http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/12/international/asia/12space.html
Two men, five days in low earth orbit.
The two statements from the article which stood out to me were from Chinese commentators:
(1) "There is great commercial potential on the moon."
and:
(2) "America's strategy is to lure China into a space race, and to drain China's resources so it will collapse, without a war."
(1) Um, really? Am I missing something here? Honestly, the first things which spring to my mind are tourism, low gravity (for medical reasons --> longer life in some severe cases?), and a great platform for astronomy - *none* of which I'd qualify as "great". Especially to China.
(2) Actually (1) was part of a reply as to why (2) was not true. But it begs the question, who is luring who? Particularly since China has become one of the USA's larger creditors.