WELCOME TO TOM'S BLOG

Thank you for stopping by for a visit. You are invited to read and comment on anything posted on this blog. I advocate the maximum amount of Personal and Economic Liberty, consistent with the defense of individual rights. I am fiscally conservative yet socially tolerant, I favor lower taxes, free trade, individual rights, strong national defense and limited government. I subscribe to the Freedom Fighters Creed: I am an American Patriot, defender of the Constitution, First Principles and Essential Liberty.

I believe that buried deep down inside every Conservative you'll find a Libertarian - And Inside Every Liberal Is A Totalitarian Screaming To Get Out.

"One of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors" - Plato

FYI any crude or vulgar comments will be removed from the blog.

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Once Upon a Time in America

One of the central national security questions of our time is whether a rising China will be a threat to the United States and the American-led international order. The Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, told Congress recently that China is the main threat to the United States. The Economist has proclaimed that the U.S. and China are "bound to be rivals." Niall Ferguson decries "the descent of the West" and power shifting to Asia. Martin Jacques’ latest book is titled When China Rules the World. And even level-headed liberal internationalist John Eikenberry considers the rise of China "one of the great dramas of the 21st century."

There are many reasons to be concerned about how a wealthier, more powerful China will behave on the international scene. Last year, China surpassed Japan as the world’s second largest economy. It also used its international clout to threaten states that acknowledged award of the Nobel peace prize to Liu Xiaobo, an imprisoned Chinese dissident. It continues to defend the prerogatives of despots, especially those that have natural resources. Its defense spending has risen 12.9 percent annually for the past two decades—and the Chinese military behaves aggressively and may not be under the control of the country’s political leaders. China holds more than a trillion dollars in American debt and has begun publicly complaining about American economic policies and incentivizing use of the renminbi.
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