9/13/2010
Legacy of gunboat diplomacy
The western reporters could only quip that the Chines furore over the Diaoyutai Incident is about face saving. These are the only two words that they knew over the centuries of reporting about China. Other vocabularies include Chinese are inscrutable, good housekeepers, good cook for chop suey and laundrymen.
The arrest of the Chinese fishing boat captain by the Japanese in the disputed Diaoyutai Island harks back to the days of Unequal Treaties. The island was wrestled from China at the Treaty of Shimonoseki. China than was a weak nation in the dying days of the Qing Dynasty. It went further down as the Sick Man of Asia after repeated raids and territorial aggression by the Western Powers and Japan.
In the days of gunboat diplomacy, might is right. The Japanese told the Chinese then that they deserved to be attacked and defeated because the Chinese were weak. Yes, weakness was sexy and tempting. And Japan and the Western Powers raped and invaded China, and extorted all kinds of war reparations and ceding of Chinese territories and concessions. Diaoyutai was one of the islands ceded to Japan. Taiwan was ruled by Japan for several decades. So was Korea.
History has come full circle. The difference is that China has the power of balance in its favour now. Japan may still think that it is a great imperial power and could do what it did to China all over again. It is in for a rude surprise. The Chinese, including the Koreans, are ready to take back whatever they lost to the Japanese during Imperial Japan.
The stupid westerners can only think of Chinese face. They refused to acknowledge the days of humiliation, aggression and Unequal Treaties when China had to give up its wealth and land, and islands. Today China is strong enough to stand up to the aggressors and will demand the return of all lands taken from old China. They will do it on the negotiating table and will use the gun only if necessary.
Japan want a war with China, with the US backing? The Chinese will meet the Japanese and Americans in the battle field. This time it is not a ragtag army of ill equipped peasant soldiers carrying only rifles and small arms. The Chinese military is in a position to take on the most advanced military power in the world today. Japan is chicken feed. Of course the militant Japanese will think otherwise, that they are capable of invading China once more. They want to return to the days of Imperial glory.
The show has just started.
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12 comments:
Bringing in unknown elements into the country comes with unknown risk. Bringing in hooligans will see out people being wallop. Bringing in murderers will see our children being murder. Brining in psycho path with see our babies being snuffed to death.
It is our own doing. We invited them here, we can't complain.
Now we encouraged our people to rent out their homes to foreigners. As the oldies get more and more sublet their flats, living with young and strong foreigners, we can expect more abuses and even oldies being beaten and robbed by their tenants. Can be worst.
Wrong policies will have wrong results. Bad policies will have bad results.
Hehe,
Singapore is not arrogant. How can it be when it's only just a peesai.
Singapore is foolhardy inviting these arrogant PRCs onto our shores.
Yes, it may be you scratch my back and I scratch yours for now. Letting their trash come here by the plane loads to relieve some unemployment back home in return for business deals such as industrial parks, pig farms (my "idol" MBT visited one recently), buying in by TH and GIC. But look at the societal damage that these trash has caused in our once tranquil land.
I am really worried that your idol may draw inspirations from the pig farm for our housing programme.
The Chinese have fallen repeatedly even to liliputians liked the manchus, mongols and japs. Nothing surprising if history repeats again lah.
It must be the most spectacular show anyone can wish for to see a showdown between the USA and PRC. Start the show please.
The two main protagonists would avoid a direct confrontation for sure. Declaring war on China is not like invading Iraq or Afghanistan. The casualties will be unimaginable on both sides.
What is likely to happen is a proxy war. The main proxies will be Japan and South Korea, with a large coterie of Coalition of the Willing or Unwilling. We may feature in such an eventuality. Then we will have to use all our ingenuities to wrangle ourselves out of the game.
This could be the war that the Banana Republic of America is hoping to start to save their economic doomsday.
That is the only alternative left.
The Japanese did that in the 2nd WW. They paid dearly.
Yes, but the people who wanted the war and really benefiting from the war are not the ones who had to pay dearly.
They do not even have to participate in the fighting of the war itself. Other people will sacrifice their lives for them.
Just like red dot. Native Singaporeans do the sacrificing for the elites and rich foreigners.
Simply put, there are just too many traitors and betrayers amongst your own people of your own colours and ancestors.
Shame to have them and shame to the people who failed to punish them.
Historically it is true. Many Chinese dynasties fell in the hands of Chinese who turned traitors and worked for the enemies.
Today, if you read the western media and see how many Chinese running down or attacking China and things Chinese as if they are Westerners is unbelieveable. China need to be criticised when they are in the wrong. But many of the views presented were simply regurgitation of western biases and distortion, and often gingoism.
That is why I always like to say that Asians are silly, and some screw up Chinese is about the worst.
And they sincerely believe that by parroting western world views make them superior, like westerners. They did not know how they would be treated if China was still the Sick Man of Asia. They would be spitted at in the streets of London or NY or any western cities.
Let's hope history does not repeat itself and the Chinese were regarded to be as good as dogs by the west.
Japan and China will be settling old scores sooner or later...
...and that presents political and profit opportunities for the clever operator.
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