■"Rumsfeld Chides China for 'Mixed Signals,'" by Philip P. Pan, Washington Post, 20 October 2005, p. A16.

■"Gingerly, U.S. and China Plan To Strengthen Military Ties: Wary friends have diverging views of China's role in Asia," by Thom Shanker, New York Times, 20 October 2005, p. A6.

Rumsfeld wonders why China's reticent to cooperate with a U.S. whose national security establishment plots war against it in the Taiwan Straits, measures it's R&D against it as the inevitable "near-peer competitor," asks Japan to join its defense guaranteer on Taiwan, and plans a missile shield that will put it on the wrong side with North Korea.

Hmmmm, that is strange.

I mean, who could see mixed signals in the U.S. asking for mil-mil exchanges while it publishes a report every year chronicling China's military developments. Do we have such reports for any other Core power? No. Any power in the Gap? No.

Just China.

Yes, says Rummy, "We see mixed signals" from the Chinese, and "we seek clarification."

And we wonder about their role in regional stability!

Enough bashing, though. Rummy does the right thing and so do the Chinese, and so the cooperation grows a bit more, seeming to bypass all the idiotic and frantic reviving and hyping of the Chinese threat this summer by elements in the U.S. military who felt they'd lose out in the Quadrennial Defense Review without it.

And when Bush visits China next month, things could get even a bit more better.

Rummy also got to the speak at the Central Party School, where I delivered a talk last year as well.

Not bad for the old Cold War hawk, not bad.

Rummy, I mean.