Where will the future threat for China come from?

Kurt

Kurt

Junior Member
solarz said:
I would say that even in as little as 100 years, it would be far more profitable for China to start off-planet colonies than to try to annex a neighbor.
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Wouldn't it better fit China to raise new lands from the sea or settle Africa? Just in case it takes too long with the warp engine.
The best project for new land would be making the Taiwan Street dry, that eliminates lots of headaches as soon as it is accomplished.
 
Phead128

Phead128

Captain
Staff member
Moderator - World Affairs
solarz said:
I would say that even in as little as 100 years, it would be far more profitable for China to start off-planet colonies than to try to annex a neighbor.
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Well, Lake Baikal in Khavbarosk near the Amur contains 25% of the world's unfrozen fresh water system, which a simple water pipeline can connect and quench the arid northern Chinese provinces, but that might cause an ecosystem disaster akin to the depletion of Aral Sea during USSR era. Such a solution would be far less costly than the South-North river diversion project, which is tantamount to declaration of war on India if the Brahmaputra was 20-30% below water level than it is today :p I'm sure the Russian capacity to share resources (ie. allow Chinese companies to access resources in Siberia) is much greater than India's Brahmaputra, which supports untold hundreds of millions of people.

I wouldn't be surprised if Lake Baikal will be to China, what the Aral Sea was to USSR, esp. given China's acute drought and water shortages in the Northern Chinese provinces. This is even more important as shale gas (fracking process) and even coal demands huge volumes of water, so if China ever wants energy independence with shale gas, it needs LOTS more water, and Lake Baikal just so happens to have LOTS of water.
 
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solarz

solarz

Brigadier
Kurt said:
Wouldn't it better fit China to raise new lands from the sea or settle Africa? Just in case it takes too long with the warp engine.
The best project for new land would be making the Taiwan Street dry, that eliminates lots of headaches as soon as it is accomplished.
Click to expand...

The better solution would be to control population -- ideally through voluntary participation rather than regulation as is now -- and explore technologies that allow better and more sustainable living.

The future crisis is not so much one of population, as one of resources. It has been shown over and over again that people who live in prosperity don't want a lot of children. Off-planet colonization -- not for habitation but for resource exploitation -- will help resolve that shortage.
 
siegecrossbow

siegecrossbow

General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Space. Nuclear tipped ICBMs raining down from the heavens are capable of wiping out entire civilizations.
 
Kurt

Kurt

Junior Member
solarz said:
The better solution would be to control population -- ideally through voluntary participation rather than regulation as is now -- and explore technologies that allow better and more sustainable living.

The future crisis is not so much one of population, as one of resources. It has been shown over and over again that people who live in prosperity don't want a lot of children. Off-planet colonization -- not for habitation but for resource exploitation -- will help resolve that shortage.
Click to expand...

I agree, tapping of other celestial bodies' resources might help. I see special utility in energy transfers via materials that do offer themselves for nuclear fusion (and are neither toxic nor big bombs from space). Useable energy has in my opinion always imposed a limit on growth capabilities.
China might learn from Israel about water efficient irrigation techniques while the Russians might be happy to sell them some fresh water from Siberia. The Aral Lake in Central Asia was just plain stupid to misuse for such massive and inefficient irrigation because guess what, it's size was limited by evaporation without any outlet to any sea.
Population development in the West has likely little to do with wealth, but stress due to social transformation and the fact that our children are expensive and time demanding, as well as decreasing chances for rising to satisfactory levels at the job. We have not yet figured out how to better handle this, but countries like Turkey might show a way out by having household helps for the busy intellectual women who have many births there, but are among the lowest elsewhere.
 
Phead128

Phead128

Captain
Staff member
Moderator - World Affairs
Kurt said:
I agree, tapping of other celestial bodies' resources might help. I see special utility in energy transfers via materials that do offer themselves for nuclear fusion (and are neither toxic nor big bombs from space). Useable energy has in my opinion always imposed a limit on growth capabilities.
China might learn from Israel about water efficient irrigation techniques while the Russians might be happy to sell them some fresh water from Siberia. The Aral Lake in Central Asia was just plain stupid to misuse for such massive and inefficient irrigation because guess what, it's size was limited by evaporation without any outlet to any sea.
Population development in the West has likely little to do with wealth, but stress due to social transformation and the fact that our children are expensive and time demanding, as well as decreasing chances for rising to satisfactory levels at the job. We have not yet figured out how to better handle this, but countries like Turkey might show a way out by having household helps for the busy intellectual women who have many births there, but are among the lowest elsewhere.
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Perhaps this map suggest Russian retention of nominal sovereignty (face-saving measure) in exchange for Chinese capital investment into Siberia infrastructure (ie. privileged access for Siberian resources at bargain prices) . . . because it's an compromise between an resource hungry, but resource poor China, and an resource rich, but undeveloped Russian Far East.

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M

maxx

New Member
Phead128 said:
Siberian forest, water, minerals, and natural resources
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Geez, all those things can be obtained without invading anyone. Trade. Else, wood can be grown, water can be purified from sea water, minerals can be mined from seabed.
 
N

NikeX

Banned Idiot
Kurt said:
Wouldn't it better fit China to raise new lands from the sea or settle Africa? Just in case it takes too long with the warp engine.
The best project for new land would be making the Taiwan Street dry, that eliminates lots of headaches as soon as it is accomplished.
Click to expand...

Settle Africa? Right now Africans have had all that they can stand of the overbearing, arrogant Chinese. Africans are not in the mood to host another round of colonization. China better look else where.

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N

NikeX

Banned Idiot
China must step with a light foot in Africa because Africans are very sensitive about trading one overlord like the European powers for another.
 
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