[AzCal Retred]

" and we need to quit buying their schit. "

True enough. However that means we need to ween off the "cheep Chinese chit" teat. That would mean having an actual middle class again and rebuilding manufacturing stateside for our own chit. That would also mean not having the 1% Uber Klasse get all the tax breaks & subsidies they are used to. Judging from the bank "Quick Reaction Subsidy" and earlier bipartisan bank rules relaxation, we have a ways to go. Maybe a two-front war will be a reality check for the self-deluding 45% of us (30% Trumpers, 15% Wokesters, according to Maher). Vote early & vote often! 

[Richard230]

BTW, the latest bank news this morning is that the parent corporation that owns the SVC bank has filed for bankruptcy. That is not going to help the banking industry any, especially on Wall Street.   

Meanwhile, The First Republic Bank (another bank that is this week's news) has seen its stock price drop 20% after halting stock holder dividends.

[AzCal Retred]

Chinese ships ‘swarming’ Vietnamese waters
https://www.rfa.org/english/news/vietnam/swarming-03162023152450.html
China Coast Guard vessels sail in waters claimed by China and Vietnam in the South China Sea, May 15, 2014. China’s deployment of an oil rig off Vietnam’s coast prompted a tense sea standoff and touched off deadly anti-China rioting.
After finishing with the Philippines, Chinese maritime militia and fishing boats apparently swarmed inside Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, according to a Vietnamese research organization citing vessel-tracking data.
A 2,600-ton Chinese survey vessel, the Haiyang Dizhi Si Hao, had lingered inside Hanoi’s EEZ as well, signaling “a possible operation” there, the South China Sea Chronicle Initiative also reported.
According to the SCSCI, the number of Chinese vessels in the economic zone increased measurably in the first two weeks of March, almost tripling the number observed at the end of February. An EEZ gives a state exclusive access to natural resources in the waters and in the seabed.
The data was collected using automatic identification system (AIS) signals transmitted by the ships.
“The Chinese vessels have also been operating deep inside Vietnam’s EEZ, up to just 60 nautical miles (111km) from the Quang Ngai coast,” Van Pham, SCSCI’s manager, told Radio Free Asia, referring to a province in central Vietnam.
The fishing and militia vessels often are accompanied by the China Coast Guard.

13th MEU Conducts Expeditionary Strike Force Operations in the South China Sea
https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/News-Stories/Article/3329620/13th-meu-conducts-expeditionary-strike-force-operations-in-the-south-china-sea/
South China Sea - The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group conducted Expeditionary Strike Force operations with the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group in the South China Sea. ESF operations combines the ARG/MEU amphibious capabilities with the naval combat power of a Carrier Strike Group, forming an Expeditionary Strike Group. Together, these Navy and Marine Corps forces can create unmatched global impacts.
During ESF operations, we combined the USS Nimitz (CVN 68), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73), USS Chung Hoon (DDG 93), USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) of Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 9, and the squadrons of embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 with the amphibious capabilities of the USS Makin Island (LHD , USS Anchorage (LPD 23), USS John P. Murtha (LPD 26), and embarked 13th MEU. The Nimitz Expeditionary Strike Group conducted simulated maritime domain strikes, integrating Marine F-35B’s with Navy F/A-18’s, an amphibious assault, and integrated ship formations. The mixture of naval combat power and amphibious capabilities demonstrated high-end war fighting capability, maritime superiority and next-level naval integration.

( tapping into or destroying undersea cables is old stuff. Older existing "unpermitted" cables would be likely be subject to this trearment.)
China flexes muscles over Internet subsea cables across South China Sea
https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/china-flexes-muscles-over-internet-subsea-cables-across-south-china-sea/
China is reportedly blocking projects to lay and maintain subsea Internet cables through the South China Sea, with the Financial Times reporting that Beijing is keen to command more control over the infrastructure transmitting the world's data.
It comes as stricter permit requirements from Beijing have forced companies to design routes that avoid the South China Sea, notes the FT, citing multiple industry sources.
China's stance on the situation has likely been fueled by some of its tensions with the US over the years, with two of China's biggest mobile operators recently withdrawing their involvement in the South East Asia-Middle East-West Europe 6 (Sea-Me-We 6) submarine cable project.

[AzCal Retred]

to # 166: ...now THAT's not concerning...

https://www.indiatvnews.com/business/news/silicon-valley-bank-crisis-updates-sbv-officially-files-for-bankruptcy-svb-financial-group-silicon-valley-bridge-bank-us-business-news-2023-03-17-855409

Silicon Valley Bank crisis: The parent of Silicon Valley Bank, seized last week by the US, is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
SVB Financial Group, along with its CEO and its chief financial officer, were targeted this week in a class action lawsuit that claims the company didn't disclose the risks that future interest rate increases would have on its business.
SVB Financial Group is no longer affiliated with Silicon Valley Bank after its seizure by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
The bank's successor, Silicon Valley Bridge Bank, is being run under the jurisdiction of the FDIC and is not included in the Chapter 11 filing.
SVB Financial Group believes it has approximately USD 2.2 billion of liquidity.
What led to SVM's bankruptcy? 
It should be noted here that Silicon Valley Bank was badly affected by the Federal Reserve's aggressive plan to raise interest rates to combat inflation along with the decline in technology stocks over the past year. The bank had bought billions of dollars worth of bonds over the years using customer deposits. This is what banks usually do.
These investments are generally safe, but as interest rates rise, the value of these investments has fallen because they were getting less interest as compared to today's higher interest. Normally this is not a problem, as banks invest for the long term. But things can change when they have to sell in an emergency. SVB's clients were largely startups and other tech-focused companies, which have been struggling for cash over the past year.

[him a layin]

last time china and vietnam went at it it didn't go well for china

[AzCal Retred]

Believe it or not - our military defense capability depends on commercial comm satellites...we're so screwed. 

Pentagon Looking to Make Sure SpaceX Doesn’t Abandon Them in War
https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2023/03/pentagon-looking-make-sure-spacex-doesnt-abandon-them-war/383837/
A type of contract pioneered in the 1950s may help the Pentagon solve a 21st-century problem: making sure private-sector satellite operators don’t cut off wartime communications.
On Thursday, lawmakers and the commander of U.S. Space Command expressed concern about SpaceX’s recent announcement that it would start limiting Ukraine’s use of the company’s Starlink constellation.
“I was personally disappointed to see discontinuation of full services at such a critical time for Ukraine self-defense,” Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., told Space Command’s Gen. James Dickinson. “Do you feel there's a connection between the availability of this capability to our partners in Ukraine in this conflict, and relationships we have with companies like SpaceX?”
Dickinson answered matter-of-factly: “Yes.”
The Pentagon’s relationship with SpaceX has only grown since DARPA’s 2005 Falcon program  helped the company get off the ground. The military, already a large customer of Starlink services, is planning a vast expansion of battlefield communications that depends on cheap commercial satellite communications.
At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Dickinson described the importance of commercial satellites as a key lesson of the Ukraine war.
“There's no question that SpaceX’s Starlink system has been used extensively by Ukraine and its response to the Russian aggression,” he said. “I think this demonstrates that commercial space capabilities can play a significant role in our modern high-intensity conflicts.”
So what happens if SpaceX executives decides to stop supporting certain U.S. military operations in the heat of conflict, as they did with Ukraine?
Dickinson said that the Pentagon needs to make sure that all sides understand their legal obligations and have a full understanding of the military’s expectations before those moments occur.

[Richard230]

Wouldn't that be something like the the long history of the military taking over private cargo ships for military use during time of war?

[AzCal Retred]

" So what happens if SpaceX executives decides to stop supporting certain U.S. military operations in the heat of conflict, as they did with Ukraine?

Maybe more like explaining in detail to the accountable parties that the UCMJ would fall heavily on someone flipping the Starlink "OFF" switch at an inconvenient time. Myself I can't see why the Military would use commercial comms at all.

[AzCal Retred]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/3/22/us-gets-new-philippine-bases-with-south-china-sea-taiwan-in-mind
Locations for the new bases will include areas in the northern Philippines, a move that is likely to infuriate China as it would provide US forces with a well-situated staging ground close to southern China and Taiwan.
“There are four extra sites scattered around the Philippines – there are some in the north, there are some around Palawan, there are some further south,” Marcos told reporters on Wednesday while attending an event marking the Philippine army’s founding.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/marcos-says-new-military-bases-with-us-be-scattered-around-philippines-2023-03-22/
MANILA, March 22 (Reuters) - President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Wednesday that four new military bases under a defense agreement with the U.S. would be located in various parts of the Philippines, including in a province facing the South China Sea.
Last month, Marcos granted the U.S. access to four sites, on top of five existing locations under the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which comes amid China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea and towards Taiwan.

[AzCal Retred]

...a billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you are talking real money...

https://apnews.com/article/pentagon-china-confrontation-united-states-budget-congress-14a601ee94f10b76e1817d58b173a03a

Pentagon: Budget readies US for possible China confrontation
By LOLITA C. BALDOR and TARA COPP; an hour ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military must be ready for possible confrontation with China, the Pentagon’s leaders said Thursday, pushing Congress to approve the Defense Department’s proposed $842 billion budget, which would modernize the force in Asia and around the world.

“This is a strategy-driven budget — and one driven by the seriousness of our strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in testimony before the House Appropriations subcommittee on defense.

Pointing to increases in new technology, such as hypersonics, Austin said the budget proposes to spend more than $9 billion, a 40% increase over last year, to build up military capabilities in the Pacific and defend allies.

The testimony comes on the heels of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow, which added to concerns that China will step up its support for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine and increasingly threaten the West.

[AzCal Retred]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/mar/30/asia-pacific-flashpoints-fuelling-regional-arms-race-taiwan-north-korea-south-china-sea-pacific-islands
" More worryingly for those eager to dial down tensions, a serious debate is unfolding over whether Seoul should acquire its own nuclear deterrent – a move a majority of South Koreans support, according to polls.
In Japan, concern over North Korea and an increasingly assertive China has boosted the case for steering the country further away from its postwar “pacifism.” Late last year, the government of prime minister Fumio Kishida announced Japan would double defence spending to 2% of GDP by 2027, abandoning its self-imposed cap of 1% of GDP.
The increasingly unstable security environment in the Asia-Pacific has been the catalyst for a long-awaited thaw in relations between Japan and South Korea – both US allies with tens of thousands of American troops based on their territory.
In March, Yoon and Kishida became the first South Korean and Japanese leaders to hold bilateral talks for 12 years. Their summit in Tokyo came amid attempts to resolve disputes connected to their bitter wartime legacy, and resulted in an agreement to resume reciprocal visits and a security dialogue after a five-year hiatus.
The South China Sea is one of the most strategically and economically important waterways in the world. It is one of the world’s busiest trading routes, rich in marine life and is thought to contain significant reserves of oil and natural gas. It’s also highly contested.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, with its so-called “nine-dash” line marking the limit of the country’s claim – though an international tribunal in The Hague has rejected this. The Philippines, as well as Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims. The US, while not a claimant, considers the water crucial to its national interests.
Under president Ferdinand Marcos, the Philippines has taken a much tougher stance on the dispute, with Manila accusing Chinese vessels of “aggressive actions” in the South China Sea.
Marcos has vowed the country “will not lose one inch” of its territory, and has overseen a massive shift in foreign policy, strengthening defence ties with the US and its allies.
In March the Philippines expanded US access to its military bases, enhancing Washington’s footprint in the region, and enabling it to more easily monitor Chinese activity in the South China Sea near Taiwan. It has also strengthened military ties with Japan and Australia, two US allies.
In contrast to neighbouring Southeast Asia countries that have expressed concerns over Aukus, which some nations fear could prompt an arms race that destabilises the region, the Philippines has supported the development.
The approach taken by Marcos, who came to power last year, is a stark contrast to that of his predecessor, former president Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte had sought closer economic ties with Beijing and was reluctant to confront China over its activities in the South China sea – even as China constructed military bases on human-made islands, and Chinese vessels harassed, or rammed, Filippine boats. "

[Leofric]

Looks like China is going to try and take Taiwan by force . God knows what that might lead to !

[Richard230]

Looks like China is going to try and take Taiwan by force . God knows what that might lead to !

Nothing good.   

[kikdrum18]

None of this would be happening if..... nevermind... lol.

[Leofric]

None of this would be happening if..... nevermind... lol.

What's funny about it ?