China steps up expansion via Hong Kong elections. Seven editors are banned from Wikipedia on concerns of not acting in good faith and with relation to China. The US sails through the Taiwan Straight again, this time a destroyer. Taiwan wants more backup runways for fighter jets. Escalations only continue and no side shows any sign of backing down.
Minimum wage needs a definition. It was intended for people who have a job for the first time, like high school students who live with parents and need to learn how to show up for work. When that wage minimum is applied to long-term employee of fifteen years, something is wrong. And, raising the minimum wage is no answer.
Instead, minimum wage should be defined somehow so that it is not applied to an employee of fifteen years. One important test for whether an employee should receive minimum wage is filing taxes as a dependent or living with parents. That would create two minimum wages: one for young dependents working simple jobs and another for experienced adults who live on their own.
Why hasn’t this been discussed? Blanketly raising the floor on all wages across society doesn’t make the house stand taller, it just adds a step to climb while making the ceiling closer. That sounds more like creating a problem so a politician can campaign on fixing it.
Elections themselves are evermore in doubt. The biggest problem with election fraud isn’t in government, but with news articles about election fraud asserting that fraud claims are “unfounded” without evaluating why. That’s still going on. To quote the ENRON hearings, “One word: ‘California’.”
Even with great products, why do Disney and Apple seem to be part of the problem and not the solution? The Biblical interpretation is to examine the morals of leadership. That’s one way of explaining it.
The easiest solution to China’s escalating situation in the South Sea is to enforce China’s own formal statements at face value. China says they respect other countries and do not want to militarize the South Sea. Leave it at that. Any disrespect toward other countries is not at the behest of Xijinping. Any militarization of the South Sea is not at the behest of Xijinping. Therefore, it must be true that Xijinping would not oppose anyone who stops, prevents, and reverses disrespect toward a country or militarization in the South Sea.
The West spends too much time arguing “what people really think”. It is as if Western governments want to read China’s mind to determine China’s intentions, but not entirely say so. The current result is an monitored, yet unchecked, escalation of military tension. “China can’t do this,” the West says. “We don’t do this,” China responds.
China’s response is golden. The West looks like the aggressor, especially in the minds of the Chinese people who live, “under the spell of the system,” as the missing Whitney Duan’s husband says. The West would do best to agree, “then China didn’t do this.” And then, take immediate policing action. After all, China has categorically implied that the man-made islands and battle cruisers are not operating within China’s purview. But, the West just keeps trying to read minds to solve problems. Since reading minds never happens, problems just keep growing.
Now, the Olympics will see a massive China boycott. If the Chinese knew a thing or two, they’d see that without the China Olympics, there would be one less way to boycott China. But, that’s a little complicated for some minds. And, the West prides itself on reading minds, after all.
Democrats are toast. They were played as the Fool card. All they’ve accomplished is reminding the public that Republicans aren’t so bad. Tax and spending hikes won’t work. Promising to never mandate vaccines then mandating vaccines is akin to H. W. Bush’s infamous “Read My Lips” speech in which he promised, “No new taxes.” It’s self sabotage; it may not even be intentional. With Republicans, it would likely be intentional; with Democrats, it doesn’t need to be. We can’t argue “conspiracy” on this one.
The UK doesn’t want to go near vaccine mandates, not even lockdown. It’s as if the rest of the world has moved on from COVID while Democrats in the US are still playing it for political capital. It’s much like Democrats addressing the racism issues of 1965 while campaigning in 2008, rather than addressing the racism issues of 2008 in 2008. That’s why America hasn’t seen progress on police racism. And, that’s why America isn’t seeing progress on COVID.
COVID was the “trump” card that trumped Trump in 2020. But, we’re on a new round and trump is a different suit. But, Democrats can’t figure out that they were never the trump card themselves. They always played the Fool. And in 2024, Republicans will comeback with the most dangerous popularity margin the nation has yet seen.
Taiwan! Taiwan! Taiwan! Europe can say it enough. In fact, Europe talks about Taiwan almost as much as China does. Taiwan doesn’t need formal diplomatic relations to live rent free in the minds of global leaders around the globe—especially living rent free in the minds of Beijing leaders—especially in the mind of Xi Jinping. Don’t forget Japan.
Europe doesn’t want to be bullied by China. Every response from China is interpreted by the EU as a reason to disagree with almost anything China says. China is so hated, we are almost to the point where China could use reverse psychology to get what it wants. If China disagreed with everything it wants, the world might agree with everything China wants, just to spite China’s rhetoric. But, we are only 98% of the way there. The world doesn’t hate China quite that much. There’s still room for more.
But, look closely at what is happening in Europe. Lithuania deepens ties with Taiwan while the EU pounds the table. It is almost as if Europe is testing China by watching what happens with Lithuania. If that were so, none of the European rhetoric about Lithuania or China is real, yet. They’re just saying things to gauge China’s reaction. In other words, Europe is experimenting with China as the lab rat. That’s got to make shame-phobic leaders in Beijing feel great about themselves.
The culture war in America rages. Biden is a disheartened president, distraught over the loss of his son. This affects his ability to console the family of a lost soldier. The public dissents and supports along political lines because Biden hasn’t dealt with his grief of the past six years. In that context, he oversaw an exodus from Afghanistan.
Any political strategist would have known that Biden was overladen. American voters also thought so. Biden is not the enemy, but whoever put him in office with an apparent intention that things would happen as accordingly as they did. With McCarthy on the move against an evermore unpopular social media empire, it looks more and more like Biden was meant to play the fool in a Trump comeback.
The Supreme Court handed down a ruling that people can be sued, nothing new, except that it was about abortion. More and more, the Court is not as evenly divided as it once was. Recent decisions have split by wider margins than just one justice. Here, each of the four dissenters wrote their own opinion: Roberts had his usual love for bureaucracy, Breyer found his point of order to support his political ideology, while Kagan and Sotomayor loudly think abortion is constitutional anyway. Being no longer simple black-and-white in its rulings, the Court is operating closer to the healthy way it should.
Adversity creates alliance. If China’s goal was to unite the world, it is succeeding. Taiwan and Japan are getting cozier than ever, as are Taiwan and the EU. The shift is happening and maps may need to be redrawn.
The logical outcome is the UK returning all of Hong Kong—including the New Territories—to the British Commonwealth, while Taiwan, Japan, and likely a to-be-united Korea become at least commonwealths of a US-Canada reach. This would be valuable because it places liaison states near each other in the Far East. Britain would have a formal government in Hong Kong. The US and Canada would have nearby governments via Taiwan, Japan, and Korea. So, traveling between the US, Britain, and the rest of Asia could all be done through the Taiwan Strait and South Sea.
From a geo-political planning perspective, it would be well-organized. In light of the PDT Asia Mad Scientist Theorem, we could suspect this is being planned. Based on that, failed control systems in North Korea were not only meant to be implemented in China, but also to eventually annex North Korea under Seoul’s government. When later applied via China’s policy, that would trigger events that later subject all of China under a regional cooperation headed by Western governments from both sides of the Atlantic. In other words, North Korea is a test to oppress, fail, and unite under democracy. That test eventually applies to make China fail, then China would be forced to accept formal friendliness with Britain and the US via Taiwan-Japan-Korea states under the US and a Hong Kong province under Britain. The thought is chilling for Chinese Communists.
But, that’s where things are headed. When China objects to a country talking with Taiwan, no one cares anymore. China’s opinion has been reduced to global insignificance—a living hell for respect-obsessed Chinese leaders. Sending more and more military to places without global agreement, then defending itself with insignificant opinions, tightens the noose. China remains its own worst enemy, not only in military defeat, but also inviting its region of the world to be willfully subjected under Western governments.
It is as if the whole thing is planned, and China keeps dancing on cue.
The crises that brought down presidents! COVID was the prime excuse to hate Trump in his last year. It has now become the second reason to hate Biden and the reason California’s governor faces recall. Biden mainly faces the challenge of Afghanistan. A member of Trump’s former staff reminds us all.
This is the trouble with trusting politics. Republican voters trusted election polls, until rules were broken, then ignored. Democrat voters trusted the conclusion of Congress to choose Biden; now they have another Democrat in the White House to make people sick of Democrats. The cycle just keeps on.
We are looking at a Republican majority in the midterm election, as usual. Then, a possible Republican supermajority in the next general election, in which Trump will likely run and more likely win. Republicans managed a way to hold the Supreme Court through that time, which is suspicious.
No matter how good and benevolent, power corrupts and none should trust a supermajority within mankind. Fortunately, Trump isn’t seen as the immortal messiah his supporters once thought he was. Democrat voters already learned that lesson with Obama. Now, Republican voters have too.
The White House’s distinction between Far Eastern allies and Afghanistan is consistent with the US strategic pivot during the Obama years: away from the Middle East, toward China. While China interprets the befuddled Afghanistan withdrawal as an indication that the US will not defend Far Eastern allies, the US interpretation implies a deeper concentration of military power. Each government’s policy indicates a deep belief in its own respective statement.
Taiwan’s president took the jab from Taiwan’s own, homegrown COVID vaccine. So, while Taiwan can claim one vaccine, Trump can claim all others. This further asserts Taiwan’s capability of standing on its own. Hong Kongers face the music, no matter the injustice. The world is watching. China’s response that Afghanistan is an indication that Taiwan should distrust the US serves mainly as a signal to Western readers that China indeed is a bully. Again, China doesn’t think they think so.
Afghanistan is an epic mess. ISIS is back on the scene. China and Taliban take every chance to make their own public statements while the main Biden doctrine is to valiantly run away.
More deeply disconcerting is President Biden’s response to journalists to deny claims. NATO has egg on its face, but Biden puts on a performance during his press appearance that NATO allies are exuberant about how great everything is going. He specifically says that he hasn’t heard any bad opinions from any NATO member. He had the same response that he hadn’t heard about the poll indicating lack of voter confidence.
When confronted with a dissenting opinion, Biden’s defense is that he hasn’t heard about it, even though he was just informed. We’ll see if the pattern continues.
Joe Biden knows how government functions in the mechanical sense, and he is very good at standing confident with egg on his face—acting like there isn’t any egg on his face. He’s good at that. So, America’s government will continue to function on some level. Perhaps this was the “Neo-Con” plan in looking the other way when voters complained last November. But, Biden doesn’t have the mojo to keep the engine running—and the American public sees that more and more.
Afghanistan is an epic mess. ISIS is back on the scene. China and Taliban take every chance to make their own public statements while the main Biden doctrine is to valiantly run away.
More deeply disconcerting is President Biden’s response to journalists to deny claims. NATO has egg on its face, but Biden puts on a performance during his press appearance that NATO allies are exuberant about how great everything is going. He specifically says that he hasn’t heard any bad opinions from any NATO member. He had the same response that he hadn’t heard about the poll indicating lack of voter confidence.
When confronted with a dissenting opinion, Biden’s defense is that he hasn’t heard about it, even though he was just informed. We’ll see if the pattern continues.
Joe Biden knows how government functions in the mechanical sense, and he is very good at standing confident with egg on his face—acting like there isn’t any egg on his face. He’s good at that. So, America’s government will continue to function on some level. Perhaps this was the “Neo-Con” plan in looking the other way when voters complained last November. But, Biden doesn’t have the mojo to keep the engine running—and the American public sees that more and more.
Taiwan continues to shine. Aide sent to Haiti after a devastating earthquake combines growing ties with Lithuania. China objects—and those are bad optics that China’s speech-control can’t control outside its borders.
China has been rewriting religion for years. Hymnals already read love for government rather than love for God. Now, we see more investigations against Hong Kong demonstrators who sought to uphold China’s agreement to democracy. In essence, China is investigating itself, indicating that China is divided against itself.
As a representative office exchange between Taiwan and Lithuania moves forward for this Fall, so do Taiwan’s de facto ties with the rest of the EU. China would rather object to this than be supportive of earthquake victims in Haiti. That is the obvious news narrative to take from what happened this week.
What’s not obvious is Taiwan’s prejudice against foreigners. Taiwan is having trouble building its submarines because of a shortage of engineering talent. Taiwan’s solution is to recruit more foreign talent. However, neither the problem nor the need for recruitment would exist if Taiwan had reciprocal regulations concerning immigration: protection of foreigner’s rights, five years leads to full citizenship, and dropping Taiwan’s ban on dual citizenship. To become a Taiwanese citizen, one must renounce original citizenship. America doesn’t require that. Taiwan does, then complains about losing allies to China. Does Lithuania’s government know how Taiwan treated its immigrants even to this day?
Had Taiwan treated others how they want to be treated, they wouldn’t have the trouble they do. And, Taiwan would not look like such a delicious target for war-thirsty China. The big danger is that US failure in Afghanistan on Sunday will encourage China’s calculus that an invasion of Taiwan is feasible. Combined with Taiwan’s self-inflicted weakness from discrimination against foreigners, China’s invasion question is more of a likelihood.
But, looking at even deeper strategy, we must consider China’s accusation that the US is playing games. If that were so, then failure in Afghanistan was staged by the US to provoke China into viewing the US as weaker than it is, and the US allowing non-reciprocal treatment of its own citizens in Taiwan would be intended to weaken Taiwan for strategic purposes as well.
Regardless of China’s conspiracy theory—which Chinese strategists never imagine to such length—the peaceful path would be for China to not take the invitation for attack and for Taiwan to treat others with respect. Like Jesus wanting to die on the Cross, a power that welcomes disrespect is up to something. But, the devil is none the wiser.
Competence and tolerance! The Taliban has taken over Afghanistan. The former president, hated from both Taliban and a third party in Afghanistan, fled to Tajikistan. At press time, the 36-acre American embassy was near fully-evacuated if not completely. Taliban leaders pledge tolerance, cooperation, and no retribution against allies of the former government. They say they want a relationship with the United States. The American ambassador requested to stay.
Will we see peace and promises kept? That has yet to be seen, but the promise is a first step and will be remembered by God. Muslims claim to worship the God of Abraham. We’ll see the Taliban’s part in that too, and the Times will help everyone remember.
From America’s perspective, look at Biden’s leadership. Such turns of events did not happen under Trump. Biden blames his predecessor. Trump supporters may argue sowing and reaping—that coup begets coup. Biden’s election hinged on anomalous results in precincts with proven rule-breaking. That doubt was never cleared-up in the minds Trump supporters, though they have been smeared. That doesn’t seem like tolerance from the party of tolerance and choice. Nor does pressure—social, legal, or commercial—for vaccines seem like “choice” from the party of choice.
So, in the minds of Trump supporters, who may believe that coup begot coup, the Taliban’s “tolerance and cooperation” in Afghanistan may not pan out. But, we’ll have to wait and see. A promise kept from the Taliban would be welcome.
Did Trump stir the pot with his rhetoric? Maybe. But, the Capitol revolt in lieu of unresolved election irregularities and table pounding from Trump was as bad as it got. In the minds of Biden supporters—according to their votes and what followed—, the situation in Afghanistan is preferable to the Tweets of Trump. Some might reconsider their votes on both sides.
The big issue is leadership and results. Taliban strategy to take over Afghanistan did not consider the response from the former US president as much as it considered the response from the current US president. During the tenure of the current US president, the Taliban won and the US ran. Voters can see things for what they are.
India has an aircraft carrier. It just finished its maiden voyage in China’s backyard. Those shipping lanes—one third of ocean-faring trade traffic—which China wants to claim by planting islands next to—most of them pass India. If any of them have traffic trouble, India will have reason to sail to the South Sea and clear up the cause of traffic congestion—or what some might call trade blocking.
India isn’t the only nation with a navy on the rise. Britain has its new aircraft carrier in the area. Germany wants to join the party. South Korea will join a scheduled US Navy exercise. And, the Japanese want to hire the British carrier builders to make their helicopter carriers F-35-ready. India’s carrier was built by a collection of 500 companies. If anything went nuts in the Taiwan Strait or the South Sea or the Sea of Japan, moving over to the Indian Ocean wouldn’t be a wonderful option since India already has its patrol.
Navies are snowballing in the East. If there’s money to be made in a Pacific scuffle, the convenient logistics of already having so many at the party could push the timing. Those islands-nations are in tumultuous waters.
