Why Has 'China Bashing' Become So Popular?

Seldom does a day pass without stories of China's rapid emergence both as an economic giant and a political power. Recently, with the approaching Beijing Olympics, it seems as though much of the discussion is more akin to an ongoing tirade, a continual verbal onslaught by western journalists and politicians. The kind of climate where it becomes not only acceptable, but necessary to include a large dose of finger wagging, posturing and snobby disdain is alarming.

While it is no longer acceptable to us terms such as 'Yellow Peril,' the verbal accusations as John Pomfret recently pointed out are steadily rising. When pundits such as CNN's Jack Cafferty describe the Chinese government as a "bunch of goons and thugs" and Chinese products as "junk" it becomes clear that it is the newly fashionable position is to lay in to China.

So, Hillary Clinton blamed China for the loss of manufacturing jobs declaring that she would take a firm stand and while some believe that the increased rhetoric is simply as a consequence of economic issues, where the US feels under pressure by China's impressive advances, it is shocking the extent to which on almost any subject, China is presented as an evil doing bad guy.

While China's progress certainly does leave the western elites feeling somewhat envious - as Vanity Fair's Kurt Andersen suggests, Beijing is the "Manhattan of the Twenty First Century" there is a nasty undercurrent to all of this that stinks of a new version of anti eastern sentiments, a sort of 'west is best' attitude that is loaded with double standards .

After all, the purveyors of Guantanamo and abuse meted out in Iraq and elsewhere should feel somewhat embarrassed about lecturing the Chinese about human rights. Similarly in Europe, where countries such as the UK have passed draconian legislation that represent a severe erosion of civil rights have no grounds to take the moral high ground. That does not prevent them from doing so however. Some argue that any pressure that can end up preventing human rights abuses or challenging censorship is worth while. The danger here however, is that we are creating a climate in which it is becoming popular to demonize an entire nation.

There has of course been significant criticism of China in the past however, the form it takes and the volume at which it plays out today is egregious. Whether it is the cost to the environment or concerns about censorship, issues to do with the safety of kids toys and international influence in Darfur or Tibet - or descriptions of Dickensian-style 'boot camps' harshly training young Chinese athletes, the message is clear: China is a danger and threat to the world.

At a time when many in the west find it increasingly difficult know what it represents, it can of course appear easier and more attractive to coalesce around the idea of some 'other' being a tad beyond the pale. While many have observed this trend and seen it for what it is - a dose of
'China bashing' - a few, such as Frank Ching in the China Post, put it down to vacuous 'posturing' during the US election season. As he quite rightly observes though, this approach will have an ongoing legacy and impact on American attitudes.

I have no sympathy for any autocratic regime that does not permit free speech and civil rights -- which ever country that happens to be in. It is about time however that we took a step back and considered why it has become just so popular and acceptable to stick the boot in to China. Surely it speaks volumes about our own attitudes towards development, ambition, striving for success and improvement, that when we encounter such sentiments elsewhere we are so apprehensive about it. In many ways, China has come to represent our most intensified fears, of runaway eco-destruction, rampant consumerism and unfettered expansion and we seem determined to continually project our concerns on to every discussion.

As it happens, we could be celebrating the potential for so many people in the world to be improving their lives and contributing towards us all moving forwards. The recent Pew Research Center study indicates that many in China are indeed upbeat about their direction -- while Americans are more downbeat and Europeans generally far from content. Bashing China will not help us feel better about ourselves -- and will only entrench an unhealthy outlook -- while doing absolutely nothing to aid any democratic developments in China. It is time we stopped with this pc-version of western moral superiority and conducted our discussions about China in a somewhat more balanced manner.

Comments

[chinationreport]

“Just as the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the 1988 Seoul Olympics propelled Japan and South Korea onto the global stage, the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will be China’s “coming out” party—an event that showcases China’s maturation into a great economic and, to a lesser extent, political power. ”
Read the whole commentary:
http://www.chinabusinessreview.com/public/0807/sands.html

http://blog.chinationreport.com/2008/07/25/beijing-olympics/

[Calinative]

Would be a lot easier to criticize China for for its human rights abuses if we could stick to the principles ourselves.
We have 500,000 more prisoners than China, with only 1/5th its population. We have political prisoners. We have prison labor in privatized prisons, sourced out to corporations at 25 cents an hour (IBM, Compaq, TWA, Victoria's Secret....), and our rights are slipping away.

We should get our own country back to basic principles before we try to tell another country what to do.

[RunMeloRun]

No, it would be a lot easier to criticize China on the subjects can resonate with chinese ppl,so you can get chinese ppl on ur side.

I mean if you really try to defend somebody, dont you need to listen to them first? dont you need to have their consent first? now its like we just shout "CCP abuse chinese ppl!" 7x24, CCP doesnt every bother to care, it's the chinese ppl who give us the finger and say fk off! That's ridiculous!

But do any of those bashers care? apparently not, because they are NOT trying to defend chinese ppl, they are just trying to badmouth something for their hatred, or to show their superiority.

[sgt nc]

Perhaps the reason China has fewer prisoners than the US is because they execute so many of them. At a rate of 10,000 to 15,000 per year. I don't think China should be our role model by a long shot.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/08/news/china.php

The article does indicate the number is falling, but the US executed 42 people during the same time frame.

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=186

[wdw101]

'west is best' attitude that is loaded with a lot but it has no lead.......

[S1m0n]

Hmm.
Machine gunning buddhist monks? State-sanctioned racism? Convicting and executing 'criminals' on the basis of no evidence but a 'confession' obtained by torture? Imprisoning Falun Gong and executing them once a buyer has been found for their organs?

What's not to like? You're right: all that bad PR is a mystery!

[Eric8869]

It's because China is doing something radical. They are becoming Capitalist like the U.S. but they are not becoming a domocracy. Since this is causing great success in their country it is a direct threat to the American way of thinking. As they continue to become successful and a real global economic leader you will hear more and more bashing.

I'm not saying I love China - their polcies or their products. However I am skeptical of the reasons for this bashing.

[sculptor]

Maybe it's because people are starting to become afraid of China. It won't be all that many decades before China eclipses the US. So, when we see them repressing their own people and showing few signs of becoming a good player on the world stage, how do you expect people to react?

[darthdarcy]

Because Red China is Evil..!

That's why the Republicans due all they can to support and enrich them over We The People..

[Alan Miller - Huffpost Blogger]

I don't think there is a conspiracy, more however it is a reflection of a broader theme. China has come to be associated with progress. It is impossible to utter the word progress today without many people taking exception or being outraged at the very notion.
In a similar way to increasing European anti-Americanism (a nasty chauvinism that would not be accepted if directed towards black people for instance, as it should not be), we are witnessing the presentation of every debate about China as viewed through the anxious eyes of a society that has no confidence in itself. Lacking a broader vision and principles, unhinged from the past and with no vision for the future, it finds itself 'dangling', vacillating in the ever present where humans are seen as the biggest problem facing the planet.
China thus becomes the canvas on which we can project all of our fears on to - and engage in a bit of newly packaged, old fashioned prejudice.

[wdw101]

nationalism has been around as long as there has been countries.­.......nat­ionalism is good for a lot of things......I like it.......Spread it........unity

[TheEmptinessOfTruthiness]

Why has China Bashing Become So Popular?

Simple. To take attention away from the fact that the Repubican gov't and MSMedia are also run by a gang of goons and thugs.

[TexasDem0]

You beat me to it.

[iheartsmartpeople]

good blog...I think it's a shame that this is the direction that the American media and government want to take (and take the American people in that direction with them - those that can't think for themselves that is). Knowing that China will only become more powerful politically and economically, we should position ourselves to work that in our favor, not to further increase tensions and lead to god knows what down the line. Besides, all this 'poisoning' we are blaming them for... we're the ones buying that poison and encouraging more of it! In this day and age, you don't think a $5 plastic toy versus the $40 wooden one might come with some uh... side effects?
It's fear and (you hit the nail on the head)...envy, especially since things are kind rough around here right now...

[pfc1369]

The above comment is a good example of this mindless China bashing.

Of course, American products have never been known to harm anyone, have they now?

[sa]

maybe i'm wrong,
but there was some information out there
that cheney (and his wife)
were gunning for a war with china from the
beginning of the bush administration -
i believe i recall early in bush's first term
a contrived crisis with a military surveillance jet
over china's territory, and its "downing" (?)
and recovery.

as bad as the iraq debacle has been -
a war with china would have been 100 times worse.
maybe a thousand times worse. maybe a million times worse
considering their population and regional power.

no matter what - bush/cheney were going to spend all of america's
resources, treasures, and blood on war.

these are evil men
who should have never been given the keys to the world.
all republicans should hang their heads in shame.
while some of them should just hang.

i pray they someday find justice.

[Nommo]

They really had some notion about going to war with China? Astonishing.

[jvarga]

Maybe its the part where they poison our pets and our toothpaste and our children's toys?

[Eric8869]

But they were cheaper at Wal-Mart than American products so you bought them anyway.