re: "The Long Term"

The late, great Lex at Neptunus Lex (" The unbearable lightness of Lex. Enjoy! ") remarked on a U.S. diplomatic "win" out in the far reaches of the Pacific Rim (i.e., in China's front yard).

Money quote(s):

"(T)here’s always a but in diplomacy – one move, even a series of well choreographed and expertly timed moves – does not a match make"

The point being, I think, that the "match" is rarely ever fully over, except in such exceptional circumstances such as the end of a major war, the collapse of a dynasty or empire, or some sort of mass extinction event.

(And then a new match will start, and some of the "new" players will look awfully familiar.)

"First comes the political succession, then the internal struggle for power and the coalescence of a national strategy. That is, of course, if the Peoples’ Liberation Army has the patience for it.

In the really long term, we’re all dead. The state within a state represented by the PLA gets to ponder its over-reaching, rebuke and subsequent loss of face and decide how long “long” is." (Emphasis in original text. - CAA.)

The PLA isn't going anywhere, absent a really cataclysmic (for China) turn of events.

"For US diplomats, it’s all pats on the back, champagne toasts and Washington fêtes, for now. A chance to celebrate a coup. An opportunity, even, to treasure an adversary worth tilting against, after a decade of squashing irrational bugs, and making uncomfortable alliances.

Let’s hope we haven’t forgotten how to play this game."

Kudos to all involved, but don't get cocky.

p.s. For friends and fans of Lex, be sure to drop by The Lexicans.

11/20