The egregious cost of interceptors compared to the missiles themself make it possible for even Yemen to drain US military assets in the region.

Most likely related to this:

Berlin police have turned a neighborhood known for its Arab population into a heavily restricted area, closing parts of it and prohibiting any kind of protests against the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

“Cracked down on junk fees”

“Announced plans (but didn’t complete them, and in many cases like the CHIPS Act didn’t even divest funding for them)”

“Took action to protect abortion (despite the Biden administration overseeing the single greatest step backwards in abortion access in US history)”

“Created an office”

“Stood up for [genocide in] Israel”

“Confirmed a bunch of judges for life”

This year, we have marched forward with solid steps. We achieved a smooth transition in our COVID-19 response efforts. The Chinese economy has sustained the momentum of recovery. Steady progress has been made in pursuing high-quality development. Our modernized industrial system has been further upgraded. A number of advanced, smart and green industries are rapidly emerging as new pillars of the economy. We have secured a bumper harvest for the 20th year in a row. Waters have become clearer and mountains greener. New advances have been made in pursuing rural revitalization. New progress has been made in fully revitalizing northeast China. The Xiong’an New Area is growing fast, the Yangtze River Economic Belt is full of vitality, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is embracing new development opportunities. Having weathered the storm, the Chinese economy is more resilient and dynamic than before.

This year, we have marched forward with robust steps. Thanks to years of dedicated efforts, China’s innovation-driven development is full of energy. The C919 large passenger airliner entered commercial service. The Chinese-built large cruise ship completed its trial voyage. The Shenzhou spaceships are continuing their missions in space. The deep-sea manned submersible Fendouzhe reached the deepest ocean trench. Products designed and made in China, especially trendy brands, are highly popular with consumers. The latest models of Chinese-made mobile phones are an instant market success. New energy vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products are a new testimony to China’s manufacturing prowess. Everywhere across our country, new heights are being scaled with dogged determination, and new creations and innovations are emerging every day.

This year, we have marched forward in high spirits. The Chengdu FISU World University Games and the Hangzhou Asian Games presented spectacular sports scenes, and Chinese athletes excelled in their competitions. Tourist destinations are full of visitors on holidays, and the film market is booming. The “village super league” football games and “village spring festival gala” are immensely popular. More people are embracing low-carbon lifestyles. All these exhilarating activities have made our lives richer and more colorful, and they mark the return of bustling life across the country. They embody people’s pursuit of a beautiful life, and present a vibrant and flourishing China to the world.

This year, we have marched forward with great confidence. China is a great country with a great civilization. Across this vast expanse of land, wisps of smoke in deserts of the north and drizzles in the south invoke our fond memory of many millennium-old stories. The mighty Yellow River and Yangtze River never fail to inspire us. Discoveries at the archeological sites of Liangzhu and Erlitou tell us much about the dawn of Chinese civilization. The ancient Chinese characters inscribed on oracle bones of the Yin Ruins, the cultural treasures of the Sanxingdui Site, and the collections of the National Archives of Publications and Culture bear witness to the evolution of Chinese culture. All this stands as testament to the time-honored history of China and its splendid civilization. And all this is the source from which our confidence and strength are derived.

Compare this to the 2023 Major Accomplishments of the Biden-Harris Administration:

Part XI

Except it’s not really compatible with UNCLOS.

The US interpretation of UNCLOS would allow them to claim like half the Pacific

Literally the same bullshit getting pulled in the South China Sea.

“This ocean is all MY ocean, because I said so”

(oh oops there’s oil there teehee completely unrelated)

Serves them right lol

Both tbh

American failures are being used to prop up Chinese successes. This is particularly true in urbanism discussions. China is by no means perfect and thinking that they are is harmful to progress.

I’m not actually sure this tells the full picture. Anyone who’s even moderately tapped into Chinese social media knows that direct-to-consumer e-commerce took off like crazy in the past few years on Douyin (and others).

Cutting out middlemen drives prices way down, which would lead to decreased spending without necessarily correlating with decreased consumption.

China attempts to maintain their territorial claims in the South China Sea after the Philippines and Vietnam conduct island-building operations there in the early-00s: CHINA BAD!!!

America expanding their territorial claims in the Pacific because they want more natural resources: Yeah, this is fine and reasonable and democratic.

Canada, who gets no say in the matter because we’re entirely reliant on the US for trade and defence: fuck, eh?

Good.

Go to Russia and find out lol

It’s in the new issue of Air Force Monthly.

And yet it would still have been cheaper to send Ukraine new J-17s than used F-16s.

The J-17 was designed for the Pakistan Air Force. Any other operators (Myanmar, Nigeria?) are operators of convenience.

China recognizes that the J-17 is outclassed by the Su-34, so it sort of does matter…

New issue of Air Force Monthly lol

The same F-16s that were outclassed by the J-17 in recent military exercises?

Pakistani pilots are on record saying the F-16 is worse in basically every way compared to a design China considers to be “budget” and “outdated.”

No shit? Rich countries want to rest on their laurels and put a token effort towards the climate problem.

If you want to see what kind of investment is needed to actually solve the climate problem, look at China.

No democracy is going to greenlight that level of spending.