On Sunday The Globe's Jeff Jacoby had this to say...

 regarding our strategically ambiguous policy towards Taiwan:

"When the Carter Administration established full diplomatic ties with China,  it was in the hope that the Regime in Beijing would gradually liberalize, democratize and adhere to the norms of international cooperation. That Hope has proved delusional."

Ahem, we extended full diplomatic recognition to the P.R.C. in 1978 because Washington D.C. and Beijing had a mutual enemy, The U.S.S.R.  In fact at the time China was holding down 200 Soviet Divisions along their mutual border. These were divisions that would otherwise be used to back up the Warsaw Pact in the West.  At the time, for containment to work, the USA needed the PRC to worry & vex Moscow. If poor Taiwan could hold down 200 division's we'd a never have ditched them...President Carter's decision at the time, was very much justified since Taiwan at the time was ruled by an authoritarian Junta that provided no strategic asset.  These days though it is admittedly a different story,  don't blame the current situation in the Taiwan Straits on Carter, he needed a ally who could deliver and that is what he got.  Poor Jimmy, even his realpolitik is misunderstood....