>>Interesting take on global issues refreshingly sparred of politics / propaganda;
>
>If you don't count the implicit ones... like pretending that the owners of the world's finance aren't the same ones who operate in China. And pretending that countries matter much nowadays.

Well they have to recuperate expenses of building and maintaining western middle classes during cold war years...
South East Asia / China offer everything 'free marketeers' ever dreamed of achieving; Rock bottom wages at almost zero political/labor resistance. Almost as good as early capitalism / wealth accumulation years of late 19th / early 20th century.

Only 'problem' is that some countries there (especially China) are no longer keen on being just brainless labor pools
(sweating blood & smoking opium) and instead decided to retain substantial parts of those money piles for themselves.
To make matters worse, China started investing some of that money in Africa (and some other resource rich countries)
and threatens to actually purchase those resources through fair deals/prices! Holly Muggabe, Mobutu & Bokassa! That is some serious threat there! {g}

And there comes... uhm... well...

'Pacific Century' ?