How the crown jewel of the Dutch high-tech industry has become a geopolitical pawn in neocon America's project to stymie China's technological progress.
Bravo! You've summarized the absurdity of this campaign perfectly.
The West's preparations for its self-chosen "war with China in 2027” which, almost every month, looks more absurd–though not, of course, less likely. The USN fleet of elderly, high-mileage, low-tech ships is shrinking relentlessly. The $20 billion Gerald Ford, for example, will never see combat, thanks to an early, illinformed decision to run it on AC current. Modern ships use immense quantities electricity, including the GF's power-hungry EMALS.
Most of the current ten carriers need at least a year of intensive work in dry dock to prepare them for combat, assuming crews can be found for them.
At least five new nuclear submarines, including two under construction, will have to be gutted so that faulty welds can be replaced–a process that will take years.
Nine Ticonderoga cruisers still on the books should have been decommissioned ten years ago.
Half the Navy's oilers are mothballed because crews cannot be found for them....
In a few months, China will commission its 400th warship, and can add twenty, fully crewed with math graduates, every year without breathing hard...
US warmongering against China stems not from its power, but rather from its decline. Past 2027-28 last scraps of it will cease to be relevant enough to make a difference, so it's not a question of winning this conflict - it's about using the leverage before it goes obsolete. And that in itself turns out to be a special kind of crazy when you pause to consider what it entails in practice.
Yep. We saw how the presumed “leverage” over Russia worked when they thought they could crash its economy. Russia weathered the onslaught of sanctions and its economy is now flourishing. The US IMO now has far less leverage over China than it did over Russia.
Thanks! You mentioned in passing crew shortages. Apparently there is a recruitment crisis across the entire spectrum of the US military; they cannot find sufficient numbers of able-bodied/able-minded men (and women). So many of the target demographic are physically unfit (obese) or have insufficient basic schooling (functionally illiterate). On his podcast, Garland Nixon has also been pointing out that working-class Americans who once saw military service as both a patriotic duty and a way to rise in society no longer want to take part (and risk dying) in conflicts which have no obvious connection to protecting the homeland from genuine threats. Perhaps these military planners in the Pentagon think they fight a war with China just using AI! One would have thought their inability to contain the challenge presented by Ansar Allah in Yemen might sharpen their minds with regards to the limits of US military power in this day and age. Apparently not.
Bravo! You've summarized the absurdity of this campaign perfectly.
The West's preparations for its self-chosen "war with China in 2027” which, almost every month, looks more absurd–though not, of course, less likely. The USN fleet of elderly, high-mileage, low-tech ships is shrinking relentlessly. The $20 billion Gerald Ford, for example, will never see combat, thanks to an early, illinformed decision to run it on AC current. Modern ships use immense quantities electricity, including the GF's power-hungry EMALS.
Most of the current ten carriers need at least a year of intensive work in dry dock to prepare them for combat, assuming crews can be found for them.
At least five new nuclear submarines, including two under construction, will have to be gutted so that faulty welds can be replaced–a process that will take years.
Nine Ticonderoga cruisers still on the books should have been decommissioned ten years ago.
Half the Navy's oilers are mothballed because crews cannot be found for them....
In a few months, China will commission its 400th warship, and can add twenty, fully crewed with math graduates, every year without breathing hard...
Who are we kidding?
US warmongering against China stems not from its power, but rather from its decline. Past 2027-28 last scraps of it will cease to be relevant enough to make a difference, so it's not a question of winning this conflict - it's about using the leverage before it goes obsolete. And that in itself turns out to be a special kind of crazy when you pause to consider what it entails in practice.
Yep. We saw how the presumed “leverage” over Russia worked when they thought they could crash its economy. Russia weathered the onslaught of sanctions and its economy is now flourishing. The US IMO now has far less leverage over China than it did over Russia.
Thanks! You mentioned in passing crew shortages. Apparently there is a recruitment crisis across the entire spectrum of the US military; they cannot find sufficient numbers of able-bodied/able-minded men (and women). So many of the target demographic are physically unfit (obese) or have insufficient basic schooling (functionally illiterate). On his podcast, Garland Nixon has also been pointing out that working-class Americans who once saw military service as both a patriotic duty and a way to rise in society no longer want to take part (and risk dying) in conflicts which have no obvious connection to protecting the homeland from genuine threats. Perhaps these military planners in the Pentagon think they fight a war with China just using AI! One would have thought their inability to contain the challenge presented by Ansar Allah in Yemen might sharpen their minds with regards to the limits of US military power in this day and age. Apparently not.
Great play on words with the title! And so true...