Philippines, United States, Use Economic leverage To Stop China From Destroying The Scarborough Shoal

If China develops the Scarborough Shoal, a still healthy coral reef system in the South China sea, it will not only be Filipinos that will suffer. China will also suffer. No amount of military bases, airstrips, radar stations, ruining coral reef shoals by developing them, will provide one single fish or shellfish for anyone to eat. China has already been ruining the coral islands and shoals of the south china sea, and now their eyes are focused on the Scarborough shoal, which is near the Philippine island of Luzon, far from China, and which the Philippines considers its territory. Every coral reef that China develops and destroys in the South China Sea means less food and fish for all. It is delusional to put a military above the practical needs to conserve and have a sustainable food source. Humans cannot eat tanks, planes, radar stations, airstrips. We need coral reefs, especially because the coral reefs of the world are dying and being destroyed at an unprecedented rate, and fish populations are crashing. The Philippines want an independent international ruling on the status of the Scarborough shoal, which China states it will disregard. There is only one thing to do, which I do not think the political and business leadership of the Philippines, too mired in greed and corruption, will do. Stop all Chinese commercial activity in the Philippines until this issue is resolved. China has considerable mining interests in the Philippines, considerable trade, a number of huge development projects, all of which should be immediately stopped. Philippines, the United States, must use economic leverage. We all know the United states and the Philippines will not go to war over the Scarborough Shoal, so stop wasting time, money and energy pretending a military escalation will accomplish anything at all. It will not. Developing the Scarborough shoal is an environmental crime that will destroy an invaluable fishery and cause untold harm to untold numbers of people. People need fish, sea food, healthy coral reefs, healthy shoals, healthy coral islands. Philippines, United States, use your substantial economic leverage, not useless military bravado.