Who Won the Iraq War? China

On March 20th, 2003, one day after the United States and a "Coalition of the Willing" began its military assault of Iraq, China's Foreign Ministry released a statement condemning the war. "The Chinese government appeals to the relevant countries to stop military actions and return to the right path of seeking a political solution to the Iraq question." Four years later, as a vicious anti-occupation insurgency in Iraq erupted into a full-blown civil war, China again expressed its displeasure with the operation, blasting the U.S. for "flagrant abuses of human rights" and "violation of sovereignty" in the country.

And yet, despite these (and many similar) statements, it's worth pointing out that one of the grim ironies of the Iraq War was this: no country, with the possible exception of Iran, benefited more from it than China...

There are already signs that China's unquenchable desire for raw materials is beginning to backfire. First, demonstrators in Burma successfully lobbied the new civilian government to stop construction of a Chinese-funded dam, citing suspicions that the dam project would benefit China more than Burma itself. In Zambia, where China has invested greatly in copper mines, workers have complained of harsh working conditions and corruption. China has consistently claimed that its engagements with other developing countries are mutually beneficial, but a growing number of people around the world are not as sure.

China gets to discover why Western firms are so leery of Third World kleptocracies. I suspect many of these Chinese ventures are borne of the desire of Chinese officials to find a way to rip off the Chinese state as much as it is to find alternate sources of raw materials. It's a lot easier to gin up phony contracts and invoices when the foreigners who supposedly issued them are in a foreign country beyond the reach of Chinese law.

American leftists are the most narrow-minded people there are. If something conflicts with their political narrative, they ignore it.

I could be convinced that American treasure and lives did not gain the USA very much in Iraq (it seems to me that Iraqis themselves, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and even Iran benefited the most)

But to say China keeps a “low profile” is to simply swallow Chinese propoganda whole.

Do the Japanese, on whose planes and ships the Chinese “lock on” their fire control radar think China is “low profile?”

Do the Philippines or Vietnam, who complain to the world, to no effect, about Chinese incursions in their territorial waters, think China has a “low profile?”

How about North Korea - China’s puppet-state? Not a lot of news coming out of there, but China is definitely not “low profile” there.

Does Taiwan think China has a “low profile?”

They do try to make an empire through economic despotism, at the expense of the United States and its allies. If there’s a mistake made by the US, it’s not cracking down hard enough on China. Their partners are likely to be our enemies and various despots across the globe, where both parties share a disdain for the United States and individual freedom.

They dropped Marx, picked up Third World Despotism 101, and then gave the result a good face. Then they expanded to countries opposing individual freedom but want economic progress of some sort. In any case, individuals only get freedom if well-connected.

Your colossal ignorance of military strategy and tactics is now out in the open for all to see. It is an axiom that defensive warfare is always doomed to defeat and conquest. Defensive strategies always invite a defensive war to take place on your own territory and in your own communities among your own women and children. You cannot hide behind your own bordeers and expect tyrannical regimes to respect those borders or refrain from mounting tyrannical forces more expensive in lives and treasures to repel and defeat. The cost of disengagement from the world conflicts has always been ghastly genocides beyond imagination, and genocides brought into your own homes.

That was pure gobbeldygook. We stuck to our own landmass for the first century+ of our existence, ignoring little exceptions like Jefferson’s war on the Barbary pirates. Never were we in peril, save 1812, which could be considered an extension an earlier war fought in part to disengage us from international strife by seceding from the British empire.

It wasn’t until the Spanish war that we decided we need an overseas empire. Then, suddenly, the 20th century sees us responding to crisis after crisis. Sometimes too late, sometimes before it is a crisis, and who knows whether it actually would have been. To imperialists, or those who merely wish to exert aw much economic, political, cultural, etc. control over the world—call them international busybodies—who rules Iran matters as much as anything on the homefront. Either because of our commitment to halt all possible future Hitlers, or so that price of oil doesn’t go up one cent, it doesn’t matter. Let’s not argue whether their concerns are real. They have nothing to do with defense of the homeland, is all.

Your rationale for defense of our interests in the buttholes of the world is popular. Certainly those who aren’t conscious imperialists or world government enthusiasts must have some reason to support foreign adventurism and perpetual war for perpetual peace. The homeland being next in line for danger after Bumwad, Southeast Asia has to be it. But is it the case? Were Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam, Korea, and the Pacific and European theaters of WWII the parapet behind which stood the watchmen? Yes and no.

Yes, if you consider the rampart to be surrounding our empire or the peaceful part of the world in whose interest we supposedly fight. No, if the rampart surrounds the homeland. Because in none of these cases, NONE, was the homeland in peril. Japan wasn’t going to invade, nor Germany, nor North Korea and China, nor North Vietnam, nor the Taliban, nor Saddam. That many people think they would have, especially Japan, or pretend to do so, is pure ignorance. That danger wasn’t present. We fought Japan on China’s behalf, and Germany mostly on Britain’s but also others’. It didn’t have much to do with us, except that Japan blew up our fleet. A fleet, by the way, which was there to enforce by implication ours and Britain’s imperial interests, China, and the embargo. We often forget about the embargo, and that blockades are acts of war, don’t we?

Nowadays I often hear our interests in Israel put the same way. As in, Israel and we share a common enemy, that she is our bulwark in the Middle East, and should she fall we’d be next. Wha? Even if Israel is in immediate existential danger, and if their enemies are our enemies, without Israel we’d be open to attack how? Is Iran going to have a D-Day landing in New York? There are always terrorists, I guess, but we have those with Israel, too. This is all a fever dream. Israel means a lot to us, but it is not the rampart, unless you contend a “democracy” in the Middle East is necessary to deter blah, blah, blah. Whatever you think it accomplishes, but again, it has nothing to do with defense.

I’ve considered politely reefuting your pack of lies and inane propaganda, but your disrespect and rampant ignorance does not deserve the effort. Anyone with half a brain and the initiative can see for themselves what a bizarre fairy tale land your mind lives in. Practically every allegation you made is flatly contrary to reality. It would be a refreshing change if you could demonstrate the integrity to reexamine and attempt to critique your own statements, but past experience with others spouting your Leftist brand of false propaganda offers me little incentive to hope for such honesty from you. I nkow from my experience with thee supporters of Ron Paul’s isolationism, they are like those who are as it is said “none so blind as those who refuse to see.” All it would take is for you to open the history books to quickly refute your own statements. They refuse to do so, and it appears you are also choosing to remain defiantly ignorant.

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