General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Jimmy Carter takes call from Trump regarding China [View all]zipplewrath
(16,646 posts)This is a bit misleading. China hasn't been at war, since Korea, because they have had an extremely limited capacity to do so. Projecting power is a difficult thing to do, and it isn't cheap either. They haven't gone to war with Taiwan because they knew we would protect them. Vietnam has a history in conflicts with China that encourage China to not try to project power there. And they aren't going back into South Korea any time soon. But they do oppress a few regions that might otherwise try to split from them. And all their neighbors are extremely wary of them.
And China hasn't been totally passive on this front. They are building a capacity to project SOME power. Not globally, but regionally. They've bought and converted aircraft carriers and submarines. They've built a capacity to attack satellites. And they are expanding islands in the South China Sea artificially and militarizing them. They are playing a very long game, but it does involve the intent on using military power to project power and control beyond their borders.
We spend way too much on our military power, although DU might not agree on what the "right" amount is. And the GOP has created more pointless wars as of late, but even Obama was limited in his capacity to wind them down. A growing China, much like a growing Japan almost a century ago, is a problem that shouldn't be ignored. But it isn't carte blanche to do "just anything" either.