Tag Archives: Chinese technology

The Chinese ‘Spy Balloon’ Story As Manufactured Crisis: An Alternative Reading, by Tyler Durden

SLL is finding it hard to work up much excitement one way or the other about this application of a decidedly legacy technology. Here’s an article that seems to make sense. From Tyler Durden at zerohedge.com:

Previous constant headlines of the Ukraine-Russia war were put on pause Friday into Saturday as the American public’s attention and discourse got temporarily consumed by the bizarre Chinese ‘spy balloon’ saga, which grew more dramatic by the hour until it was shot down by the Pentagon over the Atlantic Ocean.

But few are currently asking the necessary deeper questions related to the timing. Given the last major balloon crisis to take over 24/7 network news coverage ended up being a complete hoax (remember the “balloon boy” stunt of 2009 which had the world breathless and on edge for a full news cycle?), the current context to the Chinese balloon story and the question of cui bono is worth a deeper dive

Images: The Billings Gazette/AP

Entrepreneur and geopolitical commentator Arnaud Bertrand, who as a Westerner has spent many years living in China and frequently attempts to correct the often misleading analysis of mainstream press reports, offers an ‘alternative view’ of what’s fast unfolding below [emphasis ZH’s)…

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“I took a bit of time to dissect the “spy balloon” story – both how it is portrayed in the US and China’s response,” Bertrand begins a lengthy thread. As you’ll see, the more you think about it, the more stunned you get at the sheer absurdity of the whole thing.”

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A Faintly Curmudgeonly Analysis of the Sino-Dimbulbian Clash, by Fred Reed

Probably 999 out of 1,000 articles in the U.S. about China are derogatory. Many won’t like this Fred Reed article, but he compares China and the U.S. and makes some spot on points. From Reed at thesaker.is:

A staple response of nationalistic commenters on the web, when told that China is advancing rapidly in technology, is a truculent, “If the Chinese are so damn smart, why do they send their students to American universities? Huh?”

The answer may surprise. Appended below is an email from an internet friend with a career in math and engineering:

“Fred,

“….My oldest daughter, being half Asian, has joined many Asian circles of friends at her university. When one of the groups was talking about why Chinese come to (state), to study, one of the male students said “Not the best of the Chinese students come to America. I came here because I couldn’t get into a good college at home. It’s much easier to get into an American college. ”

The acceptance rate at my daughter’s university’s college of Science and Engineering is 7%. This student felt that it was very easy to get into.

My daughter’s best friends are now mostly foreign Asians who come here to study. Her American friends are almost all lost and adrift. Her high school has been consistently ranked in the top 3 in the state, but her former classmates are almost all lost and failing. Those classmates who got into the U of (state) of CSE are dropping out because of the work load. I don’t think those analysts at the CIA, Harvard, etc., realize that the nation’s defense depends more on what is happening to America’s young people, rather than defense or economic technology. When I was in China and visited two schools, I could see that China knows its future depends on these students.

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