I for one am ready to bow down before the Chinese Hegimon

[Kitschum]

I think the point of no return was Gorbachev's reforms. 17 years seems spuriously specific, but I don't doubt that the colossus could have continued stagnating for many years to come without reforms. If it could find a way to let some of its most discontented 'captive nations' go, such as the Baltic republics and perhaps the South Caucasians, without losing total control in the process, yet more still.

But somewhere along the line they'd have to ask what for with the gap with the West becoming ever more apparent and no prospects of ever catching up.

[Provost Harrison]

It's the Japenese Pokemon you need to bow down before!