It's easier to virtue signal when nothing is on the line. But I noticed this when living in the Middle East, that people in the Western world can sing a song about civil rights and human rights and various bogeymen but they won't, like, push for an embargo on Saudi oil because of the rampant human rights issues within the GCC. "Don't weigh in! Don't piss them off! We need our [cheap shit from China/affordable gasoline for our SUV/cheap coffee/abundant raw materials from Africa]!" I guess the World Cup might shed a bit of light on what goes on in Qatar, but maybe not. Tourists can visit an area and yet be completely blind to the actual local culture. The current scandal is that you might not be able to buy beer at the games! Not the thousand or so brown people who died while building all the infrastructure over the past decade.
Spouse does not think that the US would defend Taiwan if the Chinese invade all at once. Probably inadequate time to mount a viable defense force.
Here's a random interesting picture. My kids have this interactive map (made in China), and the void in the flags (between Sri Lanka and Thailand, to the right of Pakistan) is where Taiwan would be, but it's a blank space. Kind of reminds me of some Middle Eastern maps that would Sharpie over Israel.
Yeah, it's complex. On one hand, you could argue that as a person from a democratic country, going to visit (or even live and work in) these authoritarian nations is a small way of showing the people who live there that there is another way. But on the other hand, perhaps you're just reinforcing the message of the regime, which is that democratic countries aren't really all that different, because if people from democracies freely choose to come spend their time in an autocracy, what's so great about democracy anyway?
And, of course, all the extremely online folks in the US or Canada who whine about how their own government is authoritarian ("wokeness features Maoist struggle sessions and is basically a rebranded Cultural Revolution", "rebranded Nazis are in control of the entire government and will stop at nothing to punish Black and Brown bodies") seem somewhat out-of-touch with what actual authoritarianism looks like. A good hint is that they can freely spout their opinions on Twitter and nobody disappears them the next day.
Meanwhile they all keep buying stuff from the actual authoritarian countries...
I mean, there's degrees of shittiness, i get it. And i do understand realpolitik, and that we can't close off all conversation with these absolutely shitty regimes. That's not a solution either. But i feel like sometimes there is a bit of a lack of awareness in the democratic world - and especially the wealthier (G20) corner of it. I don't know what the solution is. But i do know that if i have the choice between Team America: World Police and the spread of Socialism With Chinese Characteristics, i'm choosing the guys with the M4s and the NYT.
PS, i also don't think the US would do all that much to defend Taiwan if push came to shove. There's just not much in it for the US, unless they really want to maintain their position as Team America: World Police, which both the left and the right don't really want to do any more. If China takes Taiwan, they have open seas out to the Pacific, which is all they really want. Maybe Guam would go next, or maybe not, since China can just buy out whatever other Pacific islands are about to sink due to climate change. They'll do the same thing they did in South China Sea and build artifical islands all over the place, and before y'all know it, they'll be on your doorstep. It's only then that i think the US will wake up to what they let happen.
Perhaps that's pessimistic, but... ugh. Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia have pretty much let it go because they can't afford to stand up to Chinese expansionism. India doesn't want to rock the boat either, over their disputed strip of land in the Himalayas. Honestly, i think the only power likely to try stand up is Japan, but since WW2 they're notoriously non-confrontational, so who knows? It'll take a lot of very strong diplomacy to get the US, Japan and perhaps Australia aligned to make a concerted effort to keep the Pacific rim free and democratic. That's why i'm glad Biden is in, because Trump absolutely didn't give a shit. At least Biden is trying to rebuild international alliances, which is what's necessary in this particular situation.
It's easier to virtue signal when nothing is on the line. But I noticed this when living in the Middle East, that people in the Western world can sing a song about civil rights and human rights and various bogeymen but they won't, like, push for an embargo on Saudi oil because of the rampant human rights issues within the GCC. "Don't weigh in! Don't piss them off! We need our [cheap shit from China/affordable gasoline for our SUV/cheap coffee/abundant raw materials from Africa]!" I guess the World Cup might shed a bit of light on what goes on in Qatar, but maybe not. Tourists can visit an area and yet be completely blind to the actual local culture. The current scandal is that you might not be able to buy beer at the games! Not the thousand or so brown people who died while building all the infrastructure over the past decade.
Spouse does not think that the US would defend Taiwan if the Chinese invade all at once. Probably inadequate time to mount a viable defense force.
Here's a random interesting picture. My kids have this interactive map (made in China), and the void in the flags (between Sri Lanka and Thailand, to the right of Pakistan) is where Taiwan would be, but it's a blank space. Kind of reminds me of some Middle Eastern maps that would Sharpie over Israel.
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And, of course, all the extremely online folks in the US or Canada who whine about how their own government is authoritarian ("wokeness features Maoist struggle sessions and is basically a rebranded Cultural Revolution", "rebranded Nazis are in control of the entire government and will stop at nothing to punish Black and Brown bodies") seem somewhat out-of-touch with what actual authoritarianism looks like. A good hint is that they can freely spout their opinions on Twitter and nobody disappears them the next day.
Meanwhile they all keep buying stuff from the actual authoritarian countries...
I mean, there's degrees of shittiness, i get it. And i do understand realpolitik, and that we can't close off all conversation with these absolutely shitty regimes. That's not a solution either. But i feel like sometimes there is a bit of a lack of awareness in the democratic world - and especially the wealthier (G20) corner of it. I don't know what the solution is. But i do know that if i have the choice between Team America: World Police and the spread of Socialism With Chinese Characteristics, i'm choosing the guys with the M4s and the NYT.
Reply
Perhaps that's pessimistic, but... ugh. Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia have pretty much let it go because they can't afford to stand up to Chinese expansionism. India doesn't want to rock the boat either, over their disputed strip of land in the Himalayas. Honestly, i think the only power likely to try stand up is Japan, but since WW2 they're notoriously non-confrontational, so who knows? It'll take a lot of very strong diplomacy to get the US, Japan and perhaps Australia aligned to make a concerted effort to keep the Pacific rim free and democratic. That's why i'm glad Biden is in, because Trump absolutely didn't give a shit. At least Biden is trying to rebuild international alliances, which is what's necessary in this particular situation.
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