Perhaps a warning shot to America that China too can impose crippling sanctions on America if we choose to play the sanctions game to deter or punish a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Perhaps an attempt to strengthen the hand of those businesses, institutions and politicians who will lobby to advance China's ambitions and who can be counted on to oppose defensive economic and strategic measures.
The obvious course for America is to take the clear lesson of these supply chain breakdowns to disengage ourselves from China and move toward a mercantilist economy for economic and national security reasons. However, there is simply no chance that this will be done because virtually every important American institution, not excluding the American Congress, has been co-opted by the Chinese. Only some come-to-Jesus moment, some epiphany like a Pearl Harbor, 9/11 or a Great Depression might bestir the people to the level of action necessary.
