• bitteroldcoot@piefed.social
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    17 天前

    Isn’t soft power just capitalist colonialism without guns.

    When has the USA bullying of a foreign government ever done anything but turn around and bite us in the ass? Iran, Iraq, Saudi, we made all of those messes.

    Just because china is trying to be an imperial power is no reason we should keep trying to be one.

    On the flip side, China is in a perpetual war with India. Has subjugated Tiben, and is now colonizing it with Han chinese. Is trying to take the south china sea by force. Including raming other countries ships. And pursing Wolf deplomacy to scare the shit out of all it’s neighbors.

    There are no good guys here, only greed and men with micro penises that like to rape.

    • jonathan@piefed.social
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      17 天前

      Isn’t soft power just capitalist colonialism without guns.

      No it isn’t.

      In politics, particularly in international politics, soft power is the ability to influence or persuade others through the use of persuasive means, as opposed to the use of force or coercion, which is an aspect of hard power. This process entails the strategic shaping of others’ preferences through the use of appealing, non-coercive, and attractive means, using culture, political values, and foreign policies to enact change.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soft_power

      • bitteroldcoot@piefed.social
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        17 天前

        nice wiki link.

        I’m not buying it.

        “use of appealing, non-coercive, and attractive means, using culture, political values, and foreign policies to enact change.”

        But the goal is always the same, create a situation where USA corporations can make money off the mark. The USA doesn’t do any of these things to make a better world.

        Underneath it all will always be self interest and greed.

        • Otter@lemmy.ca
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          17 天前

          The US isn’t the only country interested in soft power

          Helping someone in their time of need, so that they might help you later, would also be an example of soft power

        • jonathan@piefed.social
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          17 天前

          The motivation doesn’t matter, you can’t just describe hard power (bullying) and call it soft power.

          • bitteroldcoot@piefed.social
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            17 天前

            My dad was a used car salesman. I spent my youth watching him manipulating people into doing things that were good for him and bad for them.

            He very much bullied them, then they thanked him for all his help and shook his hand. The sign of a good salesman, is to rape someone, then have them thank you.

            I’m very comfortable with everything I’ve said. Could I have phrased it better, probably. But I’m still comfortable with what I wrote. Sometimes things aren’t as black and white as your are making them out to be.