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Re: Your history lesson. Answer: So?

Louis the XVII lost Canada to Britain in 1760. Then he tried to get even by backing the fledging USA’s independence in 1777. THAT ruined him financially and led to the 1789 French Revolution and ultimately his head. Napoleon rose from the “ashes” and drove all of Europe into maddening war for the next decade.

That all happened in fewer years than since now and the Korean War. MacArthur wanted to use A-bombs on the PRC and unleash the ROC. Shoulda, woulda, coulda.

The Chinese did NOT drive the USA out of Korea. Kim did not take over the whole peninsula, which was the goal of the entire war the Communists started. That intervention cost the PLA almost 1 million casualties. Sure, MacArthur was way too cocky and did not heed their warning, but the actual war aim of the United Nations and the USA was achieved.

The USA lost Vietnam when Congress refused to allow our treaty commitment to South Vietnam be applied when the North broke the Paris Peace Accords treaty in 1974, and we should have punished them, but were too wrapped up in ruining Republican President Nixon, to even care. Again, shoulda, woulda, coulda.

Again, miscalculations in war are part and parcel. The best plan, even carefully implemented, can ruin a nation because they miscalculate the will and strength of their enemy. That applies both ways, and the USA should be VERY fearful of a war with China, just as China should be VERY fearful of a war with the USA, especially if India gets involved, because the population advantage China has will vanish.

The initial plan almost never survives the first battles.

[The Chinese did NOT drive the USA out of Korea. Kim did not take over the whole peninsula, which was the goal of the entire war the Communists started. That intervention cost the PLA almost 1 million casualties. Sure, MacArthur was way too cocky and did not heed their warning, but the actual war aim of the United Nations and the USA was achieved.

The point is that China achieved its limited war objectives, which were to keep US troops away from the Chinese border. Would Mao have preferred to drive US troops off the Korean peninsula? Probably. But, in addition to maintaining a buffer state between US troops and the Chinese border, it was sufficient for him that the war killed off the Nationalist remnants of doubtful loyalty who surrendered to his armies near the end of the Chinese Civil War.

Note that France’s objectives were far broader - it was fighting Britain for control of the Americas and, later, Europe. That’s not remotely similar to Xi’s likely objectives, which are far less expansive.