The China Thread

[Monoriu]

This is all really bad timing for Xi.  The next party congress, which is held every five years, is in 2022.  Xi came to power in 2012.  According to rules laid down by Deng, a leader may serve 10 years.  Both Jiang and Hu, Xi's predecessors, obeyed this rule.  Xi wants to stay longer, and he has already changed the constitution and prevented a successor from appearing.  2020 is supposed to be a big year for him.  He originally planned to declare 2020 as the year China finally lifted everybody out of poverty and reached middle-class hood.  The virus, Hong Kong all risked derailing his plans.

[viper37]

This is all really bad timing for Xi.  The next party congress, which is held every five years, is in 2022.  Xi came to power in 2012.  According to rules laid down by Deng, a leader may serve 10 years.  Both Jiang and Hu, Xi's predecessors, obeyed this rule.  Xi wants to stay longer, and he has already changed the constitution and prevented a successor from appearing.  2020 is supposed to be a big year for him.  He originally planned to declare 2020 as the year China finally lifted everybody out of poverty and reached middle-class hood.  The virus, Hong Kong all risked derailing his plans.

that's certainly the saddest thing I've heard so far...  It pales compared the devastation Europe &America have suffered due to his failures to enforce an official interdiction of wild animals being raised in cages, all closed to one another, slaughtered in the same place, and delivered to customers amongst the mice feeding off the carcasses.  It is so sad that no one in the entire world, no scientist of any renoknow ever raised the possibility of another pandemic as we are now living after the events of SARS-1, H1N1, and countless other localized diseases.  I'm so sad that Xi might be in a bad political spot right now.  I'll cry myself to bed.

[Monoriu]

Well, according to Beijing, the virus is a bio-weapon planted in Wuhan by the US military 

[Valmy]

Well, according to Beijing, the virus is a bio-weapon planted in Wuhan by the US military 

Iran is saying the same thing. The US military decided that bio-weapons were pretty inneffective and difficult to control (you know...like not spread to your own country and shit) decades ago so this isn't really something we do anymore. Besides even when we were it was more about temporarily disabling young soldiers not very slowly killing old people...and as it turned out even very sick soldiers defend themselves.

Though, to be fair, that at least makes more sense than Trump claiming this is a media conspiracy to keep him from being re-elected.

[fromtia]

Well, according to Beijing, the virus is a bio-weapon planted in Wuhan by the US military 

Before we closed, the Libertarians/Alex-Jones/Trump axis of my co workers was vocal about the virus being produced by the Chinese Military, as a rebuttal for Trumps sanctions. As I'm not friends with that cohort really, I haven't kept in touch while we are furloughed, so I'm not sure what the conspiracy du jour is.

[Tonitrus]

Well, according to Beijing, the virus is a bio-weapon planted in Wuhan by the US military 

Iran is saying the same thing. The US military decided that bio-weapons were pretty inneffective and difficult to control (you know...like not spread to your own country and shit) decades ago so this isn't really something we do anymore. Besides even when we were it was more about temporarily disabling young soldiers not very slowly killing old people...and as it turned out even very sick soldiers defend themselves.

Though, to be fair, that at least makes more sense than Trump claiming this is a media conspiracy to keep him from being re-elected.

Interestingly, so far it seems to be trending to look more helpful in getting him re-elected.  But even he may be surprised by that.

[mongers]

Well, according to Beijing, the virus is a bio-weapon planted in Wuhan by the US military 

Before we closed, the Libertarians/Alex-Jones/Trump axis of my co workers was vocal about the virus being produced by the Chinese Military, as a rebuttal for Trumps sanctions. As I'm not friends with that cohort really, I haven't kept in touch while we are furloughed, so I'm not sure what the conspiracy du jour is.

Interesting that that derangement is still so popular.

I wonder it they'll re-purposing the FEMA death camps BS into something like 'Democrat state temp hospitals are a cover for exterminations camps for Trump patriots'?

[Valmy]

Interestingly, so far it seems to be trending to look more helpful in getting him re-elected.  But even he may be surprised by that.

Yeah old crazy uncle Joe has not exactly been out there taking a big leadership role in this time of crisis.

[Valmy]

I wonder it they'll re-purposing the FEMA death camps BS into something like 'Democrat state temp hospitals are a cover for exterminations camps for Trump patriots'?

See? You don't even live here and yet you know exactly what the story will be if we start having large numbers of deaths.

[fromtia]

Yeah old crazy uncle Joe has not exactly been out there taking a big leadership role in this time of crisis.

Yeah The Biden seems to have gone into hiding. Odd. saw one puff piece about his rumination on his running mate and that's about it.

[Barrister]

Yeah old crazy uncle Joe has not exactly been out there taking a big leadership role in this time of crisis.

Yeah The Biden seems to have gone into hiding. Odd. saw one puff piece about his rumination on his running mate and that's about it.

Joe Biden is self-isolating at home in Delaware, but is releasing daily videos from a home studio.

Realistically there's not much else he can be doing right now.

[Valmy]

Not exactly inspiring. This is his chance to show that Trump is a chump and he is the man.

[Camerus]

Yeah. Not reassuring that the hope to beat Trump is at this moment cowering in a bunker.

[Valmy]

I mean I get that for normal people going out with a facemask and protective gear is not possible but surely Joe should be able to get whatever gear he needs to go out and demonstrate how much better the country would be doing right now if he was in charge.

[Barrister]

Not exactly inspiring. This is his chance to show that Trump is a chump and he is the man.

It's called "leading by example".  People are supposed to stay at home - so he's staying at home.

His videos have been pretty good - in particular when compared to a Trump daily briefing.