Even if it's a fascist regime, the Chinese gov is not a monolith. The theatre is probably not just meant to placate the public pride but also more or less belligerent factions within the Chinese government, in particularl the PLA itself that Hu Jintao had to ally with to sit his own power.
That's the kind of theatre that can get out of hands very quickly.
Well as our neo-liberal friends tell us, trade between states negates the foreign policy based on national pride and non-utilitarian values.
Because conflict results in a deadweight loss to the world economy, so long as the portion accruing to parties potentially in conflict is greater than that gained by war, peace will prevail.
As history taught us in the long period of peace betwen France and Germany in the early 20th century.
Because non-utlitarian values like national pride and the desire for raw coercive power don't exist in the world of market liberalism..... </rolls eyes> And I'll give my consent to any government that does not deny a man a living wage-Billy Bragg
