America's Future Update on China

Update on China's Growing Military Threat

Communist China is preparing for war in cyberspace involving space attacks on satellites and the use of both military and civilian personnel for a digital "people's war," according to an internal Chinese defense report. China believes that the ability to wage cyber war in space is vital for China's military modernization. According to this internal Chinese report, strategic warfare in the past was built on nuclear weapons, but in the information age the game is cyber warfare.  Bill Gertz in Washington Free Beacon, 7-30-13.

Communist China is asking the Obama Administration to loosen controls on exports of high-tech military goods. China has given Obama a detailed list of space, military and defense technology controls that it wants changed, and U.S. Commerce Dept. officials are reviewing these demands. It is an awesomely detailed list. Most Americans would find it shocking that China has the nerve to ask us to give away our most modern and most secret military equipment. We thank Ambassador John Bolton for publicly opposing this very dangerous giveaway of materials we need to defend Americans.  Washington Free Beacon, 10-18-13

Update on China's Free Trade in Poisonous Products

Mysterious canine illnesses and deaths have been linked to jerky treats from China. Two manufacturers have pulled leading brands off their shelves. Dog lovers are warned against any kind of jerky treats since many products say "product of the USA" but that merely means they were packaged here; the ingredients can still be Chinese. Federal officials said the ongoing outbreak has sickened about 3,000 dogs and 10 cats and killed about 600 canines. FDA officials have inspected only two manufacturing plants in China.  OregonLive.com

U.S. inspections in China are not what we are used to in the U.S. For example, U.S. inspectors came and went from a Walmartcertified factory in Guangdong Province in China this fall approving its production of specialty items that will be on U.S. shelves before Christmas. But unknown to the inspectors, none of the playful items, such as reindeer suits, had been manufactured at the factory being inspected. Instead, Chinese workers sewed the goods at a rogue factory that had not gone through the certification process set by Walmart. Soon after the merchandise reached Walmart stores, it began falling apart.  New York Times, 9-2-13.

Update on Lack of Safety in Chinese Drugs

U.S. lawmakers are concerned about China's $4.7 billion acquisition of pork producer Smithfield Foods Inc., and especially how the sale could affect the safety and availability of heparin. That's an important blood thinner widely used in heart surgery and kidney dialysis that is derived from pig intestines. The Smithfield purchase is the biggest Chinese takeover of a U.S. company. Smithfield is the world's largest pork producer with 46,000 employees in 25 states, and is a major supplier of crude heparin. Several Congressmen say that the U.S. heparin supply is already stressed and could well be in shortage.  Reuters, 7-25-13

Drug research in China has fallen under a cloud. Since 2006, 13 of the top 20 global drug makers have set up research and development centers in China because it's cheaper to do research there. But, as one auditor said, "with cheaper research comes greater risk." Researchers did not report the results of animal studies about a drug already being tested in humans, a breach described as a "mortal sin" in drug research. Auditors concluded that workers did not properly monitor clinical trials and paid hospitals in ways that could be seen as bribery.  New York Times, 7-22-13