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[RedKing]

Since regional politics threads are what all the cool kids are into these days, and because I've had a couple of people ask me about creating a China thread before.....

All Hail the Imperial Golden Dragon Ninja Tiger Kung-Fu Samurai Panda Thread.

Rather than "just" a China thread, I'm envisioning this as a thread to discuss regional politics and balance-of-power issues for:

*People's Republic of China
*Republic of China/Taiwan
*South Korea
*North Korea (in so far as it affects the neighbors....MSH already has an excellent Best Korea thread for discussing the Glorious Leader's triumphant reign of Juche philosophy)
*Japan (more than just schoolgirls, otaku and robots)
*Thailand
*Burma/Myanmar
*Cambodia
*The Phillipines
*really, anything in Southeast Asia -- not including Australasia, which already has its own thread


For the record (and because it's been a source of confusion before): I'm not Chinese, nor do I live in China currently. I'm a white guy from North Carolina, USA who just happens to have spent most of his academic career specializing in East Asia and have some experience living and traveling in the PRC.

Standard ground rules apply:
1. Don't be a dick.
2. Don't insult, flame, harass, or otherwise antagonize another poster because of their nationality or allegiance.
3. If you make an argument citing statistics, be prepared to back those statistics up with a reputable link. WorldNetDaily, Infowars, etc are not reputable.
4. Try to stick to English. If you need to use non-English terms, that's fine but please provide an explanation of the importance of the term. (This is for me as much as anybody.)

 

[RedKing]

<reserving space for abstracts>

[Sheb]

I'm totally following this.

[Kansa]

ptw

[RedKing]

To start things off, US President Obama is visiting East Asia this week, and there's a lot on his plate.

A big part of his visit is to convince American allies in the region that the much-touted "strategic pivot to Asia" is actually....y'know, pivoting. Cause after that announcement, the US really hasn't done jack-shit in the region because Syria, Iran, Ukraine, etc.

In the meantime, you have:
1. China claiming airspace jurisdiction well beyond their previous borders, out into the East China Sea
2. Territorial disputes over the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands and the South Spratleys
3. The launch of the Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier (basically the old Soviet Varyag hull stripped down and rebuilt with Chinese gear).
4. A successful and rapidly advancing Chinese space program.
5. A new Chinese President (Xi Jinping).
6. An escalating "cyberwar" between China and the US. While Chinese hackers are said to have penetrated a number of US systems, including military networks, you also have Edward Snowden claiming that the NSA has been hacking Chinese systems, including Huawei -- the single largest networking gear firm in China, and provider of most of the routers/switches etc. in use in the PRC (and many other countries).
7. Two high-profile transportation disasters (the Malaysian Air crash and the capsized ferry in South Korea).

In Japan-China-Korea relations, you have the annual Yasukuni "war shrine" dog-and-pony show where conservative Japanese politicians go to make an annual remembrance of WWII war dead (including about 1600 convicted war criminals). This triggers outrage among Chinese and Koreans, who were largely the targets of much of that Japanese war crime. For a few years there, the Japanese PMs stopped going. But this past December, PM Shinzo Abe visited Yasukuni, triggering the expected reaction overseas. Interestingly, only 38% of Japanese approved of the visit. But at the same time, over 60% said they were unconvinced by the criticism of the visit. (Which kind of sums up *my* feelings on it as well. The visits themselves make me roll my eyes, but so do the yearly histrionics over it.)

[Darvi]

*Japan (more than just schoolgirls, otaku and robots)

But those topics aren't taboo, right?

Also I have trouble finding an intersection of those three groups.

[smjjames]

There's also the North Koreans threatening to do a new kind of nuke test. Whether or not it was intentionally timed for Obamas trip to Korea or not, I don't know, but they are certainly taking the opportunity to do that while attention is over there.

Doing the nuke test while the president is in Seoul would probably be even more provocative than NK doing that test at any other time.

NK has been (relatively) quiet since all the sabre rattling, screaming, and general noise making a while back.

4. China having an advancing and successful space program isn't a bad thing.

*Japan (more than just schoolgirls, otaku and robots)

But those topics aren't taboo, right?

Also I have trouble finding an intersection of those three groups.

Not taboo, just off topic. RedKing means that it should be about Japanese politics and related things.

Edit: silly iPhone, why did you activate the quote three times....

[RedKing]

*Japan (more than just schoolgirls, otaku and robots)

But those topics aren't taboo, right?

Also I have trouble finding an intersection of those three groups.

Well, actually I meant that there's more to Japan those those three things. But yeah, I'd prefer to keep discussion to the serious side of politics and what not. Now, if Japan unveils a JSDF battalion of robots piloted by schoolgirls (which....let's face it, we could all see Japan doing because Japan) that would be worthy of discussion.




@smjjames:
No, I think the advancement of the Chinese space program is a good thing. But it does have security ramifications.

[RedKing]

In amusing/weird news, there was a minor kerfluffle this week when Justin Bieber visited Yasukuni, apparently unaware of its significance.

[mainiac]

He is trolling us, clearly.

[kaijyuu]

Posting to show interest.


My wife majored in political science with an east asian focus, so she knows a lot about China. (although, she probably won't post out of fear of being responded to aggressively by anyone who disagrees)

It's interesting to see how... unstable? Duct-taped together? the country is. Without substantial economic and/or social changes they're gonna crumble in the next few decades.

[misko27]

He is trolling us, clearly.

I think he's been doing that for a while.

Posting to show interest.


My wife majored in political science with an east asian focus, so she knows a lot about China. (although, she probably won't post out of fear of being responded to aggressively by anyone who disagrees)

It's interesting to see how... unstable? Duct-taped together? the country is. Without substantial economic and/or social changes they're gonna crumble in the next few decades.

That shows surprisingly low self-esteem for someone who majored in what is, by far, the field with the most mud-slinging. Although I of all people shouldn't judge, especially not political science majors.

Yeah China's not doing so hot. It's easy to get so caught up in the drumbeat of "CHINA'S TAKING OUR JOBS/BUSINESS/DEBT/WHATEVER" to not see it's own problems are pretty substantial. I mean that male/female ratio thing, damn. And the economic slow down (7% is not enough for some) is causing a minor panic as well. And let us not even mention the environment. But I don't like predicting collapse because it's such a difficult thing: the middle east was and is unstable as all hell, but no one saw Arab Spring coming up until a man lit himself on fire in Tunis. And North Korea and Cuba are just still there, spinning along. It reminds me of something I read a Yellowstone official saying about a rock face perched over a road: "It could fall tomorrow. Or, in a few decades. Or who knows."

There are a lot of long-terms problems. Fundamental, structural problems. But I could imagine it staying up for a long time, equally as I could it falling in a year.

[Sindain]

PTW

[MetalSlimeHunt]

This insult to the Superior and Sovereign Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Most Wise Juche philosophy proscribed by Eternal President Kim Il-Sung and all of his descendents shall not go unpunished, American pig dog traitor RedKing.

[Tiruin]

...There's no Philippines?
Bluh. >_>
PTW anyway.