The Japanese were a colonial power, holding Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria and the Pacific Mandate. They fought on the British side during WWI. They wanted a clause put in the League of Nations Charter that said, "The equality of nations being a basic principle of the League of Nations, the High Contracting Parties agree to accord as soon as possible to all alien nationals of states, members of the League, equal and just treatment in every respect making no distinction, either in law or in fact, on account of their race or nationality."
But Australia nixed the idea and Japan sided with Germany for WWII and China was lost and WWII prolonged because of the Japanese entry into the war on the opposite side they were on during WWI.
My point being if Japan was left as a colonial power after WWI there would be no Communism today in China or South East Asia. Vietnam war would not have happened nor the Korean war. All this because Australia was racists during the time of the formation of the League of Nations.
^pushing it a bit. China and Korea both had strong independence movements at the time. Hard to say what the outcome would have been but a regional war against Jap imperialism would have been all but certain.
As the L of L never gained ground the aussie vote is a moot point.
...^I'm the only original inhabitant of my country...
Verandastan
Whatever the niggles and gripes about the details of colonisation the big picture is a good news story.
The British led technological revolution and its accompanying philosophical revolution, the enlightenment, were spread around the world like jewels.
They took seed in what are today the most desirable nations on earth to live in: USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. The social model forms the basis for the now independent exemplary communities in Asia : Singapore and Hong Kong.
Britain was ahead of the European curve in technological and moral progress so British colonies were the most successful and the anglo-western alliance will continue to lead the world for a long time to come. Thank god history went down the way it did. Things could have been so much worse.
A few historical hand bags with some natives is a small price to pay when the descendants of those natives now enjoy privileged status in the best nations on Earth. Next time a contemporary native starts grumbling about British colonialism put them in touch with the descendants of the South American natives so they can compare notes (if you can find any).
One should also consider that the English language has been a major factor in globalisation/advancements.
^We should not be bashful about recognising the most important intellectual events in the evolution of human civilisation and the Enlightenment was perhaps the most important of them all.
And, yes, as embarrassing as it is to admit, it happened in Western Europe. England was the epicentre.
The age when men first recognised and fully capitalised on the idea that moral progress and understanding the natural laws of our environment and turning them to our advantage could be achieved by the application of human reason and rational discourse instead of by relying on divine revelations is profound in ways it it is difficult to fully comprehend today.
Some earlier civilisations made attempts in this direction which lost momentum and foundered but it was Western Europe that lit the touch paper on the explosion of scientific and moral progress that would radically transform the lives of all humans everywhere on the planet within a few centuries.
Bit of Chinese history would be in order Loops. Much of what Voltare and his fellow Euro philosphers professed was a copy of Chinese practices of the time as was scientific learning.
Hence my first post stating had China not been colonized, it would for their betterment.
The age of reason saw the development of common law systems, the scientific method of discovery, democratic government, peaceful retirement of monarchy, and recognition of the wealth generating effects of trade and commerce (which enrich everyone, even the poor); These developments, which have revolutionised the lives of humans everywhere, were spear-headed by Britain.
Napoleon met his Waterloo at the hands of his disdained nation of shop-keepers. And lucky that he did or we might all be speaking French today. Can you imagine French being spoken with an Australian accent?
I think you have conveniently forgotten about India, Pakistan, Egypt, Bahamas, Jamaica, the continent of Africa and all those places where starvation, disease, slavery and any other problems one cares to imagine are rampant. The majority of ex British colonies are what Trump referred to as S hole countries.
Warlords are cool
The Japanese Army were anglophiles and would have not have started problems in the region given a few colonies to produce the raw materiel's they needed.
Had Chiang Kai shek the support of the Japanese he would have defeated Mao. Korea and Taiwan had small populations and would have gone the way of other countries in the area and gained gradual independence. Had the League of Nations not angered the Japanese they would have fought WWII on the side of the Allies side as they had done WWI and the whole thing wrapped up much sooner as the entire American Armed forces could have been committed to Europe in 1942 or at least the industrial might of the USA given in totality to The British and Russians. A couple of little colonies was all it took to keep the Japanese on the side of the Allies. War like football is all about money and the one who spends the most wins. USA expenditures WWII $341 billion. Russia 192 billion. UK 120 billion. Japan 56 billion.
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