The USA's World Status...

[Qfwfq]

I said "I guess it's no use", which was meant as a manner of gently letting the matter pass. So, especially as elsewhere you've just declined answering a question of mine, and even with an unnecessary remark, we can call it even.

 

So long.

[Barry Scott]

In 20 years it would be very interesting to see who would win in a war against China and U.S.A. I reckon China, they could recruit an army larger than U.S.A.s whole population

[Barry Scott]

According to the CIA website, USA have 67,742,879 men available for military service and China have 342,956,265 (excluding women). China have 5x more men ready for military service, thats quite a few.. and also the majority like communism in China. Thats all irrelavent though because a war in 20 years probably wouldnt even include men fighting with guns.

A war in the next century is probable in my opinion, when it happens i think il just run away to Mauritius to avoid a nuclear holocaust

[Qfwfq]

The Chinese are definitely capable of understanding science and technology and I have no doubt they'll be advancing it, perhaps they have already been, but keep it to themselves. Imagine the scenario of Chinese cryptanalysts having found algorithms better than those known here and producing excellent computing power, cracking RSA like peanut shells and encrypting their own messages with methods unknown to westerners. I wouldn't rule it out...

 

I don't think it is currently in their commercial interests but, if it were, the day could come with them doing something like Desert Storm, with the Yankee generals unable to tell their units what to do, let alone pinpoint Chinese targets from satellite.

[pgrmdave]

China's biggest advantage over the US in terms of a war machine is that they are still a manufacturing based economy. If we needed to mobilize for war, it could take us years to reach our peak capacity, but China could do so much quicker.

[sanctus]

Racoon, don't take it as a personal issue...

The US are the wealthiest country (in proportion size people) and you are right they do things like foreign aid. Even with more than just a couple of billions as you pointed out.

My judgement doesn't lay there, I don't judge on what they did, but on what they could do and effectively do!

An example you spoke about the aid for the tsunami, well you accorded more than countries in Europe, but the proportion x dollars per inhabitant much much lower than in other counries. Just an example of what I mean the US could do more than they actually do.

 

And to rassure you this kind judgement goes also to other countries than the US, for example I boycotted Italy for all the five years of the Berlusconi-regime (the word regime is there on purpose as he modified laws to suit himself) and I've got the italian nationality as well...

[sanctus]

Globalization is a way of exploiting other countries, a newer method than the colonialism of past times,

 

I don't agree on that, that is one kind of globalization, there are other ones just as there is good and bad national economy...

[Boerseun]

China's biggest advantage over the US in terms of a war machine is that they are still a manufacturing based economy. If we needed to mobilize for war, it could take us years to reach our peak capacity, but China could do so much quicker.

True, and scary. And ironic. The only reason that they are a manufacturing economy, is because of the US and Europe buying their products!

[ughaibu]

Is there any reason for China to consider going to war?

[Boerseun]

Is there any reason for China to consider going to war?

Yep. With 1.5 billion souls, Lebensraum comes to mind as an incentive to war...

[ughaibu]

Where would they go? If there's space available and they're a coming economic power, cant they just buy space?

[pgrmdave]

What space would they buy?

[ughaibu]

I dont know, that's why I wrote "if there's space", if there's no space, they wouldn't have a motivation for war.

[Qfwfq]

that is one kind of globalization, there are other ones just as there is good and bad national economy...

I'm an internationalist, I implicitly meant what is currently being pushed around, and I'm sure that's what Racoon meant although he wasn't very clear. I can no longer remember the exact details...

[Barry Scott]

I think China's the 3rd biggest country in the world, i dont think space is the biggest problem, especially as much of western China is empty. I think the main threat is that USA dont seem to like North Korea at the moment and China are North Korea's ally... see where im going.

Another threat could be the growing problem of energy, with Russia right next door having the largest supply of gas in the world (plenty of energy). Either way i think China will be involved in the next World War, especially as China's government is the nearest thing to dictatorship in the powerful countries of today.

[TheFaithfulStone]

I think the risk of war with China is slim.

 

After all, the cheeseburger is mightier than the sword.

 

Or perhaps, in this case, the Kung Pao Chicken.

 

In my fondest dreams, China moves slowly toward democracy as increasingly informed "consumers" become increasingly informed citizens, and demand more and more openness. It's difficult for a dictatorship to function without secrecy and information control.

 

And in my worst nightmares it becomes a kind of corporatist nightmare state.

 

Either way, I don't think they go to "war" with us, in the sense of firing bullets at one another. In scenario A I think they become a kind of competitive trade partner, where we always seem to be staring each other down, but it never comes to blows, because each of us secretly knows that we can't live without the other one.

 

In scenario B they don't start shooting because there's not as much money to be made by killing as there is by conquering us economically.

 

TFS

[Qfwfq]

It's difficult for a dictatorship to function without secrecy and information control.

Indeed. And it's here in the west that people are succumbing more and more to mass media, slipping more and more toward Bradbury's 451. Perhaps someday it will be Asians taking advantage of it...