Hey, good thing we ditched those F-22s and other unnecessary Cold War-mentality leftovers, huh? I hear we’ll only be facing asymmetrical threats for years to come. Besides, China is totally going to help us with North Korea. Just you wait and see.

“In the coming five years, our military will push forward preparations for military conflict in every strategic direction,” said Liang Guanglie in an interview published by several state-backed newspapers in China. “We may be living in peaceful times, but we can never forget war, never send the horses south or put the bayonets and guns away,” Mr Liang added.

Lest you think this is a line employed be some low-level bureaucrat who lacks the backing of the Communist government, think again: Liang Guanglie has been a member of the Communist Party since 1959 and is both a general in the People’s Liberation Army and the Minister for National Defense. And, as the article notes, this was carried in government papers.

In related news, China is preparing to launch its own aircraft carrier next year and has produced carrier-destroying missiles that could deny the United States Navy, including its all-important carriers, access to the region. Chinese military power is increasing now, and it’s increasing fast.

But hey, let’s rely on “smart power” while cutting our national defense budget. Surely meeting the challenge of a rising, unfriendly global power with military cutbacks and the discontinuation of proven, necessary systems couldn’t possibly backfire.