Chinese Warships Encircle Taiwan

Is the world ready?

Photo by Brian McMahon on Unsplash.

The CCP is a regime grown strong on globalization and the fruits of the Information Age, including enough surveillance technology to turn China into a permanent police state.

It’s only been a few short decades since the West opened trade with the vast Eastern kingdom. It’s somewhat ironic that Western leaders aimed to promote greater freedom among Chinese citizens by fostering trade with the West, rather than diminishing it.

This was never the CCP’s goal, however. Many argue that Chinese citizens enjoy less freedom today than before Beijing established alliances with Silicon Valley and the West.

Yet CCP Chairman Xi Jinping’s formidable regime is fragile, as demonstrated by the creation of China’s unironically named “SkyNet” surveillance system. A small minority ruling over a much larger majority without the people’s consent leaves little room for dissent or rebellion.

It is this precariousness that places Taiwan’s independence in grave danger. While the People’s Republic of China (PRC) insists on reunification with Taiwan and has gained international recognition as the legitimate government of China, Taiwan operates as a self-governing entity with its own government and constitution.

“Taiwan says it spotted 22 Chinese warplanes and 20 warships near the island,” reported ABC News this week. The warning held ominous echoes of 2020 and Hong Kong.

Before the pandemic, Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement had gained momentum, challenging the CCP’s authority. However, the conveniently timed pandemic played into Xi Jinping’s hands. Throughout history, oppressors have often invoked safety as their rallying cry. The French Revolutionaries, for example, initially formed the “Committee for Public Safety” before the notoriously bloody “Reign of Terror.”

Regimes built on force typically resort to censorship and propaganda to stifle dissent. Truth doesn’t require such tactics; lies do. The CCP’s arsenal includes information warfare, election interference, economic sabotage, legal intimidation, hacking, and propaganda. When these tactics fail, force may become the preferred option.

Recent reports suggest that President Biden downplays concerns about a Taiwan…