STEVE PIECZENIK TALKS

“The Long March” to a Century of Chinese Humiliation 

Begins with One American DOJ Indictment of Five Chinese People’s Liberation Army [PLA] “Hackers”. 

As most of you have already heard,  the DOJ just indicted for the first time in history five Chinese military officers in Shanghai for hacking into American companies illegally.   Just as Snowden’s revelations about NSA hacking of American citizens’ computers was about to subside,  some genius in nation-state behavior at DOJ came up with a new way to humiliate our ally/adversary, China.  Whoever thought of jailing five PLA members as way of retaliating for Chinese hacking into our industries [Alcoa, Westinghouse, US Steel, et. al. ] and extracting ‘trade secrets’ has forgotten the history of china vis a vis the USA and western powers in general.

  From the very beginning of the Opium Wars in the early part of the 19^th century to the end of WWII when the Chinese finally rid themselves of torturous Japanese occupation,  China has endured what is commonly considered by national security experts as a “Century of Humiliation”.   For those of you who are not versed in psychology, one of the most critical dynamics of eastern culture is the AVOIDANCE OF SHAME/HUMILIATION.   That particular psychological dynamic is the basis of allowing the Chinese to feel as if they are still part of the historical “Middle Kingdom”.

The Middle Kingdom is a concept in which the Chinese have long believed.  Bush Sr had understood this concept all too well and treated the Chinese as if they are a long-standing, honorable society that had discovered many so-called ‘western inventions’ centuries before there was even a western civilization.   As Confucius says: ”Respect your elders.”

“Respect” in terms of national security means  that one nation does not go out of its way to insult,  indict or assassinate anyone publicly.   Well, folks, just like everything else that Obama has done so far,  both domestically and in terms of foreign policy,  this PLA indictment… is one real FUBAR!! Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition!!  Trust me folks that no matter what the Chinese PLA or others have done,  we, Americans have done the same thing or worse.  We just don’t admit it.

  As the Snowden revelations came out,   it was clear that our own USG has been spying on us for a very long time in the name of ‘ersatz’ terrorism.  That is our national problem that we,  Americans,  have to deal with constructively.  When you have an administration like Obama’s which has not had a foreign policy strategy nor game plan other than attack in the ‘name of freedom’[Libya]; or ‘drone attacks’ with massive collateral damage;  then one should expect such  tactical errors repeatedly.  As I have said in the past blogs,  Obama was born of and by the nefarious, tactical CIA , bereft of any strategic or long-term thinking or capability.

Now as Obama has driven Russia into the arms of China,  Obama has unwittingly unleashed a stream of humiliating assaults on the Chinese who have ‘hacked’ into our industries.  However, folks, let’s not forget that the NSA  has repeatedly hacked into the Chinese communications system,  in the name of ‘American national security’.
Decades of working in five American administrations, has taught me one simple fact—don’t HUMILIATE or INSULT A COUNTRY or it’s LEADERS … UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARED TO GO TO WAR!!!!

We are not prepared to go to war,  thanks to the incompetence of three former US Presidents—Clinton, Bush Jr, Obama—and so that leaves us with one LEGITIMATE ALTERNATIVE---COVERT ACTIONS/HACKING!!!   The world of covert actions was intended to allow the host countries the ability and legitimacy to continue their relationships, as tortuous as those bonds may be.   But under no condition,  does anyone’s misbehavior allow for one or another country to HUMILIATE the CHINESE!Humiliation is practiced by the incompetent,  ignorant and desperate officials of any nation.

We are now beset,  not just by incompetency, but an obsessive, unwarranted need to make ourselves, as a nation, despised more intensely than we are right now, for no other reason than some childish need to retaliate.  Whichever moron, in this Obama administration, thought that humiliation is the best way to modify Chinese behavior,  should expect me and others around the world to humiliate him/her.

It does not take a psychiatrist to figure out what the outcome of this initial foray by Eric Holder means to the rest of America--- loss of jobs; loss of economic investments in China; untold Chinese retaliations of unspecified nature.  We have in one swift irresponsible illegal, absurd action just wiped out decades of hard work of those of us who represented our country and worked with the Chinese in far more trying circumstances.

  Congratulations to all those in this administration who feel that our Fortune Five Hundred Companies: Westinghouse,  Alcoa, US Steel, et al. ---lost profits because they could not effectively compete with China.  Why don’t you ask US Steel how America stole the secrets for the making of steel?  Oops! I am sorry! That would take too much time and knowledge!!   Why don’t you ask Westinghouse why the French are number one in the world in nuclear power? Why don’t you ask Alcoa why their performance in general has been on the downturn for years?   And its not because of the Chinese hacking!
 

These lawyers in DOJ really don’t know how to do “due process” or make foreign policy.   Sorry Cyrus Vance, Warren Christopher, and James Baker—these were outstanding lawyers who happened to have been great Secretary Of States.   I can assure you they would never have humiliated any country---let alone one which has literally created WALMART, and dozens of other Public US Companies.

So long Home Depot and other US public companies that depend on Chinese “good will” and rational trade practices.  Thank the DOJ for your future losses!  Oh, and thank DOJ for job losses while you are at it because the first thing American companies do when business is bad-  cut payroll.