China vs. the West via the Internet

A few weeks ago I noticed a trend which I thought a little remarkable in who was visiting my blog. At various times the visitors to my blog from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) outnumber the visitors from the United States, and sometimes quite dramatically. This may not have been a big deal if I was getting only a couple dozen visitors per day but my visitors have been pretty consistently above 150 per day. One may surmise many things as a result and obviously the greater the number of total hits on a blog per day as compared to the number of visitors from the PRC in that day, the more one could assume about the PRC and the rate of increase in technology proliferation there.

On any given day I might receive 60 hits from China and 60 from the United States, while all the other countries in the world combined will only give me 30 to 50 hits. Even hits from Canada, and generally other industrialized nations, will only give me 20 to 30 hits per day. The population of each country will obviously have a great deal to do with the number of hits coming out of that country, but while the population may have a direct correlation to the number of hits coming out of China, still that number is substantially larger than India where the population is only slightly smaller than in China (India will only produce 1-2 hits per day).

The first question I considered in regard to this trend was the number of internet connections in China as compared to the United States as a total volume but also as a ratio of its population. My thinking on this regard touches on areas of national security concern for the United States and other industrialized nations as well as several other areas such as intellectual capital, economic capability, international influence, etc. The numbers of Chinese with access to internet connections is clearly on the rise, and at an alarming rate. As a portion of the population, more than 10 percent of Chinese use the internet on a consistent basis (at least 1 hour per week). Since January of 2005 this percentage has increased at a rate of between 12 and 13 percent annually. Currently at 137 million users, the total number of internet users in China is up 25 percent (from 103 million users) since January 2005.

As pertains to U.S. national security, the rate of technological growth in China can be demonstrated in China’s recent demonstration that it has the capability to shoot down a satellite in orbit several hundred miles above Earth. The very nature of the Chinese state has tremendous potential impact on U.S. national security. Its landmass, natural resources, access to trade via shipping, population, and intellectual capability all combine to present a near perfect entity to challenge U.S. dominance in the world. Although China has recently put forth a friendly façade to convince the world that they intend to make nice, the ingredients are there to be a dangerous threat. The state is still strongly controlled from the center, corruption and intrigue are rampant, the Chinese state hates criticism from within and still harshly deals with dissidents, and it still strongly regulates commerce, media, fiscal and monetary matters, and has an active propaganda-misinformation element. Ideologically, the PRC still has chasmatic differences with the United State and the west. Its cross-border relations and influence are clear when one considers the negative consequences of the Chinese relationship with Tibet and Taiwan, as well as the apparent inability of outside entities to influence said relationships.

Intellectually, China is dramatically improving and internet use is a strong indication of this. Improved and increased military research and development, as evidenced by its near tripling of military expenditures over the last decade (as reported in official Chinese budget publications), have led to high-er tech advancements in its SS and SA (and of course more recently Surface to Space) missile capability, tactical and strategic surveillance, communications, radar and airspace awareness, and strategic targeting capabilities. China’s intellectual capital is growing exponentially as Chinese students engage in round-trip education, gaining education abroad, then returning to assist in building up the Empire of the Dragon. Its nuclear capabilities are certainly not to be left out. China’s nuclear arsenal is estimated to be between 150 and 300 operational nuclear devices, surely small by comparison to the United States and Russia, but with increasing GDP and intellectual capability, its nuclear capacity is certainly not far behind.

I’m no scientist but it was with piqued interest that I noted this significant detail from my blog. Perhaps the Chinese are on their way to ultimate peace with the world but the obvious strengths in the PRC are enough to create concerns for present global and regional hegemons.