Let me preface my remarks by disclosing, I have many Chinese friends and relatives, some of who hate communism and everything it stands for, with a passion that needs to be seen to be believed!
Yes lets lose the unhelpful rhetoric. Lets all learn Mandrin as our preferred second language. Lets also understand that although we may well be able to learn French in just a few hundred hours, whereas, we need literally thousands of hours to speak and write fluent Mandrin, and fund it accordingly!
We note the very rapid expansion and modernisation of China's military.
We also see the recent history of the annexing of near and virtually helpless neighbours, and the accompanying assurances, that China has no expansionist history!
Let's hope that is their plans; albeit, confounded by the recent massive military build up?
We for our part need to very thoroughly diversify, and seek and find more trade partners and trade opportunities.
We need to do this to reduce our reliance on an aging China, if for no other reason than it is an aging economy.
Moreover, most of India has English as their second language, is a democracy, and loves gladiatorial cricket as much as we do!
The cold war is now just history, India has a young and growing population and a larger middle class than the USA!
It is closer than China, and a natural bulwark against very much southern expansion by China.
Who may well have many more concerns with her's; and or, Mongolia's north western borders, and traditional sabre rattling enmity?
In the final analysis, all we can ever do is hope for the best; but, prepare for the worst.
We should always remain cognisant of the fact; you can't ever appease dictators, who only ever see it as weakness,lack of genuine resolve, or carte blanche to do as they plan or wish?
Rhrosty.

My wife is Chinese. I'm Australian. She was young when Chairman Mao was dragging China into a revolution that turned the country on its head. It was a very bad time and many people were killed or starved to death.

Mao tried to turn the Chinese hierarchy on its head, elevating the peasants and punishing the intellectuals and the rich. He was clearly mad!

China is an ancient civilization, thousands of years old. Unlike the European nations, it was not a colonialist nation. Australia and the U.S. are Johnny-come-latelies and the U.S. seeks control of the world.

Australia needs to appreciate China and stop looking at the U.S. with rose colored glasses.

Lo states that China has never had colonial ambitions beyond its historic borders. The problem comes with China's interpretation of where those 'historic borders' are. It lays claim to every scrap of land in the South China Sea, to the entire Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh, which it calls 'Southern Tibet', and of course to Taiwan.

Lo also supports the conventional wisdom that China's rise to become the world's largest economy is inevitable. Well, we shall see.

Like Rhrosty, I view Australia's growing dependence on China as a destination for our exports with some alarm and urge diversification, with India a prime target.

It's great that this article has appeared on OLO.

Of course, the American-apologists will hate it. Why? Because China will eventually make the U.S. look like a banana republic.

Funny thing is that Chinese people were in Australia during the gold rush and have been here ever since. They have never caused Australia any worries and have been hard-working, good citizens.

But China threatens the preemminent role that the U.S. demands exclusively for itself. So indoctrinated Aussies will heap scorn upon China and label it a danger while they take its money.

Australia needs China. The U.S. doesn't need Australia!

We must choose wisely! When America falls we don't want to fall with it!

The author must think Australians stupid not to see through this propaganda and veiled threats. If China has no history of "aggressiveness" then why does he warn us of "creating hostilities", "backfire" and "caution"?

He would have us believe that, in all of history, Australia is uniquely qualified to stir aggressiveness in China when no other country has managed to. With just a few misplaced words, Australia could provoke China like no other country ever could? This is unbelievable propaganda.

Graham C is correct: we need to diversify our trade, and India is a good place to start.

David G is correct.The Western Oligarchs only recently began to demonise China in 2008 when China refused to open up the rest of it's economy to their private central banks.

It is our Banking, Military,Industrial,Complex (BMIC) which makes us slaves to debt and seeks to bring in their "New World Order" that the BRICS nations seek to escape.

The Chinese Govt supplies 80% of new money debt free by Govt Banks ,while the West is held captive by private central banks that express our productivity and inflation as debt. China grows at 9-12%,while the West grows at 3% with 3% inflation.Private Central Banks have us screwed.

China and Russia are not our enemies.Our enemy is our own banking system which is really a counterfeiting scam that expresses our productivity as debt.Quantative Easing Three (QU3)is about to happen and further put more money in fewer hands.QE3 is counterfeiting and should be illegal.