Many good points, thanks. But where does the geo-political risk lie? It lies in Brussels and Washington, not Beijing. China has no record of sanctioning the West (apart from “counter measures” in response to Western sanctions) and it is not Chinese military bases that surround Europe and N America threatening a conflict. It is not China …
Many good points, thanks. But where does the geo-political risk lie? It lies in Brussels and Washington, not Beijing. China has no record of sanctioning the West (apart from “counter measures” in response to Western sanctions) and it is not Chinese military bases that surround Europe and N America threatening a conflict. It is not China that is actively undermining the UN-based global order, it is not China that is sabotaging the WTO.
The geopolitical risk will disappear overnight if Washington and Brussels see Beijing as a partner in the fight to protect the global climate and biodiversity. It disappears when Washington and Brussels actively work to support Taiwan’s peaceful reunification with the mainland (on terms which protects Taiwanese democracy). The political risks disappear once Washington and Brussels start cooperating with China on research and development, vs trying to block China’s technological development.
The geopolitical risk lies with Washington and Brussels. They could easily end them.
The Chinese state is totalitarian and deeply unpleasant. Ethnic cleansing and repression are central to it. Thankfully it has no serious claims on other countries, and a large and fragile empire it needs to protect; maybe we'll be lucky, and the absurd pantomime in the South China Sea and the Himalayas is as nasty as it will get (at least outside China's borders - inside them, it has been genocidal for a long time). We are where we are, but bullshit is dangerous.
Thanks for reading and responding to my comment. I doubt whatever I say will change your view of China being “totalitarian, but there is in fact much more evidence of Western totalitarianism than there is of Chinese totalitarianism. Just think of how American police deal with dissent, and how HK and mainland police deal with dissent. No one (or hardly anyone) is killed by the police in China, but so many people keep dying at the hands of American police. You just have to look at the world objectively to see why I claim there is much more evidence of American totalitarianism. And also read more broadly, especially on how the CIA covertly works with terrorists to destabilise regimes that do not tow the US line.
Thanks for reading and responding to my comment. I doubt whatever I say will change your view of China being “totalitarian, but there is in fact much more evidence of Western totalitarianism than there is of Chinese totalitarianism. Just think of how American police deal with dissent, and how HK and mainland police deal with dissent. No one (or hardly anyone) is killed by the police in China, but so many people keep dying at the hands of American police. You just have to look at the world objectively to see why I claim there is much more evidence of American totalitarianism. And also read more broadly, especially on how the CIA covertly works with terrorists to destabilise regimes that do not tow the US line.
Many good points, thanks. But where does the geo-political risk lie? It lies in Brussels and Washington, not Beijing. China has no record of sanctioning the West (apart from “counter measures” in response to Western sanctions) and it is not Chinese military bases that surround Europe and N America threatening a conflict. It is not China that is actively undermining the UN-based global order, it is not China that is sabotaging the WTO.
The geopolitical risk will disappear overnight if Washington and Brussels see Beijing as a partner in the fight to protect the global climate and biodiversity. It disappears when Washington and Brussels actively work to support Taiwan’s peaceful reunification with the mainland (on terms which protects Taiwanese democracy). The political risks disappear once Washington and Brussels start cooperating with China on research and development, vs trying to block China’s technological development.
The geopolitical risk lies with Washington and Brussels. They could easily end them.
The Chinese state is totalitarian and deeply unpleasant. Ethnic cleansing and repression are central to it. Thankfully it has no serious claims on other countries, and a large and fragile empire it needs to protect; maybe we'll be lucky, and the absurd pantomime in the South China Sea and the Himalayas is as nasty as it will get (at least outside China's borders - inside them, it has been genocidal for a long time). We are where we are, but bullshit is dangerous.
This is the kind of juvenile, fantastical thinking that leads to many of the forecasting errors exposed in the article.
Thanks for reading and responding to my comment. I doubt whatever I say will change your view of China being “totalitarian, but there is in fact much more evidence of Western totalitarianism than there is of Chinese totalitarianism. Just think of how American police deal with dissent, and how HK and mainland police deal with dissent. No one (or hardly anyone) is killed by the police in China, but so many people keep dying at the hands of American police. You just have to look at the world objectively to see why I claim there is much more evidence of American totalitarianism. And also read more broadly, especially on how the CIA covertly works with terrorists to destabilise regimes that do not tow the US line.
Thanks for reading and responding to my comment. I doubt whatever I say will change your view of China being “totalitarian, but there is in fact much more evidence of Western totalitarianism than there is of Chinese totalitarianism. Just think of how American police deal with dissent, and how HK and mainland police deal with dissent. No one (or hardly anyone) is killed by the police in China, but so many people keep dying at the hands of American police. You just have to look at the world objectively to see why I claim there is much more evidence of American totalitarianism. And also read more broadly, especially on how the CIA covertly works with terrorists to destabilise regimes that do not tow the US line.