We could use an enemy (other than the amorphous "terror"). Our domestic politics functioned better when we had something outside the country to think about.

China is not a communist country, they are a capitalist country and they are doing their best to modernize with the advantage of not needing to spend the money and time for R+D.

"with the advantage of not needing to spend the money and time for R+D."

Are you sure? China does take advantage of a lot of the technology we supply to them, but they do spend a lot on upgrading infrastructure and realize they need to look forward.

The other advantage is the one party rule. So instead of spending a lot of time making the other party look bad, they can actually focus on long-range planning.

Govt here top-to-bottom is always interested in the next patch to make it thru the day.

Plus Chinese politicians are smarter than our guys and have patience.

We get the best deal no matter what. We get all the stuff China makes and they get our bonds which are worth less and less. Stuff for paper, nice trade.

. . Stuff for paper, nice trade.

Until . . time to collect.
Do they get to own the Golden Gate Bridge?
and. . and . .

We get the best deal no matter what. We get all the stuff China makes and they get our bonds which are worth less and less. Stuff for paper, nice trade.

If you don't think that they'll trade paper for blood, I've overestimated you.

Clinamen and Rettig: We just keep printing more monopoly money and use it to pay them back. China has no choice but to take it, and if they don’t their economy will crash. They are totally aware of what is happening and that is why they are not revaluing their currency. Their worst fear is inflation in the western economies. Unfortunately that is inevitable. If it happens slowly enough they will cope. I personally buy gold and silver. You might want to consider it.

We're not using dollars to "pay China back" so much as we are using dollars to buy goods, since most of the goods we consume are produced in China. China buys our bonds because, well, what else are they going to do with the dollars we spent at their factories? Put them in a mattress? They could sell the dollars on the foreign currency markets, but that would depress the value of the dollar and make their goods more expensive for us, which they don't want. But the idea that we are somehow financing our national debt by selling bonds to China is a fantasy. It's our trade deficit that produces this. Our deficit doesn't need "financing", nor does our national "debt".

"what else are they going to do with the dollars we spent at their factories?"

Buy hard assets like oil fields in African countries or gold since bonds will be a wasting asset. They'll also buy technology since Bonds are just a parking place for money now, they are just trying to figure their investment targets now.

If you look at gold over the past year you may have noticed an increase in price.

I'm still trying to get over the two-faced irony of closing Hanford's coal-powered plant and then funneling megabucks into outfitting ports in Longview and Portland to enable the shipment of coal to China where it will -- one suspects -- enter the same atmosphere when it's burned.

The Chinese are building alot of submarines for a country that doesn't plan on fighting an enemy.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-492804/The-uninvited-guest-Chinese-sub-pops-middle-U-S-Navy-exercise-leaving-military-chiefs-red-faced.html