Pity poor Cuba, Venezuela, and now Mexico for being the low-hanging fruit that this administration will need to justify its kamikaze policies. The blowback that this will generate is no mitigation of the suffering of the ordinary people whose rulers had the temerity and impudence to serve by diverting the income flows destined for oligarchs and Wall Street to them. How dare they! And meanwhile the coke and fentanyl will just keep on coming. Great job, Donald!
Thank-you Larry - great info and beautifully presented in a way that all should be able to see why the USD is no longer "king of the world" due to Trump's illegal use of tariffs that backfired while it weaponized the USD. I see you avoided using the the B_R-I*C~S! word :-)
From my experience in the Caribbean, there is an enduring belief by a majority of people that America is omnipotent and that America will forever rule over the world. Hardly anyone seems to remember that up to the 2nd World War the European powers ruled over our islands for over 300 years and it was only after the disastrous losses they suffered, caused by the war, that their Empires went into steep decline. It took the next 80 plus years for the American Empire to take economic and political control over our region. Now the Chinese present a superior trade advantage to the Caribbean just as the Americans became superior to the Europeans. In light of history it beggars belief that the Americans will rule over the Caribbean forever.
In theory, China can be severely subordinated. In practice, it will be difficult. In addition to all the reasons cited by Mr. Johnson and other analysts and commentators, I would like to add a different perspective. Who serves as the US Treasury Secretary does not really matter as long as the US needs to sell a huge amount of government debt and China has been a major holder. Even after extensive dumping of the US Treasury, China still holds a lot of UST. As long as that is the case, the Treasury Secretary is the person who should NOT be tasked to subordinate China.
The Chinese Communist Party is a true believer in the concept of "Total War" because that was how they started, thrived, and eventually won the Chinese Civil War against the government of the Republic of China. In comparison, the original concept, as was written by Ludendorff is only like an introduction. By looking at what the Chinese Communists did before 1949, that was what "total war" really means. After 1949, the CCP began to lose its ability to do so because it already held total power over China. Wielding total control is not the same as fighting a total war against an opponent stronger than you. All the US sanctions and tariffs, etc., however, have not reached the level needed for a total war. The US will not lose, but the US cannot win without another total war mobilization.
Under Xi, however, the CCP has been trying to rebuild that "total war" capability for a clear and present danger. Note that "total war" as formulated by the CCP does not need prosperous commerce or a large population. The tactics now are different from those before 1949 because the main threat to the CCP comes from overseas, while the struggle before 1949 was a civil war. Inserting spies into the other camp is much more difficult now. However, buying leverage from the deep state of the other side can be done. IMHO, the past failures of the US government in its attempts to pressure China had mostly failed precisely because the US deep-state blob skillfully opened up back doors and leaks in all the sanctions and tightening export controls.
Pity poor Cuba, Venezuela, and now Mexico for being the low-hanging fruit that this administration will need to justify its kamikaze policies. The blowback that this will generate is no mitigation of the suffering of the ordinary people whose rulers had the temerity and impudence to serve by diverting the income flows destined for oligarchs and Wall Street to them. How dare they! And meanwhile the coke and fentanyl will just keep on coming. Great job, Donald!
😀 😃
Thank-you Larry - great info and beautifully presented in a way that all should be able to see why the USD is no longer "king of the world" due to Trump's illegal use of tariffs that backfired while it weaponized the USD. I see you avoided using the the B_R-I*C~S! word :-)
From my experience in the Caribbean, there is an enduring belief by a majority of people that America is omnipotent and that America will forever rule over the world. Hardly anyone seems to remember that up to the 2nd World War the European powers ruled over our islands for over 300 years and it was only after the disastrous losses they suffered, caused by the war, that their Empires went into steep decline. It took the next 80 plus years for the American Empire to take economic and political control over our region. Now the Chinese present a superior trade advantage to the Caribbean just as the Americans became superior to the Europeans. In light of history it beggars belief that the Americans will rule over the Caribbean forever.
In theory, China can be severely subordinated. In practice, it will be difficult. In addition to all the reasons cited by Mr. Johnson and other analysts and commentators, I would like to add a different perspective. Who serves as the US Treasury Secretary does not really matter as long as the US needs to sell a huge amount of government debt and China has been a major holder. Even after extensive dumping of the US Treasury, China still holds a lot of UST. As long as that is the case, the Treasury Secretary is the person who should NOT be tasked to subordinate China.
The Chinese Communist Party is a true believer in the concept of "Total War" because that was how they started, thrived, and eventually won the Chinese Civil War against the government of the Republic of China. In comparison, the original concept, as was written by Ludendorff is only like an introduction. By looking at what the Chinese Communists did before 1949, that was what "total war" really means. After 1949, the CCP began to lose its ability to do so because it already held total power over China. Wielding total control is not the same as fighting a total war against an opponent stronger than you. All the US sanctions and tariffs, etc., however, have not reached the level needed for a total war. The US will not lose, but the US cannot win without another total war mobilization.
Under Xi, however, the CCP has been trying to rebuild that "total war" capability for a clear and present danger. Note that "total war" as formulated by the CCP does not need prosperous commerce or a large population. The tactics now are different from those before 1949 because the main threat to the CCP comes from overseas, while the struggle before 1949 was a civil war. Inserting spies into the other camp is much more difficult now. However, buying leverage from the deep state of the other side can be done. IMHO, the past failures of the US government in its attempts to pressure China had mostly failed precisely because the US deep-state blob skillfully opened up back doors and leaks in all the sanctions and tightening export controls.