Is China a Threat to the U.S.?

With more than two billion residents, the world’s most spoken language and a booming economy, China is undoubtedly a rising global superpower. Suddenly America is faced with the prospect of a country whose financial and military power could soon rival its own, prompting many to wonder if China is a friend or foe. Is China really a red flag for the U.S.? -source-

Normally I'd see this headline-grabbing question as beneath consideration for anyone but the National Security Agency, but since it has come up in more than one casual conversation I realize it holds some importance even among young Americans who missed most of the Cold War. The Tiananmen Square protests probably have a large part to do with that. In any case, it's a worthwhile thought exercise.

Is China a Threat to the U.S.?
Short answer: Nah.
Long answer: If I weren't in the midst of writing a research paper about PRC and US motives for rapprochement in 1972 I would be more than happy to plunge into this issue. But for now the following critique of one expert's answer will have to suffice.

"China remains brutally authoritarian."
The vast majority of Chinese cities live their lives without ever having a bag thrown over their heads and beaten in a government compound. That dissidents are threatened and arrested from time to time is indeed a difference between here and there, however, the vast majority of Chinese will never even come close to that. There are places in the world where the authorities really are brutal and it devalues the term to claim China qualifies. It takes a lot of effort to threaten the Party, and until you do they aren't likely to bother you.

"China's government functions absent the protections of the rule of law."
Sometimes. It's changing.

China's Courts, Tenth "Best" Out of Twelve.

Rule Of China Law And GDP. Was It The Chicken Or The Egg?

China Sex, Prostitutes, Rule of Law, Lines of Power, Unintended Consequences and Bull Connor: A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words. Redux

China Rule Of Law Rising?

The point here isn’t that the commentator is wrong, it’s that he thinks this statement is somehow an indictment of the Party and indicative of why China is a threat. And that demonstrates his lack of expertise, because the lack of rule of law is just one more facet of life in China which matters to Westerners but most Chinese are generally satisfied dealing with. Like pollution. A comparable fact of life in the United States is the democratic enforcement of speech codes which we call “political correctness.” Most Chinese find it a tremendous nuisance for them and might wonder how Americans can live their day to day lives with such oppression. We of course, barely notice. Imagine if Chinese newspapers frequently wrote about how oppressed Americans were by political correctness; we’d be angered or think “they just don’t understand.” Well that’s exactly what’s happening here; this expert American is claiming that, somehow, China's underdeveloped rule of law means the government is running roughshod over the people.

I’d say that rule of law is one aspect of enfranchisement the Chinese people have not yet fully achieved. But brutal authoritarian state it does not make.

“Thus as long as China willingly violates the basic rights of its own people, it can never be trusted to respect the rights of other nations”
This is bullshit. More rights have been violated and more violence has been done to people of the world in the name of American freedom, democracy, and capitalism than will be committed by China in the name of being brutally oppressive motherfuckers. Whether they pay homage to inalienable human rights at the start of every speech or not, the Chinese Communist Party is generally pragmatic and its outlook long-term--since it doesn’t get unelected every 8 years. The Chinese people are generally without idealistic zeal; though even if they were they can't swing the state apparatus into beastmode like Americans can.

If you want to talk about threats, the righteous and freedom-loving goodwill of the American people is a much greater threat to China than Chinese are to Americans. I would trust Chinese to respect the rights of other nations sooner than Americans because Chinese foreign policy doesn’t let their morality interfere with national sovereignty (at least, not since they asserted their own national sovereignty over Tibet, Xinjiang, Mongolia, and others 50 years ago). Or more accurately, national soverignity is an issue of morality for China. The same can not be said about American foreign policy.

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Tonight is the first time I've seen it, but the China debate on opposingviews.com doesn't seem particularly researched or thoughtful. For the reader trying to ascertain the relative China threat I suggest starting with the basics before leaping out into predicting the motives and worldview of the CCP.

1. A Long Wait at the Gate to Greatness
2. A Weak China?
Links courtesy of the fantastic chinalawblog.com