiwan’s future is very likely toward assimilation with China.

Therefore, how prudent is it to boost Taiwan’s military defense at this point in time? What is the point and what are the implications in the short and long run?

I am not an expert, just an interested citizen, observing my country continuing to sell military gear to available markets. Maybe that is what it is all about because without America selling military weapons in the world, our trade deficit would worsen and our GDP would continue to slide.

So, this is another indication that America must find a way to regain its strength as a producer of consumer products and not just military products.

Perhaps America too needs to take care of what it has.

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Sputnic

at 06:38 on January 31st, 2010

Morality should win out over money, though, every time

YankeeJim

at 06:43 on January 31st, 2010

Should, and eventually will.

Sputnic

at 06:52 on January 31st, 2010

The UK is just as bad as the USA when it comes to shameful munitions sales. Lets hope we all get to see democracy soon.

Uwe Paschen

at 08:34 on January 31st, 2010

China's Xinhua state news agency quoted the defence ministry as saying: "Considering the severe harm and odious effect of US arms sales to Taiwan, the Chinese side has decided to suspend planned mutual military visits."

"We strongly demand that the US respect the Chinese side's interests", it added, calling for the sale to be stopped.

if not, then Iran and North Korea, Venezuela and Cuba will most be armed by China with nuclear weapons amend at the US.

YankeeJim

at 08:35 on January 31st, 2010

I think that the sale is an untimely blunder -- a mistake by the State Department to permit it under pressure from the US Military Industrial Complex.

158

at 11:46 on January 31st, 2010

Taiwan is an independent country and has a right to self defense.

YankeeJim

at 15:14 on January 31st, 2010

In my judgment, the Chinese really have no desire to "overrun them." If that were the case, it would have happened. They want to save face and to not be pushed around in their own neighborhood.

Civil strife may be inevitable. As for Taiwan's independence, I really need to study my history because I only know generally how that happened.