#1509 Preparing for the next proxy-war (China and Taiwan)
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Jay Tomlinson
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 27 August 2022
⏱️ 64 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Air Date 8/27/2022
Today, we take a look at the tensions between China and Taiwan, the tensions between China and the U.S. vis-a-vis Taiwan, the tensions between Russia, Europe and the U.S. vis-a-vis China and Taiwan and the tension between these small-minded struggles for global power and the dangers posed to the human race by nuclear weapons.
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SHOW NOTES
Ch. 1: Why China and the US are at odds over Taiwan Start Here - Al Jazeera - Air Date 11-8-21
Taiwan is caught in the middle of a tug-of-war between China and the US. What’s it all about? And where could it end up? #AJStartHere with Sandra Gathmann explains.
Ch. 2: Pelosi in Taiwan - Today, Explained - Air Date 8-2-22
China didn’t want Speaker Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan. Neither did the White House. Politico’s Alex Ward explains why she went anyway.
The Quincy Institute's Michael Swaine and Taiwanese American journalist Brian Hioe join to discuss Pelosi's visit to Taiwan and the growing tensions between China and the US.
Ch. 4: Pelosi in Taiwan Part 2 - Today, Explained - Air Date 8-2-22
China didn’t want Speaker Nancy Pelosi to visit Taiwan. Neither did the White House. Politico’s Alex Ward explains why she went anyway.
Ch. 5: George Beebe of the Quincy Institute on the Russia-Ukraine war - The BradCast - Air Date 8-2-22
George Beebe on the impact of the tensions between the U.S. and China on Russia and the war in Ukraine.
Ch. 6: Fallout From Nancy Pelosi's Taiwan Visit - The Majority Report - Air Date 8-4-22
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi reacts to the aftermath of her visit to Taiwan, saying a big fuss was made. The Majority Report crew discusses how the United States is escalating conflict with China.
The Quincy Institute's Michael Swaine and Taiwanese American journalist Brian Hioe join to discuss Pelosi's visit to Taiwan and the growing tensions between China and the US.
MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)
Ch. 8: Hong Kong's Rewritten Histories - On the Media - Air Date 7-6-22
This fall, students in Hong Kong will learn a new version of history — one that erases the fact the region was ever a British colony. Guest Louisa Lim, author of the new book Indelible City: Dispossession and Defiance in Hong Kong,
The U.N. warned this week that humanity is "one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation" as tensions escalate globally. We speak with Ira Helfand and Zia Mian.
FINAL COMMENTS
Ch. 10: Final comments
MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):
- Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr
- Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
- Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
- Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to this episode of the award winning the best of the left podcast in which we |
| 0:06.9 | shall take a look at the tensions between China and Taiwan, the tensions between China |
| 0:12.5 | and the US, vis-a-vis Taiwan, the tensions between Russia, Europe and the US, vis-a-vis China |
| 0:20.0 | and Taiwan, and the tensions between these small-minded struggles for global power and the |
| 0:25.6 | dangers posed to the human race by nuclear weapons. Clips today are from Al Jazeera, today |
| 0:31.6 | explained democracy now, the broadcast and the majority report with additional members |
| 0:36.9 | only clips from on the media and democracy now. |
| 0:46.0 | Taiwan is an island stuck in a kind of political limbo. It's a democratic self-governing territory. |
| 0:52.4 | Just over the water is China which claims Taiwan as its own, but many Taiwanese take issue with that. |
| 0:58.8 | Then you add in the US, which is taken on the role of neighborhood cop, and you end up with Taiwan |
| 1:04.0 | as the focus for many big competing interests. But to understand how we got here, you have to know |
| 1:10.7 | the backstory. Taiwan was ruled by Imperial China for 200 years, then Japan had it for 50 years |
| 1:18.5 | after winning war against China. But when Japan lost in World War II, China, one of the victors, |
| 1:24.2 | got Taiwan back again. Then you had the Chinese civil war. Mao Zedong's Communist forces |
| 1:31.0 | took over the mainland, while the other side, the nationalist forces of Changkai-shek, escaped to Taiwan. |
| 1:39.9 | So in 1949, China sort of split in two, and you had two rival governments, one in Taiwan, |
| 1:46.3 | one in Beijing, both claiming they were the true government of China. The side in Taiwan was known |
| 1:52.2 | as the Republic of China, the ROC, and that's still the island's official name today. |
| 1:57.5 | And on the mainland, the Communist Party declared a brand new Chinese state, the People's Republic of China, |
| 2:04.4 | PRC for short. Now remember, the US wasn't exactly a fan of communism. And so it was the ROC in Taiwan |
| 2:12.0 | that mostly got the international recognition, including a seat at the UN. But by the 1970s, |
| 2:19.1 | that seat didn't really make sense anymore. The UN passed a resolution confirming the |
... |
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