Xi is driven by KOBK game theory rules as he understands and lives them. He has “killed,” or disempowered, all of his rivals but new rivals and new alliances will surely form against him. The population is well-cowed but a bad economy and continued restrictions will erode Xi’s hold over them. War will marshal a kind of unity for a time but for how long? As China’ economy declines, war with Taiwan becomes more likely because there will be increasingly less for Xi to lose and more for him to gain by it. ABN