Who's Your Daddy?
| By ToddHill - Jul 6th, 2005 at 12:28 am EDT |
| Also listed in: Campus Progress Blog | Campus Progress Summer Blogathon |
The Federal government can not allow Unocal to be bought by the China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC). This would be another drastic step forward in China’s quick ascension up the superpower ladder. In many cases, China is surpassing the United States in several of those categories. In the next 8-10 years it is expected another 80 million vehicles will be in use just in China alone. Oil is quickly becoming the natural resource China craves most, and the last thing we need are two giants clashing over black gold.
What a devastating blow to the American economy as well. Already, countries like China and Japan are financing the enormous and record amount of debt that has now been charged to you, me, and our kids, and grandkids, and their grandkids. Foreign nations holding the future of liberty in their hands puts Americans in grave danger fiscally. Our trade deficit with China is massive as we import way more then we export to this emerging giant. Can’t you hear China saying to America, “who’s your daddy?”
Militarily, China has increased its defense budget by 12% over last year, closing out a decade of double digit increases to an already robust army. They have a rather large nuclear payload and constantly challenge the independence of Taiwan. Having cemented ourselves with the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, as well as the administrations insistence to uphold democracy wherever it calls for assistance, it could get nasty considering the current state of our military and relations between the two nations. Right now, the Taiwanese strait is completely filled with missiles on both shores. Pointing at each other, almost Cold War style. China has plans to add upwards of 600 more missiles in the next few years to the already enormous amounts on site. Accompany that with the large order of landing craft purchased from Russia, and you’ve got an interesting “One-China” Unification Strategy.
China is absolutely a growing threat to so much of the infrastructure, and influence of the United States, and therefore must be taken incredibly serious. The move by the federal government to stop the CNOOC from purchasing Unocal is a bold move. I believe it is the right move on so many grounds. To allow China to gain such a foothold on a natural resource that has us all crippled from mounting energy costs would result in a shift of incredible global influence. Not to mention, it is a purchase of an American company. There’s really only one politician I have heard talk about this emerging threat and it is General Wesley Clark.
As we continue to be bogged down in endless wars, China sits back and builds its silent empire. I gag every single time I hear a conservatives say that Ronald Reagan was responsible for the fall of communism. It’s like fingers on a chalk board. If he is responsible for the fall of communism, then why the hell are two communist nations the largest threats to the national security of the United States? North Korea and China, two communist nations, post-Ronald Reagan era, and growing in strategic influence in the 21st century. Here’s hoping the Chevron bid wins over the CNOOC, otherwise, you can officially move China into the Superpower category.
What a devastating blow to the American economy as well. Already, countries like China and Japan are financing the enormous and record amount of debt that has now been charged to you, me, and our kids, and grandkids, and their grandkids. Foreign nations holding the future of liberty in their hands puts Americans in grave danger fiscally. Our trade deficit with China is massive as we import way more then we export to this emerging giant. Can’t you hear China saying to America, “who’s your daddy?”
Militarily, China has increased its defense budget by 12% over last year, closing out a decade of double digit increases to an already robust army. They have a rather large nuclear payload and constantly challenge the independence of Taiwan. Having cemented ourselves with the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, as well as the administrations insistence to uphold democracy wherever it calls for assistance, it could get nasty considering the current state of our military and relations between the two nations. Right now, the Taiwanese strait is completely filled with missiles on both shores. Pointing at each other, almost Cold War style. China has plans to add upwards of 600 more missiles in the next few years to the already enormous amounts on site. Accompany that with the large order of landing craft purchased from Russia, and you’ve got an interesting “One-China” Unification Strategy.
China is absolutely a growing threat to so much of the infrastructure, and influence of the United States, and therefore must be taken incredibly serious. The move by the federal government to stop the CNOOC from purchasing Unocal is a bold move. I believe it is the right move on so many grounds. To allow China to gain such a foothold on a natural resource that has us all crippled from mounting energy costs would result in a shift of incredible global influence. Not to mention, it is a purchase of an American company. There’s really only one politician I have heard talk about this emerging threat and it is General Wesley Clark.
As we continue to be bogged down in endless wars, China sits back and builds its silent empire. I gag every single time I hear a conservatives say that Ronald Reagan was responsible for the fall of communism. It’s like fingers on a chalk board. If he is responsible for the fall of communism, then why the hell are two communist nations the largest threats to the national security of the United States? North Korea and China, two communist nations, post-Ronald Reagan era, and growing in strategic influence in the 21st century. Here’s hoping the Chevron bid wins over the CNOOC, otherwise, you can officially move China into the Superpower category.
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I'm also for more economic competition. I believe that increased competition will force us to be more effecient and inovative. However, the dogma is that investing in education, basic science, applied science, and technology R & D. (I'd link to a good Washington Monthly article if there server wasn't having issues.) However, we are putting less in research (inflation adjusted) for the first time in a long time. Education is getting less affordable. Not the right prescription, IMO.
You may think that continued swallowing of American industry is a good thing, but I do not, and will not subscribe to it. Kind of like saying that outsourcing is a good thing for the economy. Those arguments don't add up.
As far as leading to democratization? I don't see how, we can't get Afghanistan and Iraq right, so how could China be influenced to a Democratic society?
As for democritization, open markets are only a start. We have a way in (through American branding, media, pop culture, etc.). We still have to leverage that into actula support for American values. Still, there are already signs of change. Democracy is beginning to flourish on a local level in China, mostly as a response to corruption.
But anyway, the whole principle of outsourcing is that you replace lost jobs with better ones. The key is to make darn sure you do replace the jobs with better ones. Do I think we are doing that? Unfortunately not. And that is a problem with our lack of vision and a coherent economic policy. Our economic policy should include education and basic science research as part of a "jobs" plan. But it's not. I could go on, but here is an interesting article (http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2005/05 03.wallace-wells1.html).
One thing I find unacceptable is American protectionism. Free and fair trade is necessary to help other economies. Some of our tariffs are devastating to other countries economies. As you probably know if you've read any of my other posts, I have a sincere concern for global poverty. I think American protectionism morally unfair.
I realize that my position probably puts me out of the mainstream in the progressive community. So it goes. But I would like to see a strong moral argument for the justness of protectionism. Plus, I think innovation rather than protectionism is better economics.
I too agree that free and fair trade are important to a successful global economy. But let us be honest, fair trade is not happening. And it doesn't appear that is going to change anytime soon. NAFTA, CAFTA, whatever we develop, it is going to purge American jobs and cripple certain sectors of the American economy. It is so critically important that if we are going to engage in this type of active trade that we must do what we can to stem the tide of outsourcing, or do what we can to re-educate our workforce. At this point, we are doing neither.
All these things add up to a really bad scenario in which America falls from the top of the mountain, and is instead replaced by a leaner and meaner emerging giant.
There's so much more we can do to make the job bleeding less burdensome, but we are not. I'll talk more about that some other time...
connected to the blog "Democracy Arsenal." You
should read it, its got good stuff. Unfortunatly
you do not. I wrote a response to your article on
my Blog and soon found that i can not run a link
through a comment. I have started one at Campus
Progress and my response can be found there.
-Brady Loeck
Well, I've written plenty on here, some more emotional then others. Some that flow better then others. Most importantly, it's a blog, full of opinion, it doesn't need to flow like poetry. I don't plan on writing the sequel to Romeo and Juliet. But, the old line of attack is to go after someone's method of writing when you can't argue their points.
And no, my point wasn't that China's bid for UNOCAL will make them a superpower, they already are a superpower. By far you are way off base in proclaiming that China has not surpassed the United States in various categories of advancement. Militarily and technologically they are becoming far more superior. You apparently must have forgot that we are bogged down in the middle of two wars, and the armed forces are stretched thinner then taffy. Do explain how that does not put a military in a fine predicament. I won't concede social status either, because our nation now believes in using human guinea pigs for pesticide testing, children for HIV/AIDS drug testing, and we torture innocent people. Doesn't exactly make us look like Martha Stewart socially, now does it?
I can not imagine $80 a barrel hurting anyone harder then it would an American blue collared worker. It's a struggle now to keep up with energy costs, and not just gasoline, but electric and natural gas. When you add China into the mix, trying to puncture holes throughout the world attempting to find oil as much as we are, it creates intense competition. It will likely lead to more conflict later on, as oil continues to rise as the world's #1 resource needed to maximize economic potential. After all, it is the one element that can bring any superpower to its knees. No oil, no superpower.
I love your big "IF" scenario too regarding the trade gap. You assume complete cooperation from China will result in the reduction of the trade deficit. Do tell, what reasons does China have to cooperate with the United States? They don't. And, if you believe that having two superpowers swallowing and consuming resources that are becoming less efficient to find is a good thing, then I fear the future of the world with you as a leader in it. In fact, it just proves my point that Americans continue to suffer from "It's my way or the highway syndrome." We essentially become locusts at that point, sucking everything dry and leaving nothing for other nations. Almost spoken like a real conservative, rape the world for its resources and screw everyone else.
Finally, you reveal what really upset you and that was the line of attack on the "gipper." The one individual that Republicans believe progressives can not attack them on. Guess what? Ronnie needs to be taken down a few steps off of his pedestal. Indeed both North Korea and China represent different styles of communism. The fact remains, to the core, they are both communists. And, they both contain nuclear weapons. Both pose an incredible threat in so many ways to the national and domestic security of the United States. Sure we must work with other nations, but I for one will not sit back and rollover as China asserts its superpower status on American industry.
You claim that, “By far you are way off base in proclaiming that China has not surpassed the United States in various categories of advancement” and that “they already are a superpower.” You are right that China is making progress in matching America’s military and technological might. Their progress is significant and the fact that they are stealing our technology successfully is very troubling, but the fact that they are forced to steal our technology in the first place indicates that we are technologically superior. If you read the Washington Time’s special report on China, you will see that China is just now developing many of the military capabilities that we have been practicing for years such as air borne refueling and airborne warning and control aircraft that can be used for regional defense and long-range power projection. They are currently developing a “blue-water” navy. Their navy is far inferior to ours and will be for at least another decade at least. I really don’t understand how one can call China a superpower when they are unable to project their power past their borders with a blue-water navy. China currently has no aircraft carriers meaning that it is currently not able to project power past those it borders. China does actually have three aircraft carriers but they are being used for non-military purposes; two resorts and a casino. They are buying SU-10 fighter-bombers that, though advanced and deadly, are still inferior to our fleet of fighters and bombers. And finally, for the record, China’s defense budget is a mere 10% of ours; don’t expect them to close that gap any time in the near-future.
Your assertion that China can even approach us socially boggles the mind. I don’t know how you can compare animal rights to human rights. I would like to bring to your attention a few instances in the past few years that show how China’s level of social responsibility. In the past month the Chinese government hired a band of thugs to clear out a rural village where a factory was to be built. They used shovels and long canes to subdue the villagers, and when they got tired, they used guns. At least six villagers died and fifty were injured because the Chinese needed to build a power station. Speaking of HIV, while the US is taking strong measures to fight the virus, in China they harass those attempting to do the same. To clear up your misconception, in order for any drug to be passed by the FDA, human testing is required. I believe it is the phase four level of testing that requires this. Most egregious of offences is the forced relocation of over seven towns that was required by the building of the Three Gorges Dam; those who did not move were simply left in the flood. I understand that that the US has been accused of torture, and this will prove to weaken out position on human rights in the future. The entire issue is complicated as we are currently fighting a war against terrorism that has contradicted all of the basic conventions of a typical war.
The scenario of an $80 dollar barrel of oil is an ambitious one that holds no one, true answer. The only fact we know for sure is that it would cripple both nations tremendously.
Not once did I say that the Chinese revaluation is going to by a fast process. Recent articles show that the Chinese realize the need to revaluate their currency and are going to do so slowly. In a recent speech to Asian and European finance ministers, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao said China was committed to what he called “a responsive and responsible revaluation.”
I take offense to your labeling me a “my way or the highway” American, or even for that matter one who believes we should continue our unhealthy addiction to oil and other finite natural resources. I believe that energy conservation and development of renewable energy resources is imperative to our national security and will come faster to the United States than to China.
I will end with a short quote from my well-informed brother;
“To further your point on China's bid for UNOCAL. In the most recent edition of the Economist it is noted that the Japanese were guilty of overpaying for everything from tech-firms to Rockafeller Centre. Soon the Japanese economy crashed and the American-sellers became billionaires. Whose the bitch now?”
-Links within text to supporting articles can be found on my blog