Cool War, Feldman - B

                                          The author is a professor at Harvard Law and brings a very cerebral, thoughtful analysis to the geostrategic issue of the 21st century:  China v. the US.  Conflict is almost inevitable as one country seeks to replace the other as the wealthiest, most powerful in the world. Within recent memory, the rise of Germany and then Japan led to catastrophic wars. The rise of the US was of no concern to Great Britain, because of their shared values and economic interdependence.  But that is hardly the model for the rise of China, as it and the US appear to have virtually nothing in common except a financial interdependency. The degree of that interdependency, though, is extraordinary and the likely reason that the author cites for arguing that the challenges can be managed.  We purchase 25% of China's output and they own 8% of our debt.  That is higher than the  degree of mutual involvement that the UK had with Germany or even the US one hundred years ago. The two major issues that can upset China's peaceful rise are Taiwan and human rights. The Chinese believe Taiwan is part of their country, and the author suggests it is only a matter of time before it is brought back into the fold. The Taiwanese do not currently wish to be part of the mainland, and we are allies of Taiwan. Feldman believes that at some stage an 'accommodation' will have to be made. We will back off and the Taiwanese will be afforded some significant self-governing latitude.  Our messianic belief in imposing our values on others will also require an 'accommodation'  of a bit less interference on our part along with additional personal freedoms in China.  He points out some similarities of consequence between the two countries. The most important is that each has a government that peaceably hands over power to the next in line. Along with its rise, China has forsaken its dictatorship. The author closes with optimism. "The cool war will not be over in a generation. But the generation that inherits it will understand its contours much better and can shape the global future with greater confidence and skill."