Richard,
I stated that I am not justifying the theft/illegal sale of this technology.
WHAT I AM STATING is that technological secrets EVENTUALLY ALWAYS are revealed, stolen, sold, or given away. The question merely is, how long can those secrets be kept, or their discovery exploited for our own good.
However, if it proven that US secrets were deliberately sold or stolen, I have no heartburn frying the perpetrators like we did the Rosenbergs.
But that still doesn't change the fundamental nature of the issue, that of the "balance of terror" that exists between superpowers than ultimately limits the amount of agression between them.
Let's face facts... no matter how much bluster and sword rattling we do, neither side wants to commit suicide.
What is truly is present here, is the Chinese leadership's passion to control the uncontrollable, either through short-term oppression, or threats of escalation.
But in the end, these threats are as hollow as are ours. China merely wants to be in a position to where they make the POTENTIAL cost of defending Taiwan unbearable to the US.
And technolgy is a double edged sword. Not only can it provide a strong military tool, but it also inherently undermines centralized control of politics and economics. The internet is the greatest weapon the US has developed to advance its values.
People can think freely and express themselves enmasse. People who are oppressed can reach a worldwide audience instantly and tell their stories. And most of all, like a free press, it can expose corruption and demand change.
And not matter how much Bejing tries, it cannot stop what is inevitable, only try to "manage" it.
Regards,
Ron
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