I was just using WWII as a reference of how pre-emption could have prevented a major war in the past.
Cortez, there is no wrong and right, those are just words to justify actions that are arbitrary to a person's belief. Hitler believed that he was cleansing the world of inferior races, and in his opinion he was right. The allies fealt that this was wrong, so we fealt that fighting them to stop this was right. Suicide bombers are right, but so are those who condemn them. Ultimately, whoever wins the war is right.
Do I think the US is some pristine infallable world police? Heck no. Unfortunately, they are a superpower and as a result are stuck with the duty to snuff out possible threats at their onset, even if it's only out of self-preservation. Iraq isn't the threat, but the oil that they controlled was a security risk if it fell into the hands of China. It might not appear that China is a threat now, but when the circumstances are right, they'll become aggressive.
Our reality is that scarcity always creates conflict over whatever is in short supply, be it food, water, energy sources, building materials, etc. By knowing that we are entering a period of serious resource shortages, from examples in history, I know that a large country like China is going to want to aquire these resource by any means, just like us. The thing to remember is that self-preservation is always right. I guess you have to ask yourself this question. Is it right to kill another to save yourself? What if that someone is given that same choice?
My answer: YES
In a do or die situation, I would have no problem with killing another person. With this in mind, I know my enemy would do the same. Pre-emption is merely making sure that you have better odds of killing them, instead of them killing you. They pick up a knife, you pick up a gun. If they try to reach for a gun, you shoot them in the hand. That's pre-emption. By reducing someone elses abilitiy to harm me, I'm not creating the conflict, I'm just trying to postpone it as long as possible.
China is in a situation where they want to be us. They want to run the world according to their ideals. Right now it's just not worth getting shot in the hand to make the move. Eventually they'll pick up that gun and we'll have to shoot it out to see who is right.
Beaver- I'm about trying to change the situation so It's no longer as situation of do or die. I don't do anything for my own personal gain that is detrimental to society as it's against my beliefs.