I myself am unimpressed with what I consider fear-mongering concerning the Chinese, for several reasons.

1.) The Chinese don't care if we beat them to the Moon, or conversely, if we go there after them. This is their pet project, intended to puff up nationalism and put a notch in their belt that--currently--no other nation besides the U.S. can claim. If the Soviets had beaten us to the Moon, I think they still would be making this effort at some point.

2.) I think politicians overstate the importance China holds for the average American, as well as China's own strength. If you were to ask the average American about their thoughts of modern China, their mental response might be something along the lines of:

--Live organ donors...blech!
--Didn't they make my lawn chair?

In short, for all their human rights abuses, they're also a major trading partner with the U.S., more so than the Soviet Union ever was with us (or for that matter, than Russia is today). In the '50s and '60s, one could think of lots of reasons to fear the Soviets: Stalin, theft of nuclear secrets, MAD, worldwide revolution, proxy wars. In my op, that just isn't the case with China and the U.S.

Yes, China is booming at a phenomenal rate, but it's GDP remains far below that of the U.S. or most of the E.U. Yes, China has a powerful land-based army and lots of nukes, but their navy and air force are weak. Yes, China can zap satellites out of orbit, but that doesn't mean they're going to pick a fight with us if it's not in their interest to do so--any more than we would, for that matter. Furthermore, at first blush it looks like China's foreign policy is much less aggressive than the Soviets' was, with little interest beyond their immediate borders; aside from Tibet and Taiwan, I don't think we're going to hear much about China fomenting revolution or toppling distant governments to get a leg up around the world.

In short, the Chinese are not the Soviets, and this isn't 1960. 'Nuff said.

__________________
"Call me old-fashioned, but I think fire is magic. And it scares me a lot."

--The State