China with its 1.3 billion people, and a size almost 80% of the US, and an economy more than 16% of the United States – and driven mostly by its trade relationship with the United States and US led globalization is becoming a looming threat. China is often referred to by Western media as sophisticated and refined, but its action are hardly civilized.
The Chinese communist party is a totalitarian regime whose economic interest is no less damaging than the USSR, when it was a conglomeration of region states. China is a rogue state with new found power to express itself, all thanks to Western press who have spent the last decade touting a Chinese resurgence as a global power.
The global rise of China is not inevitable, and neither is its desire for global dominance through crooked means such as support for authoritarian governments in Africa and South America as a segway to the resources of those countries. Chinese influence everywhere it steps is hardly constructive.
But the interesting development center around China’s new assumptions of its roles in the International community, where it is putting out all stops to discredit and malign the United States in an effort to be seen as the World’s new superpower. China has for years manipulated its currency to skew its trade advantage in the global market, often at the expense of everyone else including much wealthier as well as much poorer nations. China manages to have a trade surplus with nearly every nation it trades with, not because Chinese goods and services are of comparable or superior quality, but mostly because they are cheaper on account of its manipulated currency. The problem however is the massive collusion of leading western multi-nationals who benefit from the Chinese slave labor.
After decades of inaction, the United States and the West may have boxed itself into a tight corner on what to do with the growing Chinese threat.
At Copenhagen, China shows its disdain and disrespect for other nation with its shabby treatment of a US president who was making all efforts to treat other nations as equal, a smart (but now questionable) departure from previous administration. In the face of newly found US humility, Chinese only response seems to be insult and disrespect. In Iran, North Korea, Venezuela and Sudan to mention a few, China always manages to play the role of the spoiler, throwing monkey wrench into every effort to bring about some rational and dignified resolution to age long conflicts. In every case, China makes it known it is more interested in its own national interest than in any over riding global interest. The problem though is that China, despite it newly found clout is still heavily dependent on the West for its growth.
True, the US is now China’s biggest debtor as China has become the US biggest creditor, the problem though is that that relationship is hardly as tenuous as most observers will have us believe. If America were to become selfish about China and decide to protect its interest from Chinese assault including a shameless IP robbery, escalating espionage and outright hostility on most grounds. If America finally decides to take real action against Chinese ascendancy by actively shoring up India, Brazil, And develop real new partnership in Africa, the roar of the Chinese bully will be muted and a world with more harmony will prevail.
China’s long term goal is not a responsible global leadership but a selfish empire building that starts with suppressing its perceived rivals today, looting the resources of weaker nations (yes the West did same thing for centuries) and ultimately expanding beyond its borders. Currently, China continues to be in alignment with the globes most dangerous and repressive regimes (Beijing happens to be on that list) from Venezuela to Myanmar, from North Korea to Iran. It is time something gets done about the Chinese threat to global progress and harmony.
America has not demonstrated balls in the face of a persistent Chinese onslaught because to many people in the nation prefers to see China as an ally. The problem is China sees the US as a foe. And it does not start or end in Taiwan.
China is an authoritarian and repressive communist state whose people remain largely brain washed –ala 1984. There is no freedom of anything in China and pretending the nation is friendly will only lead to it become an unstoppable threat to global progress. It is time China gets curtailed in the name of global harmony.
Tweet This Post 
Plurk This Post 
Buzz This Post 
Delicious 
Digg This Post 
Facebook 
MySpace 
Ping This Post 
Reddit 
Stumble This Post
3 Responses to “The Chinese conundrum”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Dr. Akpose
Follow me on Twitter 
It’s not true! I don’t want to discuss any politics here, but what I want to say is I understand Chinese leaders’ action and decision. Fortunately there is only Communist Party leading China, then it can develop so fast, it’s in high efficiency, isn’t it? Chinese leaders have the responsibilities to let their civilians to have a better life, and they proved it by their action and decision. China is a developing country, so it definately has various kinds of problems when it keeps moving on. But can you imagine what is happening everyday in the country with huge population? Maybe you can assume you have 4 kids and your neighbour only has 1 kid, and he is richer than you, can you say you two families run the same? Absolutely no. Everything cost you will be 4 times than your neighbour. It’s not that easy. Chinese people are in a high competition, even from the moment the baby borned, he/she will fight for itself, fight for life. The government must offer various kinds of work opportunities to them, people with high eduction can have a good job, those who has low eduction doing simple job, they are cheap labors, not like you said, slave labor. Well, China is growing fast and it’s getting stronger and stronger and it’s weakness are as much as it’s advantages. Make a fairly judgement, that’s what we need.
An ongoing debate:
China Helen says:
Hi, it’s not fair you wrote the article about China.
Wole says:
why not? China is a bully to its people and its neighbours. And the Chinese have been snubbing Americans lately (rude)
China Helen says:
If my english is good enough I would like to argue with you, but I just put my comment…
It’s not true. Where did you get these bad influence?
Did you see my comment?
Every country is not perfect, even America. But seems you hate China and you use a lot of negative words.
I am a Chinese and I love my homeland although sometimes it is not that perfect…
Well, since it’s in US, and everybody has the freedom to write and speak what they are concering, so I just gave my opinion.
Wole says:
In China, you cannot always say what you think.
In Coppenhagen, during the Climate talk, as much as President Obama tried to be concillatory, the President of China, was spending his time snubbing him and organizing a parallel conference
I do not hate China. I do not hate countries. It is the Chinese government and its policies.
Every thing you do in china is monitored and censored by the government.
The Chinese government involvement in other countries is selfish and does not respect any morals.
China Helen says:
yes, like what I said, you can’t treat China and US the same, they are totally different.
like what?
Wole says:
China was subverting international efforts to bring sanity to sudan, when the sudanese government was busy killing its own people.
Yes you can.
If China can not treat its people right and does not have a sense of international resposibilities, it does not deserve international respect.
Can I post this discussion on the blog as ?
China Helen says:
yes, of course.
But I don’t think Chinese government treat their people wrong. They have their reasons.
Wole says:
And the question is not about treating countries the same. Human dignity, human life, human right is universal. The Chinese government is dangerous. It encourages industrial espionage, it steals intellectual properties and it manipulates its currency
The Chinese government is a growing bully and a growing threat to the international community, just as Japan was nefore ad during the second wold war. Just as USSR was (and Russia remains) during the cold war, and just like Germany was leading up to and during the first and second world wars.
Any nation that does not respect human life is a danger to all. And Chinese government belicose attitude and presumption of eminence is wrong headed.
China Helen says:
I think what you said above were some of the chinese action, not the government’s.
Wole says:
The Chinese government encourages industrial espionage. The result of the intellectual robbery is used to develop and improve Chinas. But it is stealing from American tax payers and tax payers in other countries. That is the government, not just the people. Chinese government manipulates its currency to skew international trade. Chines government suppress its own people.
It is true that China is developing. But that is no excuse for irresponsible behavior.
China with its 1.3 billion people has more foreign reserve that the rest of the world combined. Rather than use the money to lift its own people from poverty, it is using it as a political bargaining chip elswhere. The government seeks power, not just to further the interest of its people, but for the sake of power.
Also, China is mostly and ungrateful nation. Much of its success can be traced to its relationship with the West. the United States trade policy towards China (resulting in all those Chinese factories) is a major source of Chinese wealth. Also, the refusal of the US to sanction China is a reason China has been able to get away with much of its crimes in the last several decades.
But the Chinese government is getting emboldened.