"Let's reject the threat of war completely," says Loudmouth.

Now you're talking real sense. War is a pet project of a few who control most of the world's wealth. While other die, they enrich themselves.

To change the world, we have to change the Caveman-thought process which is in vogue. The only way we can do that is to change how we bring us our kids, what we teach them.

Greed and inequality must be seen as a crime against humanity. It is not right that a few live in obscene luxury while many other starve.

War must be seen as an obscenity. Nations which engage in wars must be punished. The world belongs to all the people who live on it, not those who have bigger clubs than anyone else.

If we don't change our thinking, a nuclear holocaust or global warming awaits us. Neither is far away. Time is of the essence.

Cavemen are out. Neo-humans are in!

Get with the in-crowd while there is still time.

My sister tells me Julie Bbishop looked wonderful in her outfit when she met with the Chinese the other day. Am no judge on womens fashions. But she tells me Jules shouldn't wear pants, poor form, Tony wears the pants!!

While your "bogey man" nation, DavidG, is the USA.

The USA has, since the end of the second world war, been the leader and the military protector of the free world. You remember the free world, don't you David G? That is that part of the world where you want to live in. The rest of the world ruled by totalitarian fruitcakes thinks exactly like you do, and that is where you most definitely do not want to live. It always amazes me that intellectually challenged people like yourself never tire of condemning the very places which have given their populations freedoms unprecedented in human history, while always going into to bat for the worst regimes on the planet.

As for your assertion that "China is not evil", you may be right there. It's a pity you can't make the same connection to the USA. Might it be fair to say that every nation can act in it's own self interest? But as for the Chinese government intentions, start making comparisons with Nazi Germany to consider the validity of the threat.

Authoritarian government? Tick. State control of industries while allowing some free enterprise? Tick. Extremely racist government (which even preaches to its high school kids that Chinese did not evolve from African blacks)? Tick. And finally, the declaration of territorial claims on its smaller neighbours (including areas of seabed completely outside of the geographical location of their country.) Tick.

As for Chinese wanting to be "Australians". The Chinese are noted for creating Chinese only ghettoes in every country they inhabit. There are "Chinatowns" in every major city on Earth. The Chinese only want to live among Chinese. That is racism which people like you never notice. One Chinese even wrote a best seller about the Chinese living in Australia. Do you know what its title was? "Among the Barbarians."

Since you hate rich people and patriots, could I tell you right now that the "overseas Chinese" are the richest people on the planet and they are super patriots to their country. No matter where they live, that country is China

It's sad really, that Cavemen like LEGO exist. While they do, the world will never change, war and greed will never stop, and the end of our world will be caused by a nuclear holocaust unless climate change gets in first.

It seems that the bulk of humans cannot escape their indoctrination once it is established. They become like flesh-clad robots, incapable of reason. They are conditioned as Skinner so clearly revealed, conditioned by those pulling the strings: the rich, the Corporations, the ruling elite.

And one thing that Cavemen hate is anyone who comes along and questions the system they have been conditioned to accept without question. It makes Cavemen uncomfortable. They wave their clubs about and grunt ferociously but they can't get their tiny minds around the fact that the world could be very different, much better, much fairer.

What is it that makes some of us capable of escaping our conditioning, allows us to see what a shambles the world is, how it is filled with gross inequality and injustice, how it could be a thousand times better?

I suppose it depends on whether you're on the right side of the ledger, whether the capitalist system where might is right, where the most cunning and greedy prevail, has been kind to you.

But the threat of, the reality of, global warming and nuclear war will take out the most dedicated Cavemen but they, poor things, can't see it.

They are too busy visiting Harvey Norman and working out how they can buy a Mercedes or a MacMansion!

A touch of ad hominem there, David :)

What are the issues ? Yes, the US yada yada, but in this case, what are the issues ?

China and Japan both claim a clump of rocky islands north-east of Taiwan. The islands have been under Japanese control since they seized them from the Manchu Empire in the 1890s. The Manchu Empire was officially overthrown by the October Revolution in 1910 and the setting up of a Republic in China.

In international disputes like this, surely the best course is diplomacy, negotiations and peaceful resolution if possible ? But what does China do ? It declares what has yet to be decided, that it already has authority to impose restrictions on the air space over those islands and a lot more territory besides, so that any planes flying into South Korea, or between Taiwan and Japan, have to seek approval first. Such unilateral action is not conducive to peaceful resolution.

Clearly the Chinese have a larger agenda, of declaring both the East China Sea and the South China Sea to be their national waters, right up to the edge of the Philippines and Malaysia, for Christ's sake, not to mention into Vietnamese waters as well. Not the agenda of a peaceful nation, I'm sure you would agree.

So the rationale for all of the small nations of South-East Asia, in order to protect their clear and manifest interests, will be to co-operate more closely, to keep the international waters of those Seas international, as it always has been.

Unless of course, David, we accept the imperialist rationale, that 'big' means' 'more national rights' than those piddly little countries should have.

Surely we should oppose imperialism wherever it raises its ugly head ? Wouldn't you agree ?

Cheers,

Joe

DavidG has an interesting neurosis

People like David think that they can solve all of the world's problems. Their collective mindset is that human beings are intelligent, therefore it is possible to create some sort of social order which will create a war, poverty and crime free world.

This was the promise which the Socialists once claimed to be their own. The problem was that Socialism did nothing more than create countries which were giant prison camps with bankrupt economies. In some cases the Socialist countries did well. The USSR could create a scientifically advanced space program even when their people queued for bread. But in the end, the Socialist countries had to admit that a free market economy had the real advantage. So today, only bankrupt Cuba and wacko North Korea still advocate this economic lunacy.

People like DavidG are horrified that their socialist dream turned into a totalitarian nightmare. They still think socialism could work. If it had not ben for those damned Americans, just one more five year plan would have done it. Incensed at the failure of their dream, and unable to accept that their dream was a mirage, they instead reserve their criticism those which most opposed this economic lunacy.

Therefore, their collective hatred is directed towards the USA, who was the leader of the free world, who fought against their dream world ideology, and who's advocacy for free market economies was proven right all along.

The problem that David has is that he is smart enough to know that his socialist ideology is rubbish. But he believes it is the only hope for humankind. Despite its glaring imperfections IT HAS TO WORK. So he will keep on advocating the adoption of self evident failure because he sees no alternative.