Beware of China...

[Peter Frank]

We all know that China's been undercutting our economy -- but the threat is far more pervasive and intentional than some might think.

Now, with our military spread thin -- we must address this with urgency.

Senator James M. Inhofe (R. Oklahoma) addressed the senate floor yesterday with a scathing report about our allowing China to run roughshod over international proscriptions against nuclear proliferation.

China has stated that it wants to become a super-power on a par with the US. It is now the second largest consumer of oil, and is trading nuclear technology for oil in the Mideast.

Senator Inofe's most recent address to the senate is not available yet online (someone, please prove me wrong & post it); but this is what he had to say back in '99 -- http://www.newsmax.com/articles/?a=1999/3/16/105918

BTW -- Inofe is no more a fan of Bush's response than Clinton's

[cornermouse]

1. Shhhhh.

Bush might decide to launch a pre-emptive attack. Let's wait till we have someone sane and in possession of a brain before we look that direction.

[Peter Frank]

2. Wrong!!!

Bush's feet need to be held to the fire where it comes to the subject of national security. He talks the big talk -- he needs to walk the big policy walk now! China will be too far ahead in 2008...

[leveymg]

3. This overstates the threat. We have some 5,000 nukes, the Chinese about

450, according to the Center for Nonproliferation Studies. http://cns.miis.edu/research/china/nuc/nstock.htm

Indeed, if their most recent generation of sub-launched ICBM warheads are copies of the W-76 we started deploying in the 1970s, they may not even work as designed.

China, while it has a very large land army, spends no more than seven dollars for every hundred we do on the military.

As for China's role in proliferation, that is an issue that is by no means agreed on by the experts.

We should be much more concerned about the relative decline of the US economy, particularly off-shoring manufacturing jobs. But, I'd target Wal*Mart and other US corporations for that.

[tavalon]

4. So if they launch they're 450 and we launch say,

twice that, then, well, we're all dead. Numbers of nukes makes no nevermind after about 30, ya know?

[bryant69]

5. The minute you quote Newsmax as a source

Is the minute I stop giving a damn about anything you have to say.

Simple as that.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[leesa]

6. China already IS more of a superpower than the US. I don't know if

that's a bad thing. America was a superpower and had been a brutal terrible leader.

"China's been undercutting our economy" What's THIS crap? Didn't we willingly give all our jobs to them? Didn't we beg them for loans?

[htuttle]

7. The Republican Party sold us to China

They should have listened to Perot.

Stalin used to say, "The capitalists will sell us the rope we hang them with." Well, the Republicans sold China the rope, built the gallows (on a no-bid, cost-plus contract), arraigned for their PR campaign and paid for their dinner later that night.


on edit: BTW, it's too damned late now. Those jobs aren't coming back unless we get paid less than the Chinese.

You want to really change things? Figure out a way to unionize workers in China and get them to strike for higher pay. THAT would change things. Too bad the right wing would rather make their own money off China trade than see a union succeed anywhere. Us little folks all got punked -- Republican and Democrat alike.

[kcwayne]

10. The explosion in outsourcing started with NAFTA

which was championed by Clinton, who also pushed granting China favored nations trading status. Republicans are greasing the skids and putting the pedal to the metal now, but they are not solely responsible for the loss of industry to China.

[htuttle]

11. The explosion in outsourcing to China started under Reagan

I know too many former factory workers around Milwaukee to think otherwise. They might not have 'counted' the way today's outsourced-out-of-work professionals do, but whole factories moved to China back then, machines and all.

But yes, I'm well aware of Clinton's part in this as well. As I said -- all us little folks got punked.

[kcwayne]

12. I was in Milwaukee when the Rust belt started rusting under Reagan

But the major move at that time was not to China, it was to the Southern "Right to Work" states and to Mexico. Allis-Chalmers sent 12000 jobs to South Carolina, not to China. They are probably in China now, however.

In 1979, under the Carter Administration, I was working for General Electric which had an active program to move production to Mexico. There were numerous import/export issues, tariffs, and regulations that made it far more difficult to do then. NAFTA has changed all of that, not only for Mexico, but for China.

The theme under the Reagan administration was downsizing, not outsourcing. Unions were busted, and the wages, benefits, and retirement of the average person declined. People were uprooted from the industrial north and went scurrying for jobs at 1/2 the wage in the South. Remember the vast Reaganvilles of people living out of their RV or cars at KOA camps and rest centers? There was a huge tent city under the interstate in Dallas that got cleaned out in 1984 when the Republican National Convention came to Dallas. They did not like to see video of all those homeless people when they were trying to party.

At the rate we are going, the Bushvilles will be located in Peking. Or maybe not, the Chinese will not allow immigration because they have too many unemployed as it is. At least until they realize that with enough unemployed, they can lower wages even further and all of the CEO's can increase their bonuses.

[mainer]

8. So... is this the new Satan? Since we can't get OBL?

These rightwingers always have to have SOMEONE to blame for all our troubles. Why wouldn't China (or any other country) work toward being an economic superpower? Why wouldn't China (or any other country) build up its nuclear arsenal when they can see, based on the Iraq war, what the US will do to you if you're defenseless?

As for economic powerhouses, it's clear we're losing any edge we used to have just based on the sad state of education in this country. When half of Americans believe in creationism, there's less hope for future scientific breakthroughs.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

9. The bogeyman cometh?

How dare they steal "our" oil and sell their goods cheaper than ours?

[LeftistGorilla]

13. How dare....

they want to live like North Americans....

[Peter Frank]

14. China wants to "Own" North America...

...and it's well on it's way.

Do not trust China!!! -- or Russia.

The two are likely to join forces and attack us -- given how thinly spread our forces are.

Laugh all you want; we are now indeed vulnerable to this.

[B Calm]

15. Maybe if Bush hadn't of sold them a Top Secret Spy Plane, along

with our economy, and our jobs, we wouldn't have to worry about them....