Half the battle is managing the decline of an insecure bruised ego from lashing out against its interest and world interest.
Here I look at it a different way, and this is important I feel.
I completely do not see it that way, because I am old (almost), and you are young.
Since you are young, decline is something theoretical, that you only see in books and the TV.
From what I have seen, decline is a process, that is irreversible.
Decline cannot be controlled, it happens. It is a process. Hence, China cannot manage America's decline, no one can.
Maybe sometimes someone could think of something, and reverse their decline. That is possible, but very rare. Usually they muddle along downwards.
It just happens. Every year after year, there is less. The working class of America knows that feeling.
The other point of decline, getting lesser year after year, the weaker the working class becomes. It is all about BLM and not the working man in America.
That is the point about decline, it just happens, and we cannot control it, meaning it cannot be managed. And the other point about decline that the longer it goes on, the weaker they become.
Hemmingway wrote about that, that line is everywhere, about a couple of characters in his novel. One asked the other guy, how did you go bankrupt, the reply was, "It was gradually, the suddenly."
He knew.
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What this means in terms of strategy, I think the CCP already is implementing.
They follow the USA lead. If there is conflict, China gives the USA conflict. If there is peace, China give the USA peace.
Declines tend to make people exhausted. Just give them what they want. If it is more struggle, they exhaust themselves quicker.
That is the strategic outlook. If the CCP truly believes that the USA is in a irreversible decline, then all plans should be focused along those lines. Here probably means just do what the USA wants to do, no need to really do any different China initiatives.
Case in point, the trade war.
After implementing the Trump tariffs, fast forward a couple of years, and America is in a weaker position regarding trade compared to China, who trade volumes growing to record levels, even with America.
This trade war episode, it was not about management, or avoidance, it was head on tit for tat. China makes no initiative here with the US. China lets the Americans take the lead in this dance.
The more they dance, the one in decline (if true) will exhaust themselves quicker.