It’s a weird duality with import taxes acting as a middle ground. It seems the belief that a conflict with China is inevitable is becoming more pervasive. So much of the US economy relies on reselling Chinese goods that to stop trading completely would be calamitous. I think the idea is to keep trading right up until the war starts. I’ve already stocked up on goods and materials that are only available from China as I include myself as one of those who believe a great power conflict is coming.

Which goods in particular are you stocking up on?

I do small scale manufacturing as a hobby which covers quite a gamut of fields from woodworking, machining, electronics, chemistry etc. So a huge amount of tools and industrial consumables. A lot of electronics modules. Basically anything I think I might need I buy and store. My plan for war breaking out is to stay home and do engineering work.

> It seems the belief that a conflict with China is inevitable is becoming more pervasive.

An actual kinetic conflict would result in a complete destruction of the world economy and WWIII. You can't take these people seriously without carefully examining their motivations (certainly most notably, to build up the capacity of our own military).

They don’t start that way, they start as regional conflicts and grow. ‘How could we not help the poor so and sos that we’ve signed some tangling alliance with…’

"Foreign Adversary" is, and the US considers China to be one.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-15/subtitle-A/part-7/subp...