and at any rate it's easy to manipulate the masses against the enemy du jour, even easier when the masses have grudges against orientals dating back to the gold rush and aggravated by WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.

I am sure that I have met more Indians than you have. My view of Indians in the US is also shaped by working-class (usually Sikh) Punjabis in the Central Valley and small-business owners everywhere. My view of Americans' view of Indians is shaped by personal observations, especially of the well-off white yuppie liberals who think of Hindus as peaceful spiritual yogis who can levitate (and think of us as dog-eating, Tibetan-repressing demons). Ultimately the latter will be more influential on US/China/India relations than any economic or political factors.

You would have to live in the United States to understand.