Monday, June 26, 2006

It's Definitely Gong to be a Race!

It looks as though the US has gotten tired of China supplying rocket technology to the states that the US considers outright enemies - instead of just rivals. The US has frozen the assets of the the offending companies and put a huge crimp on any space related cooperation. As a consequence, the US and China will not be exploring space together.

What the Chinese are doing makes sense in a way. If you give enough technology that is difficult to replicate, but can be made to work to the outright enemies of the US, it keeps the US rather preoccupied. You also do it at levels that are not very high nor with things that will do than merely annoy you if the state turns against you. The tech levels are pretty low and the total and frequency are pretty low as well. That way the US can't get uber pissed at you and declare you an enemy. Just a big annoyance.

Amusingly, it's a strategy that I have used in games like Alpha Centauri to keep someone from getting ahead of me.

However, the big, big consequence is that the Chinese and Americans will be in competition...if the space race really gels. The Chinese have been making noises about landing taikonauts on the moon in 2024...sooo...we'll see.


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