With everything happening recently... do you wonder?

[marharth]

I dunno.. I think we need China a lot more than they need us.. (excluding that whole "we owe them money" thing...)

In a way I guess that's right though. We "need" them to loan us money, they need us to pay our bills. But China would probably be a lot better off without us spending all their money. We're never going to be able to pay off this debt, and after a bit, we won't even be able to keep up with the interest. By the time WWIII happens, I'd be surprised if we weren't the united states of China. :tongue:

 

That is pretty much EXACTLY what I see coming to pass. As it stands RIGHT NOW, China could defeat us without firing a shot. Just the simple words: "We want our money back, now." and the US would be over and done with. The Chinese have already asked some pretty pertinent questions about our ability to pay back all we owe them. They hold close to (if not more now) 25% of our total national debt, (closely followed by Japan, with a similar amount). Calling that due, would bankrupt us in short order. Granted, at that point, China would lose it's number one market for exports........

The USA wouldn't instantly be done with, I am sure the government wouldn't have a problem with one last war.

[HeyYou]

I dunno.. I think we need China a lot more than they need us.. (excluding that whole "we owe them money" thing...)

In a way I guess that's right though. We "need" them to loan us money, they need us to pay our bills. But China would probably be a lot better off without us spending all their money. We're never going to be able to pay off this debt, and after a bit, we won't even be able to keep up with the interest. By the time WWIII happens, I'd be surprised if we weren't the united states of China. :tongue:

 

That is pretty much EXACTLY what I see coming to pass. As it stands RIGHT NOW, China could defeat us without firing a shot. Just the simple words: "We want our money back, now." and the US would be over and done with. The Chinese have already asked some pretty pertinent questions about our ability to pay back all we owe them. They hold close to (if not more now) 25% of our total national debt, (closely followed by Japan, with a similar amount). Calling that due, would bankrupt us in short order. Granted, at that point, China would lose it's number one market for exports........

The USA wouldn't instantly be done with, I am sure the government wouldn't have a problem with one last war.

 

Only trouble there is, a significant percentage of our manufacturing capacity has moved...... to China...... Hard to fight a war when you already are involved in four, your assets are stretched to the breaking point, and you don't have the ability to increase your output capacity in a reasonable timeframe. We would be screwed, blued, and tattooed.

[marharth]

I dunno.. I think we need China a lot more than they need us.. (excluding that whole "we owe them money" thing...)

In a way I guess that's right though. We "need" them to loan us money, they need us to pay our bills. But China would probably be a lot better off without us spending all their money. We're never going to be able to pay off this debt, and after a bit, we won't even be able to keep up with the interest. By the time WWIII happens, I'd be surprised if we weren't the united states of China. :tongue:

 

That is pretty much EXACTLY what I see coming to pass. As it stands RIGHT NOW, China could defeat us without firing a shot. Just the simple words: "We want our money back, now." and the US would be over and done with. The Chinese have already asked some pretty pertinent questions about our ability to pay back all we owe them. They hold close to (if not more now) 25% of our total national debt, (closely followed by Japan, with a similar amount). Calling that due, would bankrupt us in short order. Granted, at that point, China would lose it's number one market for exports........

The USA wouldn't instantly be done with, I am sure the government wouldn't have a problem with one last war.

 

Only trouble there is, a significant percentage of our manufacturing capacity has moved...... to China...... Hard to fight a war when you already are involved in four, your assets are stretched to the breaking point, and you don't have the ability to increase your output capacity in a reasonable timeframe. We would be screwed, blued, and tattooed.

Our military spending is massive and we already have troops stationed all over the world.

 

Wouldn't put it past our government to just press a few launch buttons either, who needs troops when we can all blow up together!

[Saraane]

Eh... I think you're being a little *too* alarmist.

 

China also depends on the INTEREST from those loans so as long as interest payments are made on time... we're cool on that front.

 

Think of it, they are not going to do anything to interrupt that steady, substantial cash flow they are getting every month. Right now... Interest makes the world go round. :wallbash: :laugh:

 

I think we are most likely to be fighting over oil... I swear... there are certain car companies that have MADE SURE we will be dependent on oil for as long as possible. There are several things out there that could get us off gas completely... and the car companies own the patents... and don't USE the ideas/products.

 

And then there is the first electric car... RIP.

 

Pisses me off.

[ACACE]

Y2K was a failed end of the world thing. unless a real bad thing happens like zombies or one power hungry country goes nuts with nuclear weapons. the world is not exactly going to end just like that. the people who thought up the idea of the world ending in 2012 are pretty selfish like stopping economic and technalogical progress

[Aonghus]

Probably too old for most people on this forum to remember, but Billy Joel said it best in "We Didn't Start the Fire"...

 

Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray

South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio

 

Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television

North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe

 

Rosenbergs, H-Bomb, Sugar Ray, Panmunjom

Brando, "The King and I", and "The Catcher in the Rye"

 

Eisenhower, vaccine, England's got a new queen

Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye

 

CHORUS

We didn't start the fire

It was always burning

Since the world's been turning

We didn't start the fire

No we didn't light it

But we tried to fight it

 

etc, etc, etc.

[HeyYou]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0GFRcFm-aY

[Harbringe]

This is a clip from a National Film Board of Canada documentary that I had seen years ago .The film was supposed to show what effect global warming was having on the life of the Inuit living in the far north .That they started talking about this came as a total surprise to the film makers.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUDiBqiVxI8

 

I post it because this year there was this report out of Greenland

 

Sun Rises Early

[Kendo 2]

2012? I'm not a Mayan Indian so I don't worry about it. Think about it, when the last long count ended it was a HORRIBLE year for the Mayans, but the Spaniards had a great time. So much for 2012 bunk.

 

Politics follow climate and solar flare activity. Case in point the Maunder Minimum. Case in point the Medieval Climatic Anomaly. Look at the times lines for those two incidents and then read a history book. It is what it is. The cosmos is in constant flux and it will churn and burn long after Al Gore and his polar bears are fossil fuel for whatever wierdness is the dominant life form on Earth after humans die off. It might be a good idea for humans to just get over themselves. We're all gonna die and no amount of green energy or wars for oil is going to stall it. I think we all need a global bong hit.

[Lisnpuppy]

It must be the end, Kendo as I agree 100% with your post. Especially the global bong thing. :thumbsup:

 

I think I should go pack my Bug-Out Bag!! LOL