When a ship has a major leak, either the captain fixes the leak or saving the vessel becomes an exercise in futility. The water comes rushing in while the crew bails out the water. Sooner or later, the crew will tire, and the ship will go down. The sinking ship metaphor fits the eco-crisis. Governments … Read more
Most educated Americans would be happy to hear that their local schools offer students a chance to learn Mandarin Chinese. Given China’s growing importance, many opportunities in business, academia and diplomacy are open to those with such skills. Expensive Classes However, offering foreign languages (or “world languages,” to use the preferred academic term) is difficult … Read more
On June 15, 2023, Xi Jinping observed his seventieth birthday. 2023 is also the tenth anniversary of his accession to China’s presidency. He is unquestionably the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong. He may be even more powerful than Mao, a fact hard to access given the tight control in today’s China. However, Xi … Read more
China’s rapid rise to global prominence, both economically and politically, has rightly raised concerns in the international community. President Xi Jinping’s desire for greater influence and world leadership is manifested through aggressive expansion of its military power, increasing economic ties and loan packages and an assertive diplomatic offensive meant to overshadow America and the West. … Read more
On November 14, 2022, President Biden publicly assured Chinese dictator Xi Jinping, “The One China policy, our One China policy, has not changed, has not changed. We oppose unilateral change in the status quo by either side, and we’re committed to maintaining the peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits.” Unfortunately, Xi Jinping has changed … Read more
The book China After Mao: The Rise of a Superpower is a behind-the-scenes chronicle of China’s rise to world power. Award-winning Dutch author Frank Dikötter is a China expert who bases his research on access to government documents and what he witnessed. His story is compelling because he has no agenda beyond trying to explain … Read more
“Xi must be in a panic. His primary form of diplomacy is to intimidate others. If you’re going to have the world’s largest economy, if you’re going to be the most populous society, yeah, you can intimidate others. But if your country is rapidly shrinking, and that’s what’s going to happen to China, then no … Read more
In February 1972, President Richard Nixon visited China. Millions sat enthralled as television broadcast news of the trip into every American home. Since then, American foreign policy has alternatingly reveled in and been blinded by the glow of those seven days. It is time to remove the blinders. China has never lived up to the … Read more
Everyone knows that today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders. Even China’s president Xi Jinping recognizes that the dismal future of his communist regime must rely upon new blood. In a speech in 2019, he affirmed that “China’s hope lies in youth.” He flattered them by calling young people the most energetic force in society and encouraged … Read more
In dealing with the public, health officials handling the COVID crisis should present the facts without political agendas. If they want people to take them seriously, they need to be consistent and logical in their policies to contain the virus. They cannot present one scenario for one place and another somewhere else. Officials must denounce … Read more
