hu jintao
As China gears up for war, President Obama focuses on allowing more Chinese tourists (2) into the USA (3) to stave off a recession – what is wrong with these two world views?
While China promotes the notion of her peaceful rise, one has to wonder.
China has had a contentious relationship with all 14 countries sharing her border as well as those that do not. If the communist party is to be believed, China is a State of peace and harmony.
However, if this is true, why all the advanced weaponry? And if the weapons are to be used as a ‘deterrent’, then why the saber rattling by China’s President and Leader of the Communist Party – Hu Jin Tao?
The bottom line is that as President Obama courts Chinese visitors and our universities court their children, the communists are gearing up for war. Too many people and too few resources make up the toxic mix that will force the Chinese into some sort of confrontation, it’s almost a foregone conclusion.

A Peaceful China?

Unfortunately for China, they share a border with 14 different countries, many of whom fear their rise. Disputes range from claims to the South China Sea, to the islands off the coast of Japan.
In addition to these problems, there is anger over China's damming of water supplies to many nations. The question one has to ask is whether the Chinese are digging themselves into a hole from which there is no rational escape.
China is humiliated by their recent past. Foreign invaders, according to them, forced addiction upon the masses. They refer to the unfair treaties, which the 'sons of heaven' - as the Chinese like to call their leaders - can not still countenance.
The sick old men of Asia, they were called.
But now things have changed. Foreign investment and funds have provided the impetus for astronomical growth and a newfound respect.
An analogy would be that the skinny kid who was always picked on in gym class has grown up over the summer. Perhaps he's taken some anabolic steroids for good measure, just to look good.
The boy, harboring years of resentment, shows off his new bulk as he cruises his '74 Nova up and down the strip.
To most of the town, he is still that skinny little kid - but now more dangerous. He is dangerous not for his heft, but for what he believes he must do to prove himself.
For, as the Chinese say, "The nail that sticks up, gets pounded down". Thus, all of the street cred all of the other bullies previously enjoyed will now come under scrutiny.
“Will they test him or will they back down?”
It's a question as old as time. As all school yard tough guys know, if you are going to talk the talk, then one day you are going to have to 'walk the walk'.
Just look at the US in the late 60's. The Chinese are now setting themselves up for conflict, as an article in the communist party 'mouthpiece' Global Times best exemplifies:
“China, concentrating on interior development and harmony, has been ultimately merciful....We shouldn’t waste the opportunity to launch some tiny-scale battles that could deter provocateurs from going further.... could just be an ideal place to punish them.... I believe the constant military drill and infringement provide no better excuse for China to strike back.... being rational and restrained will always be our guidance on this matter. We should make good preparations for a small-scale battle while giving the other side the option of war or peace (4).”
chinese carrier

Border Problems

A major problem is that the Chinese are alienating a considerable amount of her neighbors. Problems with the Japanese (5), Vietnamese (6) and Philippines (7) are some of the more obvious disputes, not to mention Taiwan. And then there is India (8), a country with whom they waged a local conflict 50 years ago (9).
The range of the disputes vary, but at its heart is the fundamental issue, "Do we trust China?". And based upon the response of those countries bordering her, the answer is a resounding "no we do not".
The problem has gotten so grave that military assistance is being requested (10) of the USA from more (11) countries than one (12).
At issue, aside from China's increasing hawk-like rhetoric, is her military growth. China wields a veritable hodge podge of "purloined US tech (13)". The seas around China now are littered with submarines equipped with the latest innovations "borrowed" from other nations.
As if this were not enough, the sick old man of the orient has got himself a new "can", or aircraft carrier. A resuscitated cold war relic that was purchased under the auspices of becoming a casino (14) has been retrofitted to be a tool of war.
The air is not safe, or so they say, as a knockoff US stealth fighter (15) has been developed, and a helicopter (16) as well. With all of this buildup, it is little wonder that her neighbors fear China's rise.
Could it be that all of this hardware of destruction is necessary to support China's "peaceful" rise, as stated by the Chinese?
“First of all, China is taking the road of peaceful development, unlike certain Western countries that evolved into world powers through military expansion. Wars are no longer the theme of the times. By contrast, China has quickly enhanced its comprehensive national strength and international status by adhering to peaceful development. (17)”
chinese population

China - Once a War Nation, Always a War Nation

While it is popular and politically correct to say that the People's Republic of China is experiencing a 'peaceful rise', but her history tells a different story.
Over the past 2500 years, China has warred for two millennia, while it has been at peace for merely 500 years - harmonious society indeed.
And things do not seem to be getting better. Chinese-on-Chinese violence has accounted for more deaths than both World Wars combined. And a good part of that was by the hands of the regime still ruling to this day.
For all her talk about peace and harmony, one has to wonder.
Another issue propelling China into a horrible eventuality is resources, or lack thereof.
With twenty percent of the world's population and less than ten percent of its arable land, much of which has been turned into a toxic bog, China needs more resources. They cannot produce enough grains (18), meat, pork nor oil to meet their needs.
And just like all dictators, the Chinese communists fear revolt. The clamoring masses require access to things the Chinese alone, do not possess.
As the good times wane and bellies groan for sustenance, the Chinese are forced to look outwards. Their presence in Africa and business dealings with the world's leading despots is a testament as to how far they can and must go to secure raw materials.
As far as the U.S. home front is concerned, the rise of China is no big deal. After all, if the truth were told, some may question companies moving our R&D to a growing empire some have likened to Nazi Germany (19).
I would not be as bold in my assertions over China, but would definitely be mindful of them. Yet, I wonder about the US and how trusting we are of communist China and her front companies (20), in light of what they have said and done.
The Chinese have proven their ability to penetrate our most secure resources and skill at heisting our secrets. As if this were not enough, we are allowing them control over our Internet and data transmissions.
huawei

Huawei, Alleged Communist Spy Front Comes to the Heartland

An example of our ignorance and trust of communist China can be seen by the inroads of China's Huawei, an alleged front for the communist party.
This company, which sells routers and thus controls access to the Internet, has set up shop in Texas and Michigan. Huawei has been accused of spying (21), espionage and being a Chinese tool of information destruction - should war ever break out.
From the UK (22) to India, distrust over Huawei's true intentions abound. The most often cited reason cited are its ties to the communist party (23). As a matter of fact, even the US government has severe reservations citing:
“A U.S. intelligence report for the first time links China's largest telecommunications company to Beijing's KGB-like intelligence service and says the company recently received nearly a quarter-billion dollars from the Chinese government.24”
Huawei part of Chinese spy network, says R&AW (25):
“NEW DELHI: Chinese telecom major Huawei may aggressively deny any link to the China's People's Liberation Army, but independent assessments of Indian intelligence agencies so far clearly point out that PLA remains a customer of the company and has become more involved with it.
The security concerns of Indian intelligence agencies about Huawei's close connection with the Chinese security establishment are shared by the US administration and had led the latter to cancel Huawei's 2008 bid to pick up stake in 3Com (26).”
How wise is it to lighten restrictions on Chinese students, immigrants and business people when by their own admission they are preparing for war?
Do we really trust companies like Huawei, whose reclusive leader Ren Zhengfie is an ex-Chinese military officer and member of the communist party (27)?
Yes, the leader of the Chinese company we have chosen to manage our data transmissions is a proud Red Army officer and communist. Before you confuse communist party membership with other ideologies such as Democrats and Republicans, you must understand the realities of communism in China.
To China, the party is like god (28), it is everywhere. Rather than being 'just' a political entity, it's more like the mafia. It's secrecy, corruption and control have more in common with organized crime than political ideologies. Communism, like the mafia, is blood in-blood out. What could be more telling than the fact that one of the harshest punishments for a communist party member is to lose their communist party privileges for life?
With all the concerns surrounding Huawei (29), one has to wonder why Michigan has outsourced data transmissions (30) to the global pariah.
Huawei's entry into the US market is symbolic of either our naivete or ignorance. As the Chinese gear up for 21st century war, we idly poke through 'made in China' goods and disregard their actions while stomaching their rhetoric.
War, like ignorance, should be avoided at all costs.
As for the Chinese and harmony, we can only hope that by some miracle they come to their senses and realize that aggressive behavior will do little more than upset the economic apple cart and good thing they have going. But until we are sure of their true intentions, we must remain alert.
“...virtually everyone in the cybersecurity world is quick to state and that Huawei itself concedes. In a world in which hacking is proliferating, no company or government agency wants to risk giving potential enemies the means to access its network by buying vulnerable equipment. (31)”