When CNN is citing the $200,000 gap, call me.
For those who don’t know, let me tell you the most probable reason the money is going to a foreign lab rather than an American lab. In one word, ready? Graft. Or, a different word. Payola. Graft is not only common in China, it’s expected. So, when they get money, there’s no awkwardness about giving a bribe. It’s, “You want cash, or a debit card? Gold, maybe? Here’s a menu pick one one from column A or two from column B.” Whereas, bribes in America are illegal, so they only take place awkwardly. It’s hard for a university to direct money to a publisher so they can give you a book contract. (That’s the Clinton standard means, but it generally runs into the millions, whereas a few hundred thousand isn’t worth the publisher’s overhead cost. Another method is to direct cash to a second party...like a Vice President’s son.) Speaking fees is another commonly used method, but if you’re just some government functionary, that’s a bit hard to explain. Just look into the suddenly acquired wealth or property of the people who granted the money to the Chinese. If I ran a comparable lab in the US, I’d be looking into why the money went there instead of to me.