Steps In An Economic War

In a world where the war in the Middle East is unfolding not as a war of either ideology or territory, but as a war of economics, we get a fascinating bit of insight into how economy plays into it.

China has used a missile to destroy a satellite.

Okay, not entirely a terribly difficult feat, really. Satellites tend to be on nice regular orbits and are fairly easy targets to figure out where they are going to be. I'm not going to take anything away from China's technological accomplishment though. For a nation that has only just recently "entered space", they've made important strides.

This is a cross between a "bow shot" and thumbing their nose at the United States. Essentially, China has just put the United States on notice that there is another power in the world - one that should not be ignored. The Chinese economy is growing in leaps and bounds, and has plenty of room to accommodate major military developments if they so choose. (It's a particular slap in the face to BushCo and the "Wolfowitz Doctrine" where the US claimed it would prevent any other nation from "rising to be a rival to American power"). Suspended against a backdrop of a US economy that is gradually slowing down as the "housing bubble" collapses, we get a picture of just how dramatic China's actions are.

In the context of the current tensions regarding Iran, China has tacitly put the Americans on notice not to make any obvious mistakes - like invading Iran.

We also should note that China has taken a page straight out of how the US provoked the USSR into bankruptcy by escalating an arms race in the 1980s while Russia was well tied up with Afghanistan - sounds kind of familiar, doesn't it?

Of course, Harper has obediently stepped in line with the United States in responding "with concern" about China's actions. (How this is any different than the US testing their weapons systems is quite beyond me, but what do I know?)