With the US empire looking for a fight, which, incidentally was long anticipated by savvy observers, the Chinese leadership was left with no choice but to arrange for the rapid expansion of the nation’s navy. In this, history repeats itself: It was Western imperialist threats and invasions that forced the Soviet Union into a rapid military buildup, eventually making that nation a world superpower. The two accounts below, one by a Chinese source, the other by Forbes, an American publication, concur on the details and even on the implications of this major strategic event.
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PATRICK MARTIN—The tipping point was apparently reached on Monday evening when seven freshmen Democratic representatives, all of them veterans of the military-intelligence apparatus, issued a joint demand for impeachment in the form of an op-ed column published by the Washington Post. The seven include six representatives from the group the World Socialist Web Site has labelled the “CIA Democrats.” Two of them are actual ex-CIA agents, Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia. Four are former military officers: Elaine Luria of Virginia, Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey, Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Jason Crow of Colorado.
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T P WILKINSON—Now if we shift to a completely different part of the world, we can begin to imagine the contradictions and parallels. Hong Kong has been subjected to terrorism quite obviously sponsored by the main instigators of such foreign disruption — the CIA (NED) and most certainly other agencies of HM Government. In the scheme of things — as opposed to the ludicrous “internet of things” — it is impossible to say who is agitating in Hong Kong against the local government and the authority in Beijing. However, if we take the long view; e.g., back to the Opium Wars, the patterns are recognisable.
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BILL VAN AUKEN—It is also noteworthy that the first two speakers in the UN General Assembly debate, which was preceded by a UN Climate Summit dominated by warnings of approaching global catastrophe, were Trump and Bolsonaro. Both are climate change deniers who are actively repressing research by the scientific agencies of their respective governments. Bolsonaro’s foreign minister has dismissed climate change as a hoax by “cultural Marxists” bent on undermining Western capitalism. In this area too, the UN is incapable of confronting the existential threats facing humanity.
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DEJAN KUKIC—Whatever his initial motivations, Ali’s videos have accidentally set in motion a chain of events that has led to unprecedented protests against Sisi across Egypt. Sisi’s remarks on 14 September at the National Youth Conference predictably provoked public outrage, and Ali tapped into this mood by calling for national protests the following Friday.
