[extropy-chat] [Politics] Real Politick

[Mike Lorrey]

--- The Avantguardian <avantguardian2020 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> --- Samantha Atkins <sjatkins at mac.com> wrote:
> > > Treaties are made and broken at the
> > > convenience of the participants in the mad
> > scramble
> > > for eminence in the international theater.
> > >
> > 
> > This still seem to be driving the US at least.
> 
> That may be, but it shouldn't. We ARE top dog right
> now. We should be LEADING them somewhere, not
> squashing the little guys to make some sort of POINT.
> Once everyone has backed down to you, continued
> aggression is pointless... it just builds up
> resentment and contempt. Even Machiavelli warned
> against that. 

On the contrary, our status as top dog will only remain so if we act
effectively versus the main top dog aspirant, China, and deal with our
current bad case of Islamist fleas and eurosocialist ticks.

> 
> > That itself is a rather cynical view in that it says
> > $$ makes right  
> > effectively.  Taiwan broke off from China as a
> > relatively much more  
> > free country wishing to be a separate entity.  China
> > keeps insisting  
> > that it is not separate.  As supporters of freedom,
> > democracy and  
> > self-determination it seem obvious that we would and
> > should support  
> > Taiwan in its bid for continuing independence.    I
> > don't agree it is  
> > wise to sell off the principles involved.
> 
> I don't either, but it is the UN's roster of
> sovereignity that makes a country a country. I could
> buy an island and call it Happyland but that doesn't
> make it a country unless the UN accepts it. If the UN
> decides preserving Taiwan's independence is a
> priority, then we should do our duty, otherwise I say
> we stay out of it.

Not necessarily. Switzerland only voted to join the UN this past year.
Neither Taiwan nor the Vatican is a member of the UN, yet each clearly
has a government, citizens, revenues, laws, acts in its own interest,
and has diplomatic relations with a number of other countries.
Countries may even be non-members to the UN but parties to the
International Court of Justice. There is also Western Sahara, Kosovo,
Palestine, and Northern Cyprus who are not member nations for various
reasons, but operate independent governments.

The US is actually legally obligated under international treaty to
police Taiwan-PRC relations. The San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1952,
brokered between the Communists, Nationalists, by the US, puts a burden
on the US to ensure a peaceful reconciliation between Taiwan and the
mainland. The US also has the 1955 Mutual Defense Treaty binding it to
Taiwans defense. Technically, the US, in a legal sense, has occupied
Taiwan, on paper, since the 50's, and under the peace treaty, it is
occupier and guarrantor of the defense of the people of Taiwan. It is
an unincorporated but unannexed territory of the US. (see:
http://www.taiwanadvice.com/ustaiwan/intro.htm ) 

As such, the people of Taiwan are effectively 14th Amendment US
citizens and entitled to protection under the US Constitution. If the
US govt abrogates that protection, it is granting Taiwan and its people
sovereignty. By doing so, it also puts all other US citizens on notice
that they cannot trust their government to protect them either. The US
Constitution will be moot, and all Americans will be either free
soveriegns or merely citizens of their state of residence..

Mike Lorrey
Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
Founder, Constitution Park Foundation:
http://constitutionpark.blogspot.com
Personal/political blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com


		
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