Anyone else worried?

[CitrusStorm]

Is anyone concerned with the situation unfolding with China & Taiwan?
The fact that Taiwan is under real threat & our economy vulnerable because of the potential difficulty in obtaining microchips?
I've been watching events unfold with a growing sense that this could escalate catastrophically for the world though not many people seem to be aware of what's happening.

@LadyCampanulaTottington

This is why we shouldn't let men be in charge. They can't be trusted not to peacock. Such a bunch of needless willy waving. Move over and let the women take care of business ffs.

Yep. I now think this is our only hope. And it's not happening, is it? So we're fucked. By men. As always.

Sure why not, I'll add it to the list. Thanks for the heads up

I have been worried about everything since approx. 1984 so, ditto.

This OP just reads to me as "I understand the news better than you" and tbh I've got my own problems to worry about. Again though, thanks for the heads up.

Lady Campanula are you my boss? Willy Waving is a favourite phrase of hers. We are 2 women running an important department in a male dominated company. We have to deal with Willy waving (metaphorically speaking) and peacocking a lot

@Chloemol

Let’s be honest the whole world is going to hell in a handcart at the moment

So I am focusing on what I can have influence over

I feel just the same at the moment. The world feels as though is is about to implode at any moment.

I fear Taiwan is just the tip of China's iceberg.

I actually can’t face worrying about anything else anymore. Between global warming, the Tories, Brexit and Covid, plus rising crime, house prices etc etc I’ve already started taking antidepressants. The world sucks right now.

I don't live in Taiwan so no, not worried.

Im more worried about Russia and fuel.

Def sounds like a good 3am topic to worry about

This is on my DHs list of why the world, or sorry the uk has ‘gone to shit’ in his eyes. A very privileged grumble from him, he ordered a new car in July (brand new out the poke) and they called him after ordering to advise they can’t get him the car till 2022 🤣. Shortage of microchips they say. that along with his endless moans about shelves being empty, fuel crisis, a miserable Christmas with no turkey and never ending moaning about boris is what I have to listen to 🤣 I just laugh, he dissent know how good he’s got it lol x

And if China did invade Taiwan, which it has probably wanted to do since the Communists took over the mainland, what could the Western World do? What can we do about Hong Kong, or the Uighurs? Nothing of any practical use. The UK can give Hong Kong citizens with British passports an escape to the UK, but that is about it.

@CitrusStorm

Is anyone concerned with the situation unfolding with China & Taiwan? The fact that Taiwan is under real threat & our economy vulnerable because of the potential difficulty in obtaining microchips? I've been watching events unfold with a growing sense that this could escalate catastrophically for the world though not many people seem to be aware of what's happening.

Yes, extremely concerned, and it isn't only microchips. If there is any major conflict in the South China Sea, or God forbid it spills out into the Indian Ocean and the Pacific, we will have incredible supply chain issues - the likes of which we haven't even scratched the surface of yet.

Aside from that, I simply don't want to get involved in such a war and I would hope we stay out of it as long as humanly possible a la USA in the 1940s.

YANBU.

Chloemol Wed 13-Oct-21 08:27:35 Let’s be honest the whole world is going to hell in a handcart at the moment So I am focusing on what I can have influence over

^This

@FluffyBooBoo

I'm surprised that a PP doesn't grasp what a big deal a shortage of microchips would be

I guess you are talking about me, in which case you have misinterpreted my post.

My post is about the fact there are many, many things I could worry about. But I'm choosing not to. Life is so much better if you don't worry about things you can't change. For example, the availability of microchips. Or the threat of terrorism. Or nuclear war. Or, other than making my own small difference, climate change. Or the consequences of Brexit.

What is there to gain by me worrying about these things that I can't do sod all about?

^ this, in spades full.

No point worrying about things you can’t change 🤷‍♀️ You’re doing yourself a disservice if you worry unnecessarily.

Ummm no.

@seaandsandcastles

No point worrying about things you can’t change 🤷‍♀️ You’re doing yourself a disservice if you worry unnecessarily.

This. ^

YANBU. I am quite worried about this. Although like others that list is becoming increasingly long and I am trying to focus on the things I can control.

I think if I sat and thought about the Taiwan situation, the climate emergency, Brexit, Covid, Afghanistan and everything else that is nibbling away at me in terms of worry I would climb into bed and stay there. So I am trying not to think about things. Hardly ideal but sadly I am in no position to change the general fuckedness of the world :(

@Porcupineintherough

I remember when all the European microchip factories closed because they couldn't compete on price with chips produced in the far east. Maybe we'll need to rethink that then? Or buy from China. I guess being a service only economy wasnt such a great idea after all.

We can’t buy from China - China doesn’t have the capacity to service the market if Taiwan is off limits.

Even if they did, there’s no guarantee the chips are identical or the processors you have designed will work on them - so they have to be re-engineered which costs time and money and takes up development hours which could be spent designing actual new products - so you end up with something that’s more expensive than usual but you can’t sell it for more because it’s an existing product with a defined price point. And you have no new products because your dev team have been redesigning products to works with the chips on the market.

Then the free stock of chips runs out and your really stuffed because the manufacturers still haven’t built enough stock for demand and there’s nothing else you can use - no stock =no sales=no profit=no jobs.

And it’s not just cars, it’s everything that uses any sort of electrical chip, so your toaster, your TV, the x ray machine at the local hospital, the computers that monitor the electricity grid or the local nuclear power station, the controls for smart motorways…

In a world so reliant on technology the impact of a chip shortage is potentially catastrophic.

But there’s very little the average person can do to change any of that, so I do understand the people who are saying they’ll just add it to a long list of disasters they can’t control.

The worlds going to shit.

This is why we shouldn't let men be in charge. They can't be trusted not to peacock. Such a bunch of needless willy waving. Move over and let the women take care of business ffs.

I think this might be a bit tongue in cheek. Maybe it's not. At first I was nodding my head. But actually I think we need a balance of both. Equal balance. It has to be.

But also we have to ban mega rich people running the country and world. Like Rishi Sunak.

remodelideas

Not at all, I'm just interested and can see events unfolding as I've been noticing therefore I've investigated and see just how vulnerable the rest of the world could be and how it would affect everyone and their potential freedom and security as well as financially.

If someone had mentioned this to me, without knowing the facts I would have thought they were a conspiracy theorist but with Xi Jinping's latest declarations this makes this a very real and grave matter to be concerned about.

As I said, I'll stick to worrying about my
own problems.

Probably worth investigating Circles of Control; what reasonably can you do about the situation in China / Taiwan?

China has a lot to lose if they attack Taiwan, but it's not impossible.

I don’t think President Xi has the stomach to actually attack the Taiwanese. As a PP said, this animosity has been going on since the Communists won the civil war and the ‘enemy’ fled to Taipei. In the last 6 months there have been some very interesting decisions made by the politburo in BJ relating to all aspects of life in the PRC. The digital revolution is definitely threatening the authority of the Party to control people’s lives and actions. Covid has allowed for ‘crack downs’ on dissent but I for one am hoping that real positive change is coming for the Chinese people. I’m not worried, I think a healthy dose of real hardship will do us all the world of good. Our society is decadent and could do with a realignment.