The man is wise and speaks words that should be heeded.
The communist rule in China is but a blip, an historical anomaly. The country is undergoing great change and the people are exhibiting their pent up ability.
China must be carefully treated to allow growth of the natural capitalistic ability of the people and dampen the communistic state control of everything.
Freepers tend to focus on the mainland super communists while ignoring the overseas Chineese who are every ehere and long to deql again with home. Their influence in the process can not be ignored.
History is a process, not an event.
History is neither a process nor an event. It is a recounting as told by the victors.
China’s recounting of its past has always been one of surpressing those with whom they deal.
IMHO Marxism is to China what Perry's Black Ships were to Japan - the spur to throw off an outdated feudal system and embrace the modern world, however smoothly it went (not very in either case!).
It seems to me dubious that *any* real good came from its Marxist experience. From what I know of history Chang Kai-shek made a reasonably serious attempt to modernize China (first started by Sun Yat Sen - too bad he died prematurely) but was foiled by the Japanese invasion first and Mao's insurgents later - at this point Chinese Marxism is completely counterproductive - no sane person believes in Marxism anymore - any Chinese who claim they do are hypocrites more interested in the economic benefits of being the decider class...
that said, the world is entering a very, very dangerous period while China's Marxist government morphs into something more stable (and democratic, allowing the new, talented Chinese middle class to have a say in how things should be done), and throws off the last vestiges of real *imperialism* and joins the great economic game which has knitted together most the planet.
China need to learn to tolerate Taiwan at their doorstep just as the US has tolerated Cuba at *its* doorstep - if it learns to, there will be peace. if it doesn't, there will be war.
I guess I focus more on the massive military buildup, Chinese Generals who threaten to nuke LA, massive espionage and theft of intellectual property. With friends like these, who needs enemies?
Been to China twice in the last two years. I will say they are all nice people except in Beijing. That place is f’d up. Very very tense. Very old school mixed in with high-rises and free market. Filthy also.
The rest of China such as Shanghai or the villages are more like a western area.
I did find some nationalism among the Chinese, but much more toward the Japanese. Some drunk Shanghinese kid in Shanghai started flipping out one night about WW2 and the Japs. I saw it several times.
The govt could exploit things easily with nationalism especially with resentful farmer’s making 25 cents/day or the factory worker’s making a $1/day. I’ve been to those factories. Alot of pissed off people living on nothing. Getting 10 million of them together by tripling their wage to $3/day is where the Chinese leadership might go.
The Chinese people generally love the west and want what we have right now, not tomorrow. That’s the problem and the govt is blocking it. Its the old school military to watch for...very old school. Most of the old commies seem to like becoming billionaires vs fighting a war. Nevertheless old school is there.
Our US military is right about one thing. The commies are about losing centralized control (problem with free societies) so they need an excuse to clampdown...war is one good distraction and solution.