"My boy Trump"?! Wow! They really ARE selling marijuana now in Alaska!

But more to the point: Sorry, but Richard Nixon lit this fire, and Jimmy Carter threw gas on it. Bill Clinton stoked it by allowing "Most Favored Nation" trade status to become permanent, removing one of the last - if feeble - restraints to encourage China to behave responsibly on the world stage. And the Congress, greedy for trade above all else, heartily approved of all of this.

The best way to encourage a bully is to refrain from challenging his behavior. That's prudent and long-sighted, rather than belligerent and foolish. Curiously, I would characterize China's behavior in this incident as "belligerent and foolish". But perhaps it seems reasonable to you.

Fortunately, I can pen these belligerent and foolish remarks, in this country, without being jailed for my thoughts.