<q>even a combined arms parachute- and amphibious-assault across the straits would be a slaughterhouse:</q>
There is an old and somewhat racist joke about a Chinese general hearing the news about a battle against <enemy>: "Terrible news, we lost 10,000 troops, and they only lost 1000". The general replies "Good, good". This goes on for several days, and eventually he asks why he keeps saying "Good, good". His reply is "pretty soon, no more <enemy>".
The PLA could almost certainly take Taiwan, even if it was at a terrible cost.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
