I think that China could do absolutely untold damage to the American psyche and illusion of invulnerability if it simply instantly obliterated these clowns on Taiwan from hundreds of kilometers away with a cloud of drones dense enough to block out the sun. America treats the navy seals like they are all Master Chief, when in reality they are just guys who can carry a log and swim for a long time or some shit. Maybe that matters when you’re like… raiding a compound of a guy who has been on the run for decades while he’s asleep with Neon Genesis Evangelion playing on the TV, but genuinely what are these guys going to do to actually fight back against China? China will never even let them see a single PLA soldier lmao.
I think you're right about it being a reactionary tendency. While it's good for morale in small doses, I think it sort of...anaerobically metabolizes away your ability to engage with reality. Like in the absence of fresh data, fantasy begins to feed on itself and produce ever-stranger ideological metabolites