Posted on 04/08/2020 3:39:15 PM PDT by datura
Commentary by author, credentials at end of article:
When I was a young child growing up, I read and consumed books ferociously. One book I picked up at a garage sale piqued my interest. It was How Japan Plans to Win. In the book, published in 1940 (before Pearl Harbor), but developed from notes and thoughts in the 1930s, a vocal and energized Japanese Naval Officer theorized a strategy to defeat the United States in the Pacific. It sounded pretty prescient of things that played out shortly after its original publication.
I always thoughtHow could this have happened? Heres their plan and intent, and we were still caught off guard. A gestating adversary published and outlined the roadmap establishing a pathway to war in the most destructive world-wide conflict of the 20th century. How did we miss this? Why werent we prepared? Here an adventurist and forward leaning staff officer telegraphs intent, detail, and plan and the reaction of the national security apparatus in pre-World War II America gave this hiding-in-plain-sight indicator a big Ho-Hum. Sound familiar?
After a career, and perhaps a second, third, and fourth career in national security (depending on how its counted), I now have seen how these things happen. The world panorama is busy, confusing, and distracting. For senior leaders, planners, and staffers, its called the world of VUCAVolatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous.
Its the duty of national security professionals to drive to closure, despite the VUCA, and deliver national security for the American People and our strategic partners. However, indicators of intent are often overlooked as even the best, most professional, and most lucid minded are barraged and often put on sensory overload by multiple, concurrent events. Too much data, too much noise, too much chaff.
One time in the recent past in a discussion with a senior colleague in regard to an urgent developing issue I was raising, my colleague responded and said (Im paraphrasing a bit), Youre absolutely rightthis is a key phenom thats being overlooked, and Im very concerned by it. However, myself and our national mission team are bleeding from our eyeballs with mission overload with all the alligators crawling into our canoe. Im beating the alligators over the head with my paddle in the exact sequence prescribed by national priorities. The problem is, what youve identified is not yet on the national priority list of targets and topics.
We were both rightthere are complex phenom and there are immediate, identified alligators. So how do we see these new alligators that arent yet on the list? One way is to read their writings. They definitely read ours. Another very senior colleague recently quipped, When I go to a public speaking event, Im swarmed by PRC academics whove read my works in detailthey ask me voluminous questions about topics I dont even remember. They are reading our writings in detail. What about their writings?
WAR WITHOUT RULES
In regard to the CCP virus, there are overlooked missives of history and harbingers of things to come. While many were distracted by Russia Russia Russia or other silliness of grievance and narcissism, the intent and strategy of a Great Power Competitor was being laid out right in front of us.
Two Chinese Air Force Colonels met in the 1990s and started to dialogue, formulate, and envision what decisive conflict with the United States would look like. It would be unconstrained by any existing international convention. Everything would be on the table. The outcome? The 1999 book with the chilling title, China: War Without Rules.
Essentially, to win, China would not be limited, adhere, or conform to the accepted norms of warfare between nation states. To them, these were Western rules meant to give western powers, essentially the United States, an advantage. Eye gouging, and everything else, would be on the table. The first rule of this fight clubthere are no rules.
A second issuance, even more timely in light of current events and I would say more disturbing and concerning, was a treatise by Dr. Guo Jiwei in 2010, a medical doctor and staff member at the Peoples Liberation Army, Third Military Medical University in the Army University entitled, War for Biological Dominance.
The foundational thesis was clear. If China loses 100 million people, thats only 1 in 12. Canada and Australia lose 100 million, thats everyone, plus a sizable swath of Americans. Ergothe return on investment is well worth it. Biological Warfare would be the Strategic Commanding Heights of the showdown with the United States. Clausewitz, Sun Tzu, and every other strategist would lunge at this, was the essence of Guos logic. And if there were no rules, why not?
Well if that one doesnt get your attention; I dont know what will. I was very involved in national security affairs at high levels in 2010 and I can ensure everyone that biological warfare, offensive or defensive, was not on the top 100 list of important national security concerns, topics, or actions.
VIGILANCE
Colonels, Captains, and other professional staff members and their writings before, during, and after Senior Service Schools can be a little edgy for two reasons. One they want to garner a little more attention before the next promotion board, or two, they feel a sense of tenure in saying things they couldnt say at lower levels or cant if they achieve the next level.
A parallel exemplar to the CCP telegraphic writings previously mentioned was when I was in Singapore and the speaker from some PRC ministry with an overly long title was giving a speech. The frenzied way she shook her fist at the camera (ignoring the audience) and shouted while smiling in a bizarre, almost crazed manner, was definitely theatricaland way over the top. So over the top that she looked like she was about to climb over the speakers podium and lunge at the camera.
After the speaker was done, I asked my colleague next to me what that frenzied performance was all about. She chuckled a bit and said, She wasnt speaking to usshe was performing for the Central Committee in Beijing. Its all about the grade back home. And this was long before the concept of social credit score from a totalitarian system was implemented or well known.
Whats the takeaway? Read their writings and take them to heart. They read, study, and analyze ours. The price of freedom is vigilancepart of that vigilance is being aware of their writings, statements, and intent.
Was this contagion part of their strategy? Im not sure well ever know for sure, but totalitarians are unconstrained by any concept of constitutional boundaries and have no problem with ignoring the guard rails of functional, civil society even if it means discarding 1 in 12 of their own citizenry.
Col. (Ret.) John Mills is a national security professional with service in five eras, Cold War, Peace Dividend, War on Terror, World in Chaos, and nowGreat Power Competition. He is the former Director of Cybersecurity Policy, Strategy, and International Affairs in the Department of Defense.
yea, we are at war and again only one side knows it, we don’t
Total war is no place for the Captain Crozier types. The Chicoms have to be laughing their asses off after that scene.
I have read several reports of the actual patient zero being a PLA researcher in the biolab at Wuhan, sprayed in the face with the blood of a test animal. Her care nurse went to the market for food, and thats how it got out.
If it were actually accidental, the CCP should have said so, immediately, rather than covering it up. Their ham-handed attempt at face saving was a huge strategic mistake. By arresting the doctors in Wuhan who raised alarm only says this was not a mistake.
They needed the finished product to arrive in Italy first.
The extreme gap in ethnic groups that are in critical from this goes back to a 2015 article by the PLA second in command stating that they would find an ethnic specific bioweapon.
China knows how we are a mixed society, while they are frighteningly homogenous. That lends itself to their strategy.
BOYCOTT CHINA
The Japanese worked diligently during WW2 on all sorts of hideous diseases deliberately inflicted on POW’s of all nations...especially Chinese. Also, they did a lot of work on surgery and organ removal and transplant...without anesthesia. The Chinese learned very well.
Yes
One question that people should be asking is how did China assemble ten throwaway hospitals so quickly. The logistics would take awhile in getting everything together, including manpower anywhere else in the world.
This was 2012, Falun Gong are the victims.
You’re a little bit off with your theory.
This may well have been a knock-out blow.
The only risk China faces is if all the world recognizes that this is a bio-weapon attack, and muster up the resolve to retaliate. I’m convinced, and so are the Chinese, that won’t happen.
What we need to do is build neutron bombs and keep them in space. Far out where they cannot be found. Hide them in asteroids, our secret space program has at least gone out to the asteroid belt. I know my handle sounds as crazy as the idea, but those craft in the skies belong to somebody. I think they are ours, some may be “theirs”, some may also be ours and theirs together.
It was an attack, like the US tariffs. It was meant to change behavior not destroy.....this time.
That is the popular wisdom.
I am not so convinced. The long view would have been to see Trump as an aberration, and probably the last. Minor conciliation could have gotten them through 8 years. This would have been the wise path.
I think we are at a turning point, fast approaching. The more-valued market has left the US and it has become a liability to China to continue trade with the US. The US dollar has never been of value to China. It has been used to extract all that is possible from the West before the final conflict.
For myself, I think that the Chinese lack, in general, what is termed as “guile”. Their propaganda is clumsy, and they actually show no patience in business or politics.
I can easily see viral warfare being pursued impatiently and recklessly by China being the cause of this outbreak.
Russia would be on board with any attack by China on the USA. There is a reason why Lenin is unburied and why the Russian state has worked hard to defend the legacy of Stalin and maintain Communist traditions.
As for the Chinese economy, the Chinese will cease caring about the economy the moment they decide to go to war. If this was indeed a biological attack designed to crush the western economy, it would mean that a follow up attack once the economy crashes is guaranteed--but only if the Chinese really intended to do this.
Now they use Falun Gong as a herd for worldwide organ transplants.
The correct, literal translation is "Center Kingdom."
XieXie
How do you know?
China has bought, or is blackmailing, many in DC. imo
What makes this as scary as the Cold War with USSR is that nobody is resisting China dominance.
When are people going to realize China is playing to win and they are NOT a friend of America?
The behind the scenes infighting between Jinping and the remnants of Deng Xiaoping is epic, and it goes deeply into the various commands within the PLA. The idea of competing labs within the PLA is easy to envision.
President Trump has been the first threat to China since Vietnam. (These days, few Americans understand the huge involvement in both Vietnam and the Korean War by the PLA.
Its easy to find motive, impossible to find evidence.
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