General Politics XII World • Page 594

I feel for any normal person dealing with the fires rn, but the ultra rich and celebrities making gofundmes and getting tons of money overnight is fucking disgusting

 

I hear you with this, but it’s a massive oversimplification that doesn’t even begin to answer the cause.

American bases are established in countries that are aligned with the US (Japan, SK, Philippines, Australia - yes, Australia is far away from it’s still used for this narrative). Territories such as Guam are also typically used here despite it being 3000 km away.

Why is it that posts like these get a lot of likes when posts about China harassing and pushing back Filipino ships and cutting Taiwanese communication cables, or outright encircling the island, are largely ignored? One of which is a nation that has a EDCA with the US. Really makes you think why such alliances remain towards the US and not China. Why do these countries not trust China? They’re its neighbors. What are they experiencing? What conflict do they fear would take place with the absence of the US?

I myself favor Asia eventually forming its own domestic alliance with much smaller, if any, US influence because a large portion of it has to do with regional tensions that have much longer history than US imperialism. One can certainly argue with solid reason that said imperialism has made it worse…but that doesn’t help the current situation.

 

I haven’t seen a single one for an actual celebrity.

 

U.S. imperialism is the biggest and baddest imperialism on the planet. The entire history of the USA is a history of colonialism and war. It is amusing how you always speak of “U.S. aligned” countries as if they have naturally arrived at the conclusion that allying with the U.S. is the best course of action, and they haven’t been bullied, cajoled, economically coerced or militarily persuaded into doing so. Since 1945, the United States has engaged in 211 interventions in 67 countries. It currently maintains 250,000 soldiers stationed in 700 bases distributed throughout 150 nations. Direct invasions have been replaced by proxy wars, economic sieges and destabilisation of targeted countries. The official U.S. “defense” budget in 2022 was $765.8 billion, four times that of China, twelve times that of Russia, and thirty times that of Iran. The tweet is not a simplification, it’s highlighting the incredibly aggressive foreign policy of the U.S. that you always feel the need to jump in and defend.

 

The presence of US bases in places like Japan, South Korea, or the Philippines isn’t solely about coercion or imperialism. Talk to the common person here and they’ll be at most indifferent towards any US presence, but they have greater concerns for the alternative. Many of these nations have complex histories with their larger neighbors, especially China, that predate US involvement by centuries. The alliances these countries maintain with the US are significantly grounded in their security risks, especially as regional disputes and territorial aggression intensify in East Asia largely done on the part of China’s actions.

The key question is: what drives these nations to maintain these alliances? If US influence is inherently coercive, why would countries with rising autonomy continue to align themselves so strongly? Should we continue to ignore China’s growing assertiveness—such as its actions in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait—which directly impacts these alliances? What does that help?

As I mentioned previously, I agree with the vision of a more autonomous Asian alliance, one that isn’t overshadowed by the US But such a transition requires mutual trust between regional powers without the fear of China taking swift action. That trust doesn’t currently exist due to:

1) historical tensions, territorial disputes, and differing values predating the arrival of the West.

2) the continuation of the largest power in East Asia actively ignoring the sovereignty of its neighbors in the name of old tensions and disputes. The absence of the US alone wouldn’t resolve these deeper concerns.


“The tweet is not a simplification, it’s highlighting the incredibly aggressive foreign policy of the U.S. that you always feel the need to jump in and defend.”

That’s the thing, you’re stuck in viewing this as a defense of the US, when I’m merely asking you to see it through the eyes of China’s neighbors. It seems you’re unwilling to do that. Until you do, this is pointless because you’re ignoring centuries of context that the people in these countries have not forgotten. Just look through a history textbook in any school in East/SE Asia.

 

And while that topic is here: yikes

Japan urges U.S. military to make changes to stop rapes in Okinawa - Japan Today

 

You always seek to downplay the brutal realities of U.S. imperialism. Yes, there have historically been tensions in the region, but the idea that the U.S. hasn’t exacerbated them for its own gain, and created new conflicts, is laughable.

 

I’m not disagreeing with you. This was at the end of my first response.

“One can certainly argue with solid reason that said imperialism has made it worse…but that doesn’t help the current situation.”

I’m not downplaying US imperialism; I’m sharing the arguments made here that such a sudden void in the balance of power could lead to a repetition of history, one they are all trying to avoid. That’s why forming an Asian alliance is seen, imo, as the best course of action.

Once Asian countries have confidence in their own alliance and can collectively prevent any threats to their borders/status quo, perhaps their security blanket in the US will begin to fade.

 

I wonder how much it pays to be the dem who votes against the Dems. It has to be lucrative for fetterman to do it, sinema, etc.

 

No doubt they get tons of donations from center-right and right wing donors for it, and/or PAC help

 

Hoping for another stroke

 

"Protestantism" isn't a thing, it's an umbrella term for a huge swathe of denominations whereas Catholic is one thing

 

I love seeing the world through the eyes of China's neighbors on the SCS, that way I get the perspective of: Society completely reshaped by American nuclear warfare and occupation, society completely reshaped by war of annihilation perpetrated by the US represented by an American created polity, polity created by the US as a counterbalance to Chinese communism, polity representing a group of islands that were only united by Spanish imperialism and were later occupied by the US for 50 years, perhaps the most historically violently anticommunist polity in the region, and Vietnam. That way I can avoid centering the United States in my analysis

 

this is happening?!

 

The thing about being against all those US bases in Asia pinning China in is… what if someone’s brother is on those bases, huh? Ever think bout that?

 

naur way

 

Ah! Well. Nevertheless,

 

Evergreen