The world is entering a realization phase: China doesn’t care what the world thinks or how the world responds. Beijing has become that annoying kid at school who has no friends, and his solution is to be more annoying. The sad part is how the West allowed us to get here. Coupon-clipping consumers buying cheap products are just as much to blame as governments who believed giving money to the Confucian Communists who control China wouldn’t feed their narcissist outlook.

But, China has been warned. And, we each hold the greater responsibility for our choices and actions.

While China makes its choices, Taiwan deals with its own demons of the past. China is not the only society in the Far East self-chained by Confucianism. Taiwan’s Confucian culture empowered them to adopt xenophobic laws, keeping foreigners limited and weak and unable to contribute to the Taiwan economy. Confucianism also indoctrinates students to hate questions in the classroom and at home, while touting parroted answers as “wisdom”. That runs contrary to innovation and the inquiring mind needed to invent new technology. As a result, Taiwan is much weaker than it could have been without Confucianism, making it appetizingly vulnerable to predatorial China. Taiwan now faces a choice of whether to correct its self-imposed, Confucian-born limits of the past.

In some sense, the China-Taiwan conflict is an internal matter, but not purely. China plans to retake Taiwan with Western money and American dollars, after all. The world cannot sit by and watch two self-crippled societies cannibalize each other. The world won’t sit by and watch, not any longer. And, that is something the Confucian Communists of China don’t understand because, at this point anyway, they are not so capable.

China

Trump has repeatedly blamed China for a virus that now threatens his health. This will make Beijing nervous // CNN

China owes America over $1 Trillion in sovereign debt: Sovereign debt never expires // American Bondholders Foundation

China’s yuan records best performance against dollar since 2008 // MarketWatch

Flashback
US dollar rises as Trump hints at China decoupling // FX Street

China’s US dollar debt defaults climb as coronavirus, US tensions hit firms’ bottom lines // SCMP

South China Sea news: Beijing issued threat on disputed claim to waters amid WW3 fears // Express

Does this US military uniform suggest it is preparing for war with China? // SCMP

Tiny Muslim community in China’s Hainan becomes latest target for religious crackdown // SCMP

Taiwan

Canadian warship sails near Taiwan amid heightened China tensions // Aljazeera

China, Taiwan tensions could result in all-out war with the US // NZ Herald

After Hong Kong: China sets sights on solving ‘the Taiwan problem’ // Guardian

Why Taiwan Has Become The ‘Geographical Pivot Of History’ In The Pacific Age // Forbes

With international recognition, even when Taiwan wins, it loses // CNN

Sharing headlines
What the recognition fights over Israel and Taiwan have in common. // Slate

China will start war if US troops return to Taiwan // News.com.au

Taiwan protests against global mayor group’s designation of its cities // Focus Taiwan

Japanese VTubers banned for mentioning Taiwan during livestream // Taiwan News

Hong Kong

American diplomats in Hong Kong want to meet local officials or politicians? Get permission from Beijing’s foreign ministry, new directive demands // SCMP