China

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The Rand Corp., a leading consultant to the Pentagon and the intelligence community, has assessed that China could defeat the United States in a war over Taiwan.

Comments

[Legalize]

We better invade a Muslim country just to be on the safe side.

[southdakotaboy]

Well at least we know what the Dem stragey would be ( with a Monty Python voice) Run Away!!!

[Hard Right]

Maybe we should do what Clinton did Legalize-sell China top secret technology for campaign contributions. Surrender On Dems.

[southdakotaboy]

We could just recognize Taiwan and then give them a bunch of Nukes. That would be fun, then when China did invade the whole worlds population problem would be solved. See how simple that was.

[scarshapedstar]

Invade Bangladesh. Those sonsabitches will never see it coming.

[Hard Right]

"Invade Bangladesh. Those sonsabitches will never see it coming."

True, but we should invade somewhere nicer. Fiji seems like a good choice.

[charles]

i think the rand corporation is mistaken

about a dozen ohio class subs says so

[southdakotaboy]

I think we should go after the Solomon Islands. Not only is the weather nice there, but after the last earthquake there is more of it.

[Hard Right]

SDB, good idea. I say we invade both, though. Can't be too careful.

[southdakotaboy]

Absolutely Hard Right, with all the new land we could build some killer golf courses. Would everyone be up for having the lovely native girls be the caddies?

[Zifnab]

Invade Canada.
Those god-damn Kanuks have had it coming for too long now. With their maple syrup, and their french speaking citizenry, and their mounties. 'Bout time they got taken down a notch.

[southdakotaboy]

Now your getting into the spirit of things Zifnab, remember Blame Canada. What reason would we need other than that whole "ABOOT" thing don't they know its "about".

[Phoenix]

What a joke. As if China wants to give up its greatest source of that oh-so-wonderful capitalism.

[Hard Right]

Blame Canada, not me!

Can we not invade the part of Canada that has all those cranky Frenchmen? They wanted to secede from Canada, we can finally make it possible.

[southdakotaboy]

Phoenix on play along! What country do you think needs "in vade en". Pick some place nice. I think just for good measure we need to take out Lichtenstien before the Swiss get it.

[Phoenix]

Let's invade Anwar. Kill those reindeer and stick some pipes down. Shouldn't take but a couple of passes with a Blackhawk to wipe out the herd. We could get a B52 to haul Small Balls in Stamford up there and drop him to kill all the beavers. (Poetic justice, you know - seeing as how he's never seen one.)

[Phoenix]

I know! Let's invade the Falklands disguised as Catholics, and when the British get there, we can roll around and laugh.

"We farted in your direction and you bloody came! Yay!"

[Buzzy]

That's all we need, insurgent caribou. Plus have you ever been to the ANWAR, it's freaking cold and there is nothing nothing nothing for thousands of miles in every direction. Alaska is having it's coldest year in the last century right now and that's a gig I'm not signing up for.

[southdakotaboy]

I know what do you guys think about the Azores. I hear their just like Hawaii.

[zorlo]

China is the issue where both the libs and cons have f&$%ed up bigtime. We've taken our eye off the China ball over this BS Mideast "War on Terror."

China, a communist, godless country, deserves our full attention. We will sorely regret not having a comprehensive "defeat China" plan in a couple of decades if we don't get our asses in gear.

Why did Dick Cheney let Aaron Friedberg go?

[Phoenix]

Zorlo,

China has much more to think about than defeating us. They like capitalism too much. Why smack down their finest source of the goods? Besides, they have a huge country filled with peasants who want some of the action. Those are two good reasons they won't try to "defeat" us; and in another breath, why would we want to defeat them? Let capitalism dictate the rules here.

[Phoenix]

Buzzy,

There's oil up there. Enough to give us a reprieve for a while if the planet goes nuts. As for the Anwar insurgents, at least we'd recognize them easily with their fur and horns and hooves.

[Phoenix]

Zorlo,

Just thought of something.... China won't 'defeat' us. Who would they have to steal secrets from if they blew us up? :)

[Buzzy]

Sorry Phoenix, having more oil doesn't do us a bit of good under our present slow death by globalization process. Our oil is no longer our oil, the companies that ship most of "our oil" aren't US companies and our refineries by and large aren't US companies. We have no control over our oil.

As a matter of fact the world's proven reserves are larger now than they were ten years ago. Proven oil reserve numbers have historically risen since we started drilling for the stuff and have increased way out of proportion to our record use of the stuff.

If anything America has a shortage of refining capability but even with that there isn't a shortage of oil or refined fuel. Now we might see shortages if all of OPEC shut off shipments but given that we have surrendered our control of our own oil reserves, infrastructure and all in the name of globalization, the ANWR wouldn't help at all.

I'd suggest we invade Washington DC and install a government with some sense. That goes for Republicans and Democrats both.

[bloodrage bob]

presumably, the rand study accounted as the decisive factor the democrat propensity for ...oh....."gutlessness" and "perfidy" in order to come up with that gloomy prediction.

OTOH, that's the same rand corporation that told us back in the late '80's that the soviets were highly competent, extremely organized, well-funded badasses who'd be around to annoy us for centuries to come. so caveat emptor.

[mike d]

i would like to see the RAND study, but consider this:

China does not and would not have the element of tactical surprise...our satellites would pick up invasion forces mobilizing, yes?

china does not and would not have control of the airspace over the invasion area. not tactical fighter control and not heavy bomber control.

without control of the airspace, allied air forces could bomb the kung pao right out of any fleet of chicom ships crossing the taiwan straits.

unless the chicoms were willing to drop a nuke on taiwan prior to the invasion, it seems unlilely that if the west decided to oppose a chicom invasion, it could be done.

still, i will head on over to RAND and see what if anything they have to say.

[Phoenix]

Buzzy,

I don't understand the machinations behind the oil industry at all. Aren't we the only ones who can refine Venezuela's crude?

Are you saying we have no leverage at all? Gloomy picture. But it is good to know there is more oil now than we thought. Kind of like there are more trees now than when the Pilgrims landed.

It sounds to me as if every country on the planet is caught by the horns of oil. How can a win-win be such a no-win?

[bloodrage bob]

OTOH, mike: one way the chicoms could pull it off is just airburst a couple of nukes high enough to generate a mondo kingsize EMP.

as i understand it, US mil tactics/training/superiority is based largely on seeing things faster & better than they other guy; then reacting quicker. all that depends on computers & electronics that'd be useless after an EMP. and, should the chicoms then just flood the skies/waters with planes/ships/subs/men, even tired sorry old ones, even the best men & equipment in the world will have a REAL tough time overcoming a massive numerical disadvantage while.....blind.

didn't they once have a MIG pilot defect? and when we cracked the mig open, wasn't it crammed fulla vacuum tubes? vacuum tubes that would be unaffected by an EMP? something like that? or was that just an urban legend?

[Raging_Dave]

Invade Canada? Screw that. Who wants to deal with all them screwed up KAY-beckers? Damn North-American Cheese-eating Surrender monkeys! Maybe if we could just have, say, Alberta, and let fwance keep Quebec I would go for it. B.C. could become it's own little country. But I don't know if that would ever work. I say we invade Mexico. They're all crossing the border anyways. Let's just expand our border South for a thousand miles or so. Congradulations, hombres! You're all Americans now! LEARN ENGLISH!

[Hard Right]

MIkeD makes some good points but he didn't address a relatively new development. The Chinese have created a satellite killing missile. Take out enough of our satellites and we are in trouble. It would be a significant blow to our military and may give China the edge it needs.

In the book "Unrestricted Warfare" a retired Chinese general argues fighting America conventionally is suicide. So he says they should use chemical, biological, and is some instances nuclear weapons against us. In addition to that they suggest targeting us with computer viruses that destroy our economy and communications at every level. The book is VERY popular with current Chinese military leaders. China wants to be the number one military and economic power in the world. They want to do what the Japanese tried to do in the Pacific in WWII. They are working to that end by developing weapons meant solely to defeat American weapon systems. We ignore China our own risk.