Giants ready to duke out views

    The gloves are on. The warriors stand ready in their respective corners. The bell is about to ring.

    We say the battle is their fault; they say it is our fault.

    However, no blow from either fighter is expected to land. Instead, we are about to hear a lot of shouting.

    The Chinese have drawn the line in the sand, and President George Bush is not about to cross it. Our military is so weak that we could not mount an attack on a big city, much less a nation as big as China.

    The incident occurred when an EP-3E cruised outside Chinese airspace about 50 miles southeast of the island of Hainan. The aircraft, with 24 people aboard, collided with one of two Chinese F-8 jet fighters sent to shadow the U.S. plane. That fighter plane crashed into the sea. Neither the plane nor the pilot has been found.

    The Chinese blame the U.S. plane for the collision, yet Adm. Dennis Blair, commander of U.S. forces, said the Chinese aircraft, which is faster and more maneuverable than the EP-3E, bumped into the U.S. plane.

    But it does not matter whose fault it was. Obviously, it was an accident. We have every right to fly in open airspace. Such surveillance is normal.

    When the two planes collided and one went into the sea, the U.S. plane made an emergency landing on Hainan. After landing, the plane and its occupants should have promptly been returned to the United States.

    Of course, the hollering began when Bush demanded the prompt and safe return of our 24 military personnel and the plane that was carrying top-secret paraphernalia.

    We know some things about the incident, but we do not know why the Chinese will not release our people.

Of course, the Chinese have gone over the plane and checked every nut and bolt. Our military personnel have been separated and questioned. We have lost crucial technology. Our faces are red.

    What exactly can we as a nation do to get our plane and people home? If we were in charge, we probably would have us at war. We take exception that the Chinese would not let us to speak to our people for days.

    Regardless, the United States remains the strongest nation in the world, but we will not attempt to prove it. We will holler at the enemy and hope he backs down.

    The Chinese are not fools. They will make their own demands, and surely one of those demands will insist we no longer supply arms to Taiwan, which China always has considered its renegade province.

    The Chinese do not want to damage relations with the United States. We could hurt them in trading.

    We have many options. Those options remain in the hands of the politicians, who surely will find closure. Nevertheless, we are embarrassed that we lost round one in the match and that we have no control.

    It seems we often are outfoxed by our enemies, and yes, the Chinese are enemies in politics and ideologies. Our nature is never to give in, yet our sensibilities say take it easy and make sure our people are returned safely.

    Perhaps our not losing control is one of our biggest strengths after all.