4 ms·

It was only a few years ago that I started digging deep and learning about China's dominance in almost every aspect of geopolitics (economy, military, supply ch

It was only a few years ago that I started digging deep and learning about China's dominance in almost every aspect of geopolitics (economy, military, supply chain, media influence, political influence, cultural influence, etc) and I wondered why the US seemingly did nothing to combat any of this. It was not too long ago when Xi promised Obama he wouldn't militarize islands in the South China Seas and then years later, bunkers and missile defenses started showing up in satellite imagery [1]. Then I learned that all of the world and US corporations, financial and political elite depended or were heavily invested in China. That was the moment I realized the US was dead and the next few decades of global dominance would belong to the Chinese. [1] https://www.economist.com/asia/2018/06/21/china-has-militarised-the-south-china-sea-and-got-away-with-it https://www.economist.com/asia/2018/06/21/china-has-militari...

Koshkin 5y ago
There's some truth to this. (Let's not forget that America played not a small role in the Soviet Union's rising as an industrial power 90 years ago.)
phkahler 5y ago
>> Then I learned that all of the world and US corporations, financial and political elite depended or were heavily invested in China. Yeah, the US essentially handed China a modern industrial economy. This was done by outsourcing production (viewed as menial labor) to lower cost countries and focusing on your "core business". The MBAs in the 90s actually believed it's possible to do that while limiting the suppliers technological capabilities. They were wrong. Even when it became more clear, they had to keep doing it because costs and competition meant death to companies that tried to reverse it. Then Trump came along with an IDGAF attitude and pointed out that we're getting "a raw deal". Not many in the business world disagreed, and now measures are being taken to undo it. It has to be undone at the national level so the playfield is even for everyone as it shifts. Biden has not reversed many Trump initiatives in this area but also doesn't talk about it because politics.
- AtlasBarfed 5y ago
  Well, the elite made out like bandits. Could one argue the more recent wealth inequality of the last three decades can be tied to essentially outsourced/arbitraged near-slave-labor/globalization/"free trade". It was sold to the policymakers as good for America, and would moderate China. But it was probably always about corporations making money. So why did we hand them a modern economy? Because the rich would get richer. I think Xi is making a big mistake: the global elite will not like this. It's not like they can depose him, but ... well, look at Russia. Putin is rich and powerful, but it is a failed state essentially. China could easily turn into that. China had basically won the modern economy: modernize almost two billion people and use soft power to control the world. All they had to do is continue, but I guess CCP politics would eventually reward a totalitarian power hungry madman without any checks and balances.

Koshkin 5y ago

There's some truth to this. (Let's not forget that America played not a small role in the Soviet Union's rising as an industrial power 90 years ago.)

phkahler 5y ago

>> Then I learned that all of the world and US corporations, financial and political elite depended or were heavily invested in China. Yeah, the US essentially handed China a modern industrial economy. This was done by outsourcing production (viewed as menial labor) to lower cost countries and focusing on your "core business". The MBAs in the 90s actually believed it's possible to do that while limiting the suppliers technological capabilities. They were wrong. Even when it became more clear, they had to keep doing it because costs and competition meant death to companies that tried to reverse it. Then Trump came along with an IDGAF attitude and pointed out that we're getting "a raw deal". Not many in the business world disagreed, and now measures are being taken to undo it. It has to be undone at the national level so the playfield is even for everyone as it shifts. Biden has not reversed many Trump initiatives in this area but also doesn't talk about it because politics.

AtlasBarfed 5y ago
Well, the elite made out like bandits. Could one argue the more recent wealth inequality of the last three decades can be tied to essentially outsourced/arbitraged near-slave-labor/globalization/"free trade". It was sold to the policymakers as good for America, and would moderate China. But it was probably always about corporations making money. So why did we hand them a modern economy? Because the rich would get richer. I think Xi is making a big mistake: the global elite will not like this. It's not like they can depose him, but ... well, look at Russia. Putin is rich and powerful, but it is a failed state essentially. China could easily turn into that. China had basically won the modern economy: modernize almost two billion people and use soft power to control the world. All they had to do is continue, but I guess CCP politics would eventually reward a totalitarian power hungry madman without any checks and balances.