Based Underground is now a conservative news aggregator AND curated newsletter.
(Daily Signal)—When President Joe Biden steps down in January, he’ll hand his successor a world far more dangerous than the one he inherited four years ago. Under his watch, the U.S. returned Afghanistan to the barbarous Taliban and watched wars break out in Europe and the Middle East. But when all is said and done, history may judge Biden most harshly for his failure to hold Beijing to account for its aggression in the South China Sea. If not reversed, this appeasement could invite a war even more horrific than the ones currently underway.
Last month, the Philippines—an ally with whom America has a defense treaty and security commitment—was forced to withdraw a coast guard vessel it had anchored at Sabina Shoal, an atoll well within its exclusive economic zone that China claims as its own. Beijing besieged the shoal to block Manila from resupplying the ship it had placed there to prevent a Chinese takeover. With the ship badly damaged by the ramming it endured, and some of its crew members in need of medical attention, Manila had little choice but to abandon the shoal, which is now vulnerable to Chinese occupation.
The saga over Sabina Shoal came on the heels of a nearly yearlong standoff over the Philippines’ efforts to resupply personnel stationed on a crumbling World War II-era vessel beached on Second Thomas Shoal. That standoff ended after the two sides entered a “provisional agreement” that enabled the Philippines to resupply the ship.
That Beijing should dictate how Manila can operate within its own exclusive economic zone is outrageous. That the U.S. didn’t come to its ally’s defense as Chinese ships rammed holes into Philippine vessels is unconscionable.
During the height of the drama over Second Thomas Shoal, Biden reiterated that if Beijing crossed the threshold into armed conflict, America would come to Manila’s defense. It was an important reminder of Washington’s commitment, but such statements are the equivalent of giving China a green light to continue engaging in activities short of open warfare.
Biden should have known better after what he experienced as President Barack Obama’s vice president. In 2012, the Obama administration watched China illegally seize Scarborough Shoal from the Philippines. The next year, Beijing started building artificial islands to fortify its claims over several other rocks and underwater shoals in the contested Spratly Islands, sending the entire region in an uproar.
Obama protested to no avail, then warned Beijing not to militarize the islands, which it proceeded to do with no consequences.
The fact that China and the Philippines aren’t shooting at each other might partially explain the administration’s false sense of security. But Beijing’s incursions are part of a sophisticated strategy of gray zone warfare designed to extract concessions without the costs and risks associated with war. If they are allowed to continue, the best-case scenario will be that Beijing gradually occupies much of the territory it claims in the South China Sea without firing a shot, strengthening its position in one of the world’s most strategic waterways and making the region far more dangerous for the U.S. and its allies.
Even more worrying is the ever-present risk of war resulting from these incursions. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has publicly warned that any Filipino death resulting from China’s actions would be “very close to what we define as an act of war.” There have been a frightening number of encounters over the past year that could have easily led to such an outcome. Indeed, the transition from gray zone incursions to all-out war appears to be just one miscalculation away, and if that happens, the U.S. will find itself in a hot war with its most capable adversary. More must be done to ensure this outcome never occurs.
To preserve peace, the next U.S. president will need to abandon Biden’s timidity and actively push China back from the precipice of war. This will require intense diplomacy of the sort rarely seen since the end of the Cold War. It will be unpleasant, but that’s the nature of the brinkmanship Beijing is engaged in.
Don’t wait for a stock market crash, dedollarization, or CBDCs before securing your retirement with physical precious metals. Genesis Gold Group can help.
It may also require physically intervening to call China’s bluff and force it to stand down. For example, the U.S. should strongly consider sending Coast Guard or Navy vessels to accompany Philippine resupply missions or to escort a Philippine ship to replace the vessel that withdrew from Sabina Shoal last month.
Such actions would not be overly provocative, provided they are carried out in a professional manner that is designed not to needlessly humiliate Beijing, but they would give China a powerful ultimatum—pick a fight with the U.S. or back down. Beijing would choose the latter; the last thing it wants is to overplay its hand and end up in a war with the U.S.
China is engaged in a high-stakes game of chicken in which the side that flinches first loses. This works to its advantage when it goes head-to-head against the Philippines, but with the U.S. firmly on its ally’s side and willing to mobilize to show its support, the tables will turn and China will be forced to back down. But it won’t do so until it’s sure the United States is serious.
Afghan Who Plotted Election Day Terrorism Was a CIA Contractor
by Headline USA
It looks like the FBI may have entrapped a former CIA contractor in a plot to commit a terrorist attack on Election Day. The Justice Department announced this week the arrest of Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, a 27-year-old Afghan man, alleging that he was planning an Election…
Last day for the special on long-term storage beef. Save 35% with promo code “JDR” at Prepper All-Naturals.
Genetically Modified Crops: A Growing Threat to Health and the Environment
by Olivia Cook
(Natural News)—Bioengineered foods and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are commonly confused with each other, but they have different meanings. “Bioengineered” describes food and products that are enhanced with scientific techniques to add particular traits. In contrast, “GMOs” involve changing the genetic makeup of animals, plants or microbes in ways that…
United Nations Expands into “UN 2.0” to Turbocharge Sustainable Development Goals
by Liberty Sentinel
The United Nations (UN) has not gone rogue, argues journalist Alex Newman on American Family Radio’s show, At the Core , but they have always existed to achieve one goal: one-world government. This goal is not only un-American, but it is unbiblical. Newman and AFR host Walker Wildmon also dive…
Congressman Matt Gaetz Says Epstein Was Killed as Part of a ‘Foreign Operation’
by Modernity
Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz says sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was killed as part of a ‘foreign operation’, but refused to divulge which government was responsible for his death. Gaetz made the comments during an appearance on Benny Johnson’s show. In August 2019, Epstein was found unresponsive in his jail cell…
DOJ Takes Aim at Breaking Up Google
by Infowars
On Tuesday, the United States announced potential plans to request a court mandate directing Alphabet Inc to divest significant segments of its operations, including its Chrome browser and Android operating system. This move aims to dismantle what is described as an illegal monopoly held by Google in the online search…
Is Gavin Newsom Hoping that Kamala Harris Loses the Election?
by American Greatness
Two minutes of airtime during the Democrat National Convention in Chicago gave California Governor Gavin Newsom his latest opportunity to build his national stature. As part of the announcement of Kamala Harris’s clinching of the Democrat presidential nomination during a symbolic roll call of state delegates, Newsom portrayed Harris as…
Is It Time for a Nationwide Ban on Fluoridated Water?
by Natural News
Do community leaders reserve the right to mass medicate every person in their community using the water supply as a vector? What if that medicine was eventually exposed as a POISON decades later? What if that POISON was damaging the brains of children and stunting the cognitive development of the…
GOP Rep. Luna: We Need to End FEMA Migrant Spending and Boost Disaster Relief Funding
by Breitbart
On Wednesday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Ingraham Angle,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) stated that FEMA’s funding for migrants should be zeroed out at once and that while there is FEMA money for hurricane victims, we should also boost emergency relief funding “that will go directly to Americans…
Earth’s Continental Crust in America and China Is Breaking Apart
by End Times Headlines
Researchers, who have been studying the dramatic changes in the continental configurations of Earth over the past billions of years, have made a stunning observation: that the oldest continental crusts are disintegrating. According to experts, the Earth’s crust went through expansion and contraction and has transformed not only its positions…
“Line All Those Guys Up and Shoot Them”: Professor Says Men Who Don’t Support Female Candidates Should Be Massacred
by Daily Caller
(Jaryn Crouson, DCNF)—A professor at the University of Kansas (UK) told a class that men who would not vote for a female president should be lined up and shot, according to a video posted on X Wednesday. The university confirmed the professor is employed at UK and made the comment…