Ran across this article posted in Jumping In Pools. Not sure how credible it is, ...| It isn't. The B-2 is one of the most classified military projects we've ever had. There isn't a chance in the world that Barack Obama, or any other president, would do this. It's sheer, unadultrated nonsense, and I wouldn't believe it unless the Washington Post showed a photo with a check in one of his hands and the blueprints in the other. |
According to the Administration, this proposal will help the United States resolve its debt issues. They point out their belief that the B-2 bomber is "strategically obsolete", according to a source in the White House Press Office. In addition, the source claims that the Chinese would be unable to create their own functioning stealth bomber fleet for "at least eight years."
American allies Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea are very wary of the proposal. Koo Syi, a geopolitical analyst from South Korea, points out that this technology could be passed to China's allies. This was the case when Chinese nuclear technology was transferred to Pakistan and North Korea. According to Koo, Obama has rendered US allies' opinions as "irrelevant."
While this proposal is controversial, it is not being presented to Congress, where it could meet with stern opposition. Instead, the State Department has been informed to assisted the Defense Department with the transfer of materials.
A little skeptical here as frankly $50 billion is less than a drop in the bucket of Chinese Treasury holdings which are easily well over $1 trillion. The economic impact of this transaction would be negligible to zero. On the other hand, if this ends up being true, it is quite frightening, as it merely demonstrates, aside from all the scary geo-political considerations, just how bad of a dealmaker our President is.
In other China-related news, Reuters reporting that Tim Geithner's soothing words from his Beijing whirlwind tour that "Chinese assets are very safe," drew loud laughter from the audience.
"Chinese assets are very safe," Geithner said in response to a question after a speech at Peking University, where he studied Chinese as a student in the 1980s.
His answer drew loud laughter from his student audience, reflecting scepticism in China about the wisdom of a developing country accumulating a vast stockpile of foreign reserves instead of spending the money to raise living standards at home.
Alas, laughter is more and more the traditional response when other economies consider the sustainability of the ongoing economic fiasco developing before our eyes (and this author's response to the continued market manipulation).