10/22/22 Patrick MacFarlane on the Populist Right’s Taiwan Hypocrisy

Disclaimer: The views expressed herein are solely those of the author and may or may not reflect those of Ms. Cat’s Chronicles.

Scott is joined by Patrick MacFarlane, the Justin Raimondo Fellow at the Libertarian Institute, to discuss an article he wrote recently as well as the new direction he’s taking his podcast Vital Dissent. Scott and MacFarlane first dig into the growing tension between Washington and Beijing over Taiwan’s sovereignty. MacFarlane points out that some of the best opposition to both the policies that provoked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and NATO’s subsequent response is from populist right-wingers. But those very same people throw all their logic out the window when the topic turns from Russia to China.

Discussed on the show:

Nothing But Welfare Queens: American Aid to Zelensky and Tsai Ing-wen

Vital Dissent

10/22/22 Patrick MacFarlane on the Populist Right’s Taiwan Hypocrisy

Meet Our New “Secretary Of State”…Nancy Pelosi

Meet Our New “Secretary Of State”…Nancy Pelosi

Pelosi has also complicated Biden’s role by calling on the White House to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. The terrorist designation would complicate any possible efforts to address a resolution of the war in Ukraine or the current imbroglio in the Caucasus. The United States should be looking for ways to effect greater cooperation with Russia in order to advance conflict resolution around the world; arms control and disarmament efforts; and easing the consequences of the climate and Covid crises. The terrorism designation would also lead to secondary sanctions that would drive up global prices and worsen an inflationary situation that could lead to an international recession.

As a result of Pelosi’s meanderings, we now have the worst tensions in the Taiwan Strait in nearly 30 years; greater Ukrainian expectations of expanded U.S. largesse; and a threat to the fragile truce in the Caucasus that Putin has tried to engineer. Can we look forward to more travel from Pelosi to the tense Central Asian border between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, where 100 or so were killed in fighting over the past weekend; to the West Bank; or to Northern Ireland, which is facing renewed tensions? So many crises; so little time.

Producing New Enemies for No Reason Whatsoever

A good friend of mine, learning of the impending visit of Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, recalled Homer’s description of Helen of Troy, “The face that launched a thousand ships and burnt the towers of Ilium.” Well, Nancy ain’t no Helen of Troy, but she might nevertheless be in the business of launching warships and burning cities due to her bizarre interpretation of her foreign policy prerogatives as Speaker.

Producing New Enemies for No Reason Whatsoever

Pelosi expected to visit Taiwan, Taiwanese and US officials say and Could Get Us All Killed!

Nancy Pelosi Taiwan Visit Could Get Us All Killed

Related:

Pelosi expected to visit Taiwan, Taiwanese and US officials say

Officials also believe the Chinese leadership doesn’t completely grasp the political dynamics in the United States*, leading to a misunderstanding over the significance of Pelosi’s potential visit. The officials say China may be confusing Pelosi’s visit with an official administration visit, since she and Biden are both Democrats. Administration officials are concerned that China doesn’t separate Pelosi from Biden much, if at all.

The ‘eccentric, bigoted’ Pelosi does not care about others’ thoughts, but Biden is the key in the 82-year-old’s planned Taiwan trip

Pelosi is in the presidential line of succession, thus the administration takes extra care of her security when she travels overseas, the White House said on Tuesday, according to CNN.

They’re well aware that Pelosi is the second in line of Presidential succession!

China getting rid of US debt holdings amid Washington DC’s escalatory actions and overall US decline

This year marks exactly 50 years since the establishment of ties between the United States and the People’s Republic of China. US President Richard Nixon visited China in 1972 and initiated an unprecedented thaw in relations, the first ever between a Communist power and a leading capitalist one. It was a very unusual occurrence, especially as the (First) Cold War was reaching its zenith precisely at that time. Although Mao Zedong himself and Nixon paved the way for the establishment of this relationship, it was only after Deng Xiaoping took power that the modern Sino-American relationship grew and in many ways shaped the economic and geopolitical realities of our time.

China getting rid of US debt holdings amid Washington DC’s escalatory actions and overall US decline

Related:

US debt held by China drops to lowest in 12 years

Speaking at a Senate Banking Committee hearing, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell acknowledged that the recent battle with inflation could tip the country into another recession.