China bans export of drones some countries have already banned anyway China introduced restrictions on Monday that mean would-be exporters will require a license to ship certain drones and related equipment out of the Middle Kingdom. The news was provided in two distinct announcements attributed to several government agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce. The restricted equipment …
More likely than not, the Chinese don't want to "rule" anything outside the traditional boundaries of their "Middle Kingdom". The rest of the planet being occupied by vast numbers of noisy, uncultured barbarians. Really and truly, if you look at their history, China hasn't been expansionist for a long time. They even gave up exploration back in the mid 1400s. They'll trade with the rest of the world. And maybe "help" with some infrastructure in some developing countries although there may be a strings attached.
But "rule" the world? Who in their right mind would want to rule the world?
The 9-dashed line alone cuts into The Phillipines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei - and of course Taiwan too.
Don't forget the slow murder of Uighurs and Tibetans in their own homelands.
China has even published maps showing parts of N Korea belonging historically to China.
You mean all the pieces of the world that were once ruled by some China-based power in its illustrious history, because that's kind of a lot of places. The fact that they didn't rule all of that at the same time and often it was more "We can bully the king of that place" rather than "We are the king of that place" may not matter much. There are a lot of modern countries in that area who don't fancy the idea of being deleted.
Of course, China has also taken steps to gain power over places they don't intend to incorporate into the country, reinstating the "we can bully the dictator of that place" policy with the occasional support to governments that support them. It's similar in practice to the "protectorates" that colonial powers set up when they wanted to pretend they weren't making colonies, although the China version doesn't come with any of the pretense that they have to provide protection unless they feel like it. They're certainly not unique in this respect, as large countries often try to have control over weaker ones and often not for the better, but China has certainly been doing it and, in comparison to some others, for worse goals and to worse ends than elsewhere.
"Who in their right mind would want to rule the world?"
Nobody.
But we all know who does (indeed, actually claims to - well, they use the word "lead" rather than "rule" and mostly the bits that they have "freed").
Are they are in their right mind? Hmmmm. In the last few decades? Hmmmmmm. At least the rest of the world sees them being in *their* Right (wing) mind.
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This post has been deleted by its author
Anyone worth their salt hunts ducks from below the waterline.
So our little hobby is safe until someone tries to ban training sharks with frickin' lasers strapped to their heads.
Ducks. Just smugly sitting there on lakes, laughing at us. Just you wait til you dive and see what is waiting for you down there. The waters will boil, boil I say.
What? No nurse, no reason I threw my orange into the pond, no, no reason at all.
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