China has some space lasers or something, the US government signs an unconditional surrender.
The Chinese rule us pretty much like they do in China. So economically not much changes. You keep your job and house etc.
Political dissent of course is quickly squashed. Non violent protest are brutally suppressed. But there is no wholesale rounding up of people/concentration camp type situation.
Do you join the armed resistance?
Under the conditions you laid out, that would be just suicide.
Do we get universal health care?
Do they have that in China? i think they do so yes, you get UHC.
Probably, yes. Given that I’m ethnically Chinese and have lived in America 20+ years, I’d probably be uniquely suited to helping the resistance.
Eh…yes but it won’t be fun, trust me.
We get the same stuff as China proper. UHC, subsidized housing for the poor, any other benefit. But we also get the same authoritarian rule.
If my actions could trigger wholesale slaughter via space laser, I doubt I would participate in any kind of armed resistance. Against those odds, the only viable violent resistance is terrorism. Civil disobedience is more my speed.
Civil disobedience is brutally suppressed.
As brutally as armed resistance?
Doing nothing would be suicide. I couldn’t live under an authoritarian system. I don’t know what an old fart like me could do, but I’d definitely fight back.
Same level of brutality
I would join the resistance and fight back, but subversively. I would sabotage military installations and send viruses into their computer systems. In other words, make their lives miserable so much so that they would pull out rather than kill every last American looking for me.
What if you knew every instance of sabotage would be answered with a space laser attack on a random town?
What if you knew every act of civil disobedience would be answered with a space laser attack on a random town?
That wouldn’t change a thing. The French resisted in WW2 knowing the Germans were destroying dozens of towns. You’re either in or out, there’s no middle ground.
Then I’m out until one of you guys get me killed.
You got a bullet in the head for civil disobedience.
I support the underground resistance.
That would probably go at least as far in advancing the cause than taking up arms…against freakin’ space lasers! I’m not convinced that a bunch of wannabe Wolverines are going to have a better chance of winning than the entire military might of the former United States.
Since you’re postulating an impossible hypothetical, I’d answer with that the Average American would have more space lasers than the entire PLA combined. And with our freedoms, we know how to work them. We’d drive those ChiCom bastards back into the ocean toot sweet.
And that’s not counting Jewish Space lasers.