"Our failure to properly deal with Germany and Japan early cost the world dearly later on. We dare not make the same mistake with China"

This quote by Steve Forbes is a warning about the repercussions of not dealing with a potential hazard early on. He is describing the failure to appropriately attend to the rise of Germany and Japan in the early 20th century, which eventually resulted in World War II. This war caused immense destruction and suffering, and Forbes is cautioning against making the exact same mistake with China. He is suggesting that if the world does not do something about it now to resolve the potential threat of China, it might result in a similar circumstance in the future. This could have destructive repercussions, and Forbes is prompting the world to take action now to avoid this from occurring. He is stressing the value of dealing with prospective hazards early on, in order to prevent the catastrophic effects of not doing so.