08-17-2021, 05:10 PM
** 17-Aug-2021 World View: The mood in South Korea and Taiwan
It's hard to overestimate the size of the catastrophe unfolding in
Afghanistan, with fallout that will last for years. The catastrophe
was capped off by that ridiculous speech on Monday by the doddering
Bernie, who can barely read a teleprompter.
The stupidity and incompetence of the Biden administration is
enormous. He threw open the southern border with no plan and
disastrous consequences. He closed the Keystone pipeline with no plan
and disastrous consequences. He advocated defunding the police in
multiple cities, with no plan and disastrous consequences. He shut
down Bagram airbase overnight, with no plan and disastrous
consequences. He pulled troops out of Kabul with no plan and
disastrous consequences, requiring him to send back 1000 troops, then
1000 more, then 1000 more, then 1000 more. When he announced 9/11 as
the final withdrawal date, I said he was dumber than a bag of hammers,
and three weeks from now we'll see the consequences -- a likely
resurgence of al-Qaeda celebrating the defeat of the United States
after 20 years inside the American embassy.
On the other hand, there is some leverage to be had. Unlike 20 years
ago, Kabul is a large urban city, with thousands of workers doing
everything from driving buses to teaching to fixing elevators in
government buildings to keeping the electric grid running, and the
Taliban will need international aid to pay for those services. Also,
Afghanistan has water problems and other environment problems,
including those caused by climate change, and they will need
international help with those. China, Russia and Iran will be
offering to provide some of that aid, in return for exploiting
Afghanistan's mineral resources.
So what does this mean for American defense of South Korea and Taiwan?
It would seem that this would indicate that America would not defend
its allies. But actually, it could have the opposite effect. The
Biden administration will not want to have a second black eye, so they
may actually be more likely than previously to provide a defense.
Guest Wrote:> https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202108/1231636.shtml
> It's from the official mouth piece of the CCP but the above linked
> article shows how the Afghan situation is being interpreted by
> players on the global stage. Also some commentators have noted
> (with naive shock) the "When not If" tone the article takes
> regarding military action to reintegrate Taiwan.
Guest Wrote:> Today, my manager (I work in Seoul) told me that while watching
> news about the fall of Kabul, she felt that this is what America
> would do to South Korea. That is the mood here now. I can imagine
> the Taiwanese are even more afraid. A few of my co-workers talked
> about this too. They asked me what I thought the Americans would
> do under Biden. I told them I don't know.
> That's the mood here now.
> I wonder if this is what Biden was paid by the Chinese to do? Or
> is this also 4D chess...
It's hard to overestimate the size of the catastrophe unfolding in
Afghanistan, with fallout that will last for years. The catastrophe
was capped off by that ridiculous speech on Monday by the doddering
Bernie, who can barely read a teleprompter.
The stupidity and incompetence of the Biden administration is
enormous. He threw open the southern border with no plan and
disastrous consequences. He closed the Keystone pipeline with no plan
and disastrous consequences. He advocated defunding the police in
multiple cities, with no plan and disastrous consequences. He shut
down Bagram airbase overnight, with no plan and disastrous
consequences. He pulled troops out of Kabul with no plan and
disastrous consequences, requiring him to send back 1000 troops, then
1000 more, then 1000 more, then 1000 more. When he announced 9/11 as
the final withdrawal date, I said he was dumber than a bag of hammers,
and three weeks from now we'll see the consequences -- a likely
resurgence of al-Qaeda celebrating the defeat of the United States
after 20 years inside the American embassy.
On the other hand, there is some leverage to be had. Unlike 20 years
ago, Kabul is a large urban city, with thousands of workers doing
everything from driving buses to teaching to fixing elevators in
government buildings to keeping the electric grid running, and the
Taliban will need international aid to pay for those services. Also,
Afghanistan has water problems and other environment problems,
including those caused by climate change, and they will need
international help with those. China, Russia and Iran will be
offering to provide some of that aid, in return for exploiting
Afghanistan's mineral resources.
So what does this mean for American defense of South Korea and Taiwan?
It would seem that this would indicate that America would not defend
its allies. But actually, it could have the opposite effect. The
Biden administration will not want to have a second black eye, so they
may actually be more likely than previously to provide a defense.
