The Coming Clash With China

Is there evidence of a coming conflict between the US and China?

I became interested in the relationship between the United States and the People's Republic of China in late 1993, when I was stationed in the East as a technical writer. In the course of my research in those days, I developed a theory that I believe we are seeing played out in current events. My belief is that we will very soon see open conflict between China and the United States, sometime in the very near future.

It would be impossible in a couple of short paragraphs to explain the wide differences between the Eastern versus Western mindsets. However, the idea can be summed up in this analogy: Eastern thought (specifically China) is in long terms - 5-year plans, 10-year plans and so forth. Western culture (specifically America) is generally impatient; getting peeved when there are more than three cars in the drive-through ahead of us, and putting our instant coffee in the microwave.

Because of these two radically divergent mindsets, I believe there is going to come a time when these world-views inevitably will clash.

But the question remains: Are there any evidences of an impending crash of ideologies coming down the road? Here are some signposts to consider:

1) While Russia has recently started working on restoring its global military might (after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the fall of the Berlin Wall) China has been working on its re-militarization project for decades. China is currently the only other global super-power to contend with the United States or with the European Union. Also, China has openly stated that it has been systematically upgrading its economic establishment over at least the past 20 or so years, with the direct aim of overcoming the United States as a global super power.

2) There are continued stresses between Chinese and American relations over the status of Taiwan. China officially recognizes Taiwan as a "renegade province" while many younger people in Taiwan view the island as a separate country. The United States, under the banner of promoting democracy, continues to supply defensive funding and weaponry to Taiwan over China's loud protests. Someday, this precarious balance will likely be disturbed, either by an accident of circumstances or by design, and unfortunately it may take a military operation to ultimately resolve the situation.

3) The continued clash over "freedom of information" between Google and the People's Republic of China. This clash is not so much between Google as a company and China as a sovereign nation; it is more a clash between Eastern and Western mindsets. Freedom of speech is a cornerstone of democracy, but it stands in direct opposition to Communist Chinese ideology. As an organizational value, it appears that Google believes a person should have free access to unlimited information, for good or evil. In contrast, the Chinese establishment (in true Marxist form) requires that all information be censored to prevent "undesirable" communications. As a result of this information impasse, Google recently re-routed its search queries through Hong Kong (an autonomous region to China) in order to circumvent Chinese filtering (March 22, 2010). Where this all will lead is anybody's guess.

I believe this growing potential conflict between Eastern and Western ways of perceiving the world will eventually come to an open conflict. Dialog and diplomacy continue to be viable options... but for how long?

Michael S. Wilson, TSgt, USAF-(Ret.)
Contact: mswilso@earthlink.net

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