this post was submitted on 16 Aug 2026
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The lack of a U.S. carrier in the Pacific may be short-lived if the Navy deploys another in the next couple of months. But it shows how the open-ended operations with Iran are running some American sailors ragged, analysts say, while the Trump administration further retreats from the Asia-Pacific region and focuses on the Western Hemisphere.

“The administration says that the Pacific is supposed to be the most important behind the Western Hemisphere,” said Greg Poling, director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Instead, the U.S. is “doing the exact opposite” of its previously expressed goal of pulling out of the Middle East.

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[–] SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca 6 points 5 days ago (3 children)

It would be indeed incredibly stupid for Xi to try to invade Taiwan. There's the economic cost and there's a real possibility that he could wind up in the same situation Trump and Putin are currently in. Lots of those pesky drones creating a stalemate situation.

But authoritarians are being really stupid lately, so we can't discount the possibility of Xi being as stupid as Trump and Putin.

[–] BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today 6 points 5 days ago (1 children)

China is the one superpower who isn't wasting their resources on a pointless war, and are investing heavily in infrastructure and their people, and their manufacturing base for EVERYTHING is unparalleled.

They are taking over the world without firing a shot. Why would they screw that up just to take a tiny island that is no more than a symbol. Let the Westerners think they have some sort of power over them, they know the real truth.

[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 4 points 5 days ago

You are saying that like the US and Russia weren't in way better positions before their respective wars.

What the commenter you're replying to is saying, is that we can't trust dumbfuck dictators to not make the stupid decision of invading someone else, no matter how idiotic it might be.

Why would they screw that up just to take a tiny island that is no more than a symbol.

Dictators have startet wars for way less.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago (2 children)

we can’t discount the possibility of Xi being as stupid as Trump and Putin.

I'm trying to think of a comparable series of blunders the Chinese have committed.

Xi's much more in the mold of an Obama or a Merkle than Putin or Trump

[–] SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca 0 points 4 days ago

You need to cut back on all the tankie propganda you're consuming a little bit, buddy.

[–] GolfFoxtrotLima@ani.social 0 points 5 days ago (1 children)

What about the sino Vietnamese war, that’s one blunder I remember

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 5 points 5 days ago (1 children)

The three-week incursion into Vietnam in 1979 was certainly a bad decision by the Chinese government. Idk if it stacks up against the American 13 year invasion, occupation, terror-bombing, and torture/assassination campaign that became emblematic of US Foreign policy. Easy to forget the scope of the difference between the two interventions, given how often modern China-watchers love to bring up the former while neglecting the latter.

But do you have anything perpetrated by the Xi administration specifically? Or just something a sitting administrative official actually presided over?

[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 0 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I mean sure, but I don't see China behaving much better if they ever become a super-power the way the US was for the last hundred years. Especially considering their treatment of Uyghurs.

I would argue a large part of China not trying to militarily expand their Power was US dominance and their global policing.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I don’t see China behaving much better if they ever become a super-power

I'm not sure what else they'd need to do to qualify, shy of actually building out a global network of military bases. In that case, sure. If they start acting like the US, then they're no better than the US.

But for the time being, what I'm seeing - and I'll quote Dr Lubinda Haabazoka, Director of the University of Zambia Graduate School of Business and former President of the Economics Association of Zambia on this one

Every time China visits we get a hospital, every time Britain visits we get a lecture.

To date, I've seen a lot of Chinese Hospitals (and factories and ports and colleges) opening up across the world. Meanwhile, the only thing guys like Trump and Starmer seem to want to contribute are frowns, finger wags, and 500 lb bunker busters onto wedding parties.

[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 0 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I’m not sure what else they’d need to do to qualify, shy of actually building out a global network of military bases. In that case, sure. If they start acting like the US, then they’re no better than the US.

Yes, and what I'm saying is that the only reason they haven't done that yet is because the US hasn't let them. But I suppose that is something we can only speculate about until the time comes. And again, I think we only need to look at how they are treating Uyghurs and their aggressive/imperialistic local geopolitics to be able to guess how they would act if they were in the position the US is/was. And that's not touching on their surveillance state which is unrivalled in the world.

To date, I’ve seen a lot of Chinese Hospitals (and factories and ports and colleges) opening up across the world. Meanwhile, the only thing guys like Trump and Starmer seem to want to contribute are frowns, finger wags, and 500 lb bunker busters onto wedding parties.

That's the same type of Neo-colonialism the French have been up to for the last 100 years. Definitely not something positive for these African countries. There's a reason it's called debt trap diplomacy.

I just don't see why we should hope for the benevolence of the upcoming authoritarian super-power when there's ample evidence they are no better and just haven't had the freedom to be as bad scope-wise as the current super-power.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)

the US hasn’t let them

It's not the US, it's this big magic rock. Also works to scare away tigers

[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)

The magic rock apparently also makes people blind and naive towards chinese repression, what a world!

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)
[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 0 points 4 days ago (1 children)
[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

It is very cringe to see folks who clapped like seals when the US bombed a girl's school get incredibly mad when someone else builds a girl's school.

[–] mrbutterscotch@feddit.org 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

If a person denies what's happening to the Uyghurs, they're no better than the People denying the genocide in Gaza and shilling for Israel. But I'm sure that's not you, right?

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 4 days ago

You used the Taliban's miserable treatment of women to justify a 23 year holocaust in Afghanistan.

Now you're calling a Chinese campaign to educate and elevate women living right next door to Afghanistan a genocide.

Beginning to think you just hate Muslims and want them to suffer.