You missed my point, pal. Whether the U.S. has any reasons to protect Taiwan or not is irrelevant because America will never launch a war against those 'nasty Chinese commies' just to salvage some tiny little island the common folk don't care about.

Don't be so sure about that. The Neocons have fought wars over less.

Remember, this isn't just about Taiwan. Its about containing China and preventing them from economically surpassing the U.S. (which may already be too late). If Taiwan is conquered, the entire strategy of containment goes out the window. The U.S. is very ambivalent over this point. Its not as cut and dry as you think.

Bollocks. Nothing can possibly prevent either side from putting nuclear missiles to use if the war, after all, begins.

Nothing except the self preservation instinct. Neither side gains anything by using nukes in a naval campaign around Taiwan. If one side uses nukes, they will get nuked in return. It isn't going to be a tit for tat response, either. If China uses 2 nukes, the U.S. might retaliate with 15.

The establishment can virtue signal about their hardcore support for Taiwan as much as they like for all I care, declaring a war on a behemoth that is China over it would be a suicide — political or otherwise.

Not at all. If the U.S. commits to a defense of Taiwan, they can be almost certain that the conflict will remain limited to that theater. They can also be highly certain that it will not escalate to the point where nukes are used. If China trys to raise the stakes by widening the conflict to another theater, they will look like war mongers and alienate the rest of Asia. That would be a huge political victory for the U.S., and would aid them in their strategy of containing China.

The Chicoms should have brought Taiwan back into the greater China long ago to finally end this island's misery of being a thorn up the West's ass that is being kept alive by the investments and (empty) promises of support against the commies.

Taiwan is the only thing left from the traditional China that existed before the communist revolution. Their culture has not been warped or distorted like mainland China. It would be a shame to see Taiwan succumb to the virus of communism they escaped from 70 years ago.

If the Chinese make a move to annex Taiwan, the worst thing that awaits them are a few economic sanctions and angry finger wags. The West — and particularly the U.S. — won't risk implementing more serious punishments.

Ultimately, this all comes down to what Biden will do. (Or more specifically, what Bidens handlers tell him to do) He and his cabinet appear to be soft on China, despite all their barking. The U.S. military seems to prefer a more confrontational stance with China. It remains to be seen which direction this will swing.