The political right hates AI a little less than the left, but not by super much, and some forces from the emerging America First movement are getting ready to protest AI's invasiveness and capacity for manipulation. The org is called Humans First, and they're trying to have a 50501-style nationwide protest about it on July 18th. If both sides cooperate on this one, good things can actually happen, so this should get talked about. A lot. https://www.humansfirst.com/
I'm not sure I've ever heard someone convert a commercial arrangement into sponsorship and alignment before.
Do go on.
Then, Reagan sold guns to the Contras in Iran who opposed Hezbollah in Lebanon and Sandinista in Nicaragua. This was a volatile time for Iran which had at this point lost trust in both sides of the cold war as the USSR declined and the US-backed regimes were dead and buried, so they really didn't like the CIA fucking around gun smuggling in their back yard AGAIN.
Now, Iranian guns and bombs come from China and Russia. They use those guns and bombs on westerner allies in the region. Sure, you can call that a "transactional relationship" but I doubt the anybody involved would say it's politically unmotivated. Xi Jinping has even payed them multiple personal visits to speak about the various regional affairs.
One could argue, but it would be a stupid argument.
China buys oil from Iran. This is not "supporting the IRGC". This is "buying oil because China needs fucking oil and is willing to circumvent bans to get it". China uses about 16 million barrels of oil PER DAY. 70% of that is imported. The Arab states are locked tight by the USA and its allies. So China buys from whoever is left. Which, realistically speaking, means Iran.
China sells military equipment and satellite time to Iran. This is not "supporting the IRGC". This is "selling goods".
Are there political motives? FUCK yes! There's political motives to any trade anywhere between any two countries. But it's a HUGE stretch to go from "China sells weapons and buys oil" to "China is using Iran as a puppet state". (For starters, why the flying FUCK would China tolerate a puppet state taking actions that threaten its own energy reserves? If Iran were an actual puppet state, the Strait of Hormuz would have been opened right the fuck up. The Chinese government really doesn't like the unrest that sudden price increases across the country causes.)
Let's shift the nations involved and test the sound bite:
See how idiotic that sounds, especially given that Denmark and Canada both are rather pissed at the USA and are pushing sanctions and boycotts?
When you see Chinese soldiers on the ground in Iran, perhaps as "advisors" or as "instructors" or the like, then maybe we can talk client state. When you see Chinese frigates patrolling the coast of Iran on its behalf, then maybe we can talk client state. When Iranian naval vessels do drills with Chinese ones in the China Sea, maybe we can then talk about client state. When there's Chinese military bases in Iran, then maybe we can talk about client state. Until then any talk of client state is geopolitical gibberish.
Lmao yeah okay it's okay to murder innocents and drink their blood as long as it means they don't have to agree to fair trade practices with the west. Maybe skin a couple of infants just for kicks. All is justifiable to prevent western ~~mutually beneficial commerce~~ Imperialism.
The "drinking blood of children" thing is attached to Jews by bigots, not Chinese. Keep your bigotries straight, would you?
I note with interest you didn't actually address anything I said. Could it be because you've got nothing to say so you reach for your reflexive bigotry?
I'd wager it's both. That's the real crux of the issue here, is that I'm capable of condemning evil and you're only willing if it benefits your narrative.