Comments by "Doncarlo" (@doujinflip) on "Why the US Doesn't Support Taiwanese Independence" video.

@ArawnOfAnnwn Because up until recently, the Mainland couldn't do anything else without obviously fatal effects to their economy and standing. Even now they hesitate to pull the trigger because forcefully gaining Táiwān is likely not worth the subsequent loss of trade -- especially basics like food, fuel, and high grade minerals -- that their continued prosperity and overall political stability relies on.
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The government could do more to prepare its people for its defense. If Taiwan was serious about being a "porcupine" that the Mainland dare not try to swallow, every conscript should be taught how to mount an insurrection with improvised weapons and have excellent knowledge of the island's terrain, as opposed to reaching the end of their obligation having barely fired their rifle.
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That's the concern as China's economy increasingly settles into the middle income trap, especially as its infrastructure and high tech products keep getting found out to be disappointing, and the country's potential becomes further retarded by aging, debt, and industrial pollution. Looking ahead the options only keep shrinking for the Party to maintain its unchallenged rule.
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It wasn't until the Sino-Soviet Split that China began making overtures to the non-Communist world as a potential partner against the 'common enemy' to their north.
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