China is dipping into its pork reserves while America is largely unaffected by the surge in oil prices. The pork crisis in China started with an outbreak of the African Swine Flu and has been exacerbated by the trade war. China doesn’t have energy independence like America does. Soon, China will have a crisis of both food and energy. Wars have started over less.
Taiwan is ready and on high alert. Though there is a surrender movement in Taiwan as always, Taiwan stands ready with the advantage. Projecting power for an invasion is not as easy as defending an impossible island. With a coastline of either cliffs or marshes and jungle mountains everywhere else, Taiwan is no walk in the park. Taiwan’s president is wise to the bullying of China and believes in taking a stand. This is why she supports Hong Kongers as she does.
The situation in Hong Kong is past dire. As foreseen, the protests turned violent because of a deaf government. “No” means “no”, but China and its puppets can’t bring themselves to accept that, and Hong Kongers won’t let “no” mean anything else. Chinese Confucian Communism now faces the determination of the West. The great showdown between the Shame culture of the Far East and the self-determined culture of the West has begun. It’s only going to escalate. And, all those people who preached “capitulation to the bully” and the “invincibility of Chinese Shame” are about to be proven drastically right or fatefully wrong.
Great Pacific
Hong Kong protests: The Taiwanese sending 2,000 gas masks // BBC News
Trade & Tech
China
Helen Raleigh: China has already lost the trade war. Here’s why // Fox News
China’s Muslim clampdown creeps into the heartland, targeting Hui minority // WA Post
Blackstone’s Tony James on US-China trade deal, geopolitical risks // CNBC
SEAL McRaven: China’s military buildup a ‘holy s—‘ moment for US // Business Insider
US lifts tariffs on 400 Chinese products as Donald Trump cites ‘a lot of progress’ on trade // SCMP
Trump is serious about US divorce from China // Financial Times
China to release 10,000 tons of pork from reserves // CNN
Switching to China is High Risk: CBSI // Solomon Times
Taiwan
China Could Conquer Taiwan, But It Would Be In For a Very Tough Fight // Yahoo News
Political Maneuvering: Xi targeting Taiwan, sources say // Taipei Times
Political Maneuvering: Minister visits Kaohsiung, Han says crime rate down // Taipei Times
Concern over violence in Kaohsiung // Taipei Times
Political Maneuvering: Kiribati severs diplomatic relations // Taipei Times
US reassessing aid to Solomon Islands // Taipei Times
Hong Kong
Hong Kong protests: China flag desecrated as fresh unrest erupts // BBC News
Hong Kong police storm mall as protest turns violent // Yahoo News
Hundreds of Hong Kong protesters storm government building over China extradition bill // CNN
Hong Kong sit-in turns into skirmishes in Yuen Long on two-month anniversary of MTR attack // SCMP
Hong Kong protesters torch Chinese flag as cops fire tear gas // NY Post
Hong Kong police ‘pushed to the limit’ // BBC News
Hong Kong protests: Police warn of escalating violence amid new allegations of brutality // CNN
Hong Kong Hotel Workers Go on Unpaid Leave as Tourists Shun City // Bloomberg
Russia news: Putin furious as three Russians wounded in attack by North Korean ship // Express
BNP Apologizes for Employee’s Posting on Hong Kong Protests // Bloomberg
Korean Peninsula
Why a North Korean Defector Says the Regime Will Soon End // TIME
Military
Navy carrier strike group deploys – without its aircraft carrier // Fox News
BOOM: Why China Should Take Taiwan’s New Cruise Missile Seriously // Yahoo News