Jumping Off the Anti-China Bandwagon

A cursory glance at the coverage this week of the Beijing Olympics shows an increasing crescendo of negative commentary. That is evident everywhere from the Huffington Post to the mainstream media, and even sports journalists have been jumping on the anti-China bandwagon. The recent decision of the Chinese government to deny former medalist Joey Cheek entry into the country because of his stated plan to rally athletes to pressure Sudan on its Darfur policy is just the latest issue to inflame opinion.

There has also been a sudden surge of support for President Bush's tough talk on China and human rights, support that comes from many of the same people who have excoriated Bush for the human rights policies of his administration in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. There have been any number of caricatures labeling the Olympics the "genocide games," "the Orwell Olympics," and "the smog Olympics." All in all, not an auspicious start.

What is disturbing about these trends is that they come at a time when China is both rising as a global power and America is in a period of relative decline that may well be permanent. Even if it is temporary, there's little doubt that the unilateral dominance of the United States as a global economic power is coming to end, and that the future will see other areas of the world competing with the United States for influence and, for lack of a better word, "market share." That may not mean a substantial decrease in the standard of living in the United States, which will remain both affluent and a vital center of the global economic system. But it will lead -- and already has -- to a different landscape where the United States will have substantial influence but not be able to command the global system by fiat.

It is also disturbing that the focus of the critique of China revolves around legal human rights -- free speech, free assembly, and habeas corpus. It is undeniable that China is still lacking in these areas, yet it is also undeniable that individual Chinese have more freedom of expression, rights to private property, and rights to move and travel freely than they have had at any point in the past century and perhaps ever. It is undeniable as well that at comparable periods in U.S. and European history, the "rights" of individuals were not nearly as well-established as they later became and that the average worker in the late 19th and early 20th century in the United States was faced with multiple constraints on their freedom that we would today label human rights violations. The trajectory in China has been towards greater freedoms, not fewer.

Finally, the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (which is the basis for most of contemporary human rights policies) gave as much attention to economic rights as it did to legal rights. It enunciated the view that economic security -- enough food, calories, shelter -- was essential to the human spirit and to human rights. On that score, China has managed to raise more people out of poverty in the past few decades than any society ever has, and to give them hope for the future. That is why a vast majority of people in China support their government and its trajectory, even while many recognize its shortcomings. Our own government is not without faults and failures, and we should attend to those. For many in China, the tenor of our criticisms seems like a combination of sour-grapes and arrogance. Whether or not that is a legitimate perspective, it should be recognized, and it suggests that constant public critique may do little to move the needle and in fact may have the opposite effect. There are ways to advance our sense of what is right and to do so in a way that actually has a chance of creating change. It is unlikely, however, that this current wave of anti-China sentiment will achieve that. To the contrary, the tone will accentuate the tensions and sow the seeds of animosity. That does not bode well for our collective future, and it will not serve the cause of greater freedom and openness.

Comments

[dgscol]

The Chinese have done what they have to escape starvation in 10 years. Our government and our country's investors are to blame for the gutting of our industrial sector. We now have a pseudo-Industrial sector that exports needed commodities for external companies, and makes huge profits from exploiting Chinese slave labor. Our government lowered the tariffs for them, to allow this.

So we blame the Chinese. It was the mistaken attitude by Democrats, that economic stimulus in China wold incite cultural changes. Actually, that turned out to be untrue. There are technical changes, but not actual cultural changes. Their population is not diminishing because advancement either, in fact, they are reproducing more.

All in all, the Chinese are blameworthy for economic aggression against the US. Our politicians and business sectors are responsible for the destabilization of our economy and government.

Many people think our country in the US is sailing into tranquil waters, but they are mistaken. We are just on the precipice of severe danger economically. We are at the point that if foreign countries do not extend credit, we will no longer be able to pay for anything going on. This is going to happen sooner or later if current trends continue. What do we do when the government declares itself bankrupt?

[Rule Of Law]

To all the apologists for repression who've posted here saying that America's history is rife with terrible acts, so why don't we cut China some slack, I say this:

Two wrongs never, ever, make a right. It's just that simple. If we can forgive Germany for Hitler and the slaughter of millions, we can also--once the work has been done, accept China, or any nation, that honors the basic, rights and freedoms that all people are born to have.

And for those posters, arrogant enough to decide unilaterally what the Chinese people should or shouldn't have access to in terms of information, on the internet or elsewhere, I say; Freedom is spelled the same, whether in Hanzi, cyrillic, or Arabic. It is not for you to decide for anyone else what freedom means or how much of it is allowable. That is exactly what Cheney and Bush are doing for us right now.

[Cathexis]

If we want to encourage Democracy, the best approach is to *engage*, keeping 'confrontation" as a tool of escalation when appropriate.

Of course, it would also help if we practiced Democracy in this country, rather than merely giving it lip service as a facade for Nationalism.

[Crowhaul]

The measure of a country's greatness begins with its accommodation of voices of dissent.

[Rule Of Law]

Hear, hear!!! And dissent is the strength upon which greatness is based.

[chinationreport]

Truth101, you are wrong about your facts in many ways. Your information is not updated to say the least.
Last year for the first time, there are more American Chinese going back to China to reside than Chinese coming out!! For the first time I am hearing Chinese friends saying that their biggest mistake made in life was to have chosen to become a US citizen. For the first time I am hearing the term 'China Dream' be passionately spoken, like people used to talk about 'American Dream'.
Do you know that the young Chinese born after 1980, yes the single-child generation, are the most patriotic Chinese? They are the ones that are leading the anti-west movement because they have been informed, daring, unconventional, confident, most importantly free of all the burdens of their parents. You can take a look a this Youtube video which has been viewed by over 3 million people and it was created by a 22 year old Canadian Chinese http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9QNKB34cJo (Alert: avoid it if you have high blood pressure!)
Talking about Taiwan. Study the result of their latest election. 200000 Taiwanese in the US went back to Taiwan to cast their vote so that Taiwan would not become independant!! The pro-independance party lost the election heavily!!!
http://www.chinationreport.com/

[Rule Of Law]

Human rights is not some gob of dust that can be swept under the rug of history with the broom of economic "progress."

[Rule Of Law]

"China has managed to raise more people out of poverty in the past few decades than any society ever has..."

Yes, on the backs of slave labor, ethnic cleansing, genocide in their quasi-colonies like Sudan, and the same empire building lust for more that eventually doomed Britain, and now us. Ask the people of Tibet whether the rape of their natural resources to pave the way for a greater China is worth the repression of an occupied state.

[edtastic]

I am sorry I think you confused China for America. America actually ran on Slavery, Colonialism, and raping of resources from Africa to South America the list is quite long. I think your criticism is a product blind hatred of a country you know little or nothing about. You see a few biased news reports and you think you got these people pegged. Well I been there, and nothing you are hearing in the American Media bubble does justice to how GOOD the reality is for Chinese people now.

[Rule Of Law]

Why is the first defense of any totalitarian regime. "Well, you guys (America) did it first, and worst, and you're a bad, bad country!"

Hey if we both kick our dog, it doesn't matter if you kick yours just a little less; you're still brutalizing a defenseless animal. Saying the other guy did it too is a 3rd grade justification and only goes to weaken your entire post.

I have no problem with recognizing the wrongs done by my country. And they continue to this day, and sicken me. But I don't hate America, or her people, any more than I hate China or hers. That is just another weak, knee jerk distraction apologists for repression use in these blogs. I won't go on the defensive about that either.

So let's get back to the Real issues: While the standard of living in China may have risen dramatically over the last 10-15 years (as my recently immigrated Chinese engineer friends assure me) it does not follow that their empire building in Sudan or Tibet or Outer Mongolia--or their treatment of their own minority citizens like the Uighur, the Hui, the Mongols, and many others--are then practices that we should not condemn.

Repression, slavery, and intolerance by any country or government should be exposed wherever it occurs. Whether is is child slavery in India,
repression of women in Muslim countries, genital mutilation in Africa, or our own imperialistic oil grab in Iraq.

[Snowball]

I think we need to clean up our own act first. In the United States, a citizen can be held indefinitely without charges if deemed an enemy combatant by the President, can be spied upon without judicial oversight, can be subject to unrestrained searches and seizures of property, is restricted to "free speech zones" where they will not be seen or heard, is not free to travel to Cuba if they want, cannot organize a union without the threat of being fired, cannot smoke pot in the privacy of their own home, the list goes on.

Our government can practice torture, disappear political opponents from around the world and engage in unprovoked wars of aggression.

We have one of the highest rates of incarceration of citizens, outside of China, and our prisons are brimming over with people convicted of non-violent drug offenses. Environmental, gun control, anti-war and other activists are routinely spied on and labeled terrorists. Our political system is controlled by a small ruling elite and corporate interests. Our Corporate Media is the most advanced form of propaganda in the world that would have made Stalin envious in the way it limits public debate to terms that don't threaten elite interests and marginalizes political opposition. Our health care system, despite being technologically advanced, is in tatters and millions of citizens go without even the most basic care.

If we want to spread freedom and democracy around the world, we need to learn to practice it here first.

[CAskeptic]

Agreed. The one thing really not allowed in China is trying to overthrow the government. Guess what - we have the same rule.

[Rule Of Law]

Though, to his credit, Jefferson did say that we needed a new revolution every twenty years! Boy, was he right.

[Rule Of Law]

I agree with your critique of our flaws in America and the need to correct them.

I disagree about the need to "spread freedom and democracy around the world."

It's not our job. It never has been. And when we've attempted to meddle in countries not our own, we have failed. Every culture is different, with different needs and historical foundations. While we may choose not to do business with repressive regimes, or work with the world to alleviate pain and suffering in the worst of places, we cannot--as Iraq has proven once more--force Democracy down the throats of an unwilling people.

I prefer Jefferson's approach. That we not become entangled in the affairs of other countries. That we do the work here that needs doing (and there is much that needs doing), stand as a beacon of hope and a working example of the possibilities of real freedom. And our freedom is threatened on every front by our own current leadership and needs our fullest attention.

Once our own house is in order, then perhaps we will stand as an example to the world as we once did.

[cardineau]

I think this article is correct in many ways, but not entirely. The Chinese have a powerful and growing economy. Chinese now retire at 55 yrs of age. That's considerably better than the US. There education system is producing 650 thousand engineers annually, while we are turning out about 60 thousand. They are going to become a more powerful country than the US. They will not forget this world wide rampage of negativity against their country. It is being instigated mainly by the US. In the future, we will wonder why all of the Chinese tourists visit Canada and Mexico and not the US. In the eyes of a US citizen this is just a passing fad and we will forget about it after the Olympics. In Chinese eyes, they will not forget for generations if ever.

[truth101]

The truth is quite the opposite. The vast vast majority of young people in China would
all love to come to the USA or UK or FRANCE. THE select few who leave temporily
often make plans to leave permanently and bring out their families. Your picture is
totally inaccurate.....just recall that it was the USA and UK that defeated the JAPANESE.....
memories that will last for millenia if not longer....

[DAE]

Sorry. I am a white guy who has in-laws in China and what you say is not true. Many Chinese left in the 80s and 90s to make money abroad with the intent to return back to China after they struck it rich. Many of my Chinese friends in the US have done just that. Now they can make more money there than here. They have no problem with human rights in China.

[OtayPanky]

As progressives who are members of a society that is still relatively free, it's righteous to speak out against tyranny and oppression in all it's forms, wherever it might occur - at home and abroad - without fear or favoritism.

Lefties who get mealy-mouthed about leftist incarnations of totalitarianism are missing the boat. They should be leading the charge up the hill.

Saying we should attend to "our own business" is baloney. We're citizens of the world. Those are human beings just like us being shipped off to "re-education camps" for the terrible crime of sharing their opinions - just like we all do on HuffPo, or anywhere else we want to, everyday.

[DAE]

Sorry, but I hear no discussion whatsoever about the human rights abuses of our penal system that has an incarceration rate 7 times greater than in any other industrialized country. All this focus on China is a convenient way to avoid a discussion of our own failings, as if we are a beacon of liberty and justice for all.

[truth101]

IN how many countries in the world is HP banned?
Why doesn't Taiwan run back to the motherland?
What country in the world has the world's most polluted city?
What country uses eminent domain so harshly and so widely?
What country has poorer regulation of coal mining?
What country entirely ignores the Geneva Convention on HUMAN RIGHTS?

[Snowball]

The answer to your last three questions could be the United States.

[DAE]

How many mainland Chinese websites do you read? Is it so important for the Chinese to read HP? Is that the paramount concern you have. You can access plenty of western media outlets in China, I have. There is no lack of information. Most Chinese I know are better informed about the US political system than most Americans. Guess what the Taiwanese are running back to China with millions of tourists and billions in direct investment. There are now three flights a day between Taiwan and the mainland and the new govt. on Taiwan wants to have a rapproachment with the mainland. Cairo is the world's most polluted city, with Mexico City a close second. Get your facts straigt.

[TrevorAlan]

As a person with many anti-Chinese Govenment attitudes (note, the government but not the people) I agree that we should strenously resist the apparent hipness of an anti-China fad. But there are still very good reasons for reasoned people to speak out strongly against the Comunist Party leadership of China.

Starting with the fact that they embrace a type of capitalism that is allowing an increasing division between rich and poor. Their concern for raising people out abject poverty may have been successful but it may also be over, and there is great question whether tomorrow's Chinese Millionaires and will get their power by starving out many Chinese peasants. The "Communisim" they embrace seems to be everyone shutting the hell up while a few people get stinking rich.

No, this is no longer the land of the Cultural revolution, but it is a government who has never admitted their crimes in the Tianmen Square Massacres. It is a government who could do that again without loosing sleep. Political freedoms are not a minor, pesky issues, because without them the Chinese will have to mount another bloody civil war to challenge the new inequalities.

So remind us that China has acoomplished some great things, but understand a lot of us still have some very well-based fears and criticism of that government as it runs its affairs today.

[DAE]

Huh? The increasing division between rich and poor? Look in your own backyard for once. I think much of what you say is a more apt characterization of the US.

[emerywood]

It is good to hear a voice of reason in America these days. We have become sheeps and our shephard is the media. The media has the same philosophy which probably originated from the same group of brain trust that advise the administration and that is, the ridiculous and paranoid
mantra of " If you are not with us, you are against us ". This mantra also applies to Americans and former President Jimmy Carter probably knows it well from his recent exprience.

[chinationreport]

What a breath of fresh air! As a Chinese living in America, I am worried that even my own children will start hating China. How can they not, all they hear about China is nothing but negative? Some 30 years ago, a Chinese man was beaten to death in Detroit mistakenly by car workers that just lost jobs to Japanese car makers. They thought the poor guy was Japanese. The media is promoting all kinds of China bashing so that China has become the symbol of sin for everything, lost jobs, higher food prices, gas prices, global warming, bad quality, mortgage crisis, high deficit, large debt...
Frankly speaking, most of Americans have no clue what Chinese are thinking. Smart Chinese are going back to China. Why not? They are given incentives to return to China. They don't have to become the scapegoat of a bad economy. They don't have to feel nakedly judged. If all Chinese people go back to China, it is a loss to America, gain to China. Look around yourselves. You will find the Chinese people with highest average eduation, many are top scientists in all sectors. General Tsao's Chicken and fortune cookies might stay as they were invented here anyway. But a lot of technology and brilliant minds are leaving. Chinese people know that hatred could turn into violence against them. Why should they wait here for it to happen? Is this what America wants?
visit www.chinationreport.com to get balanced news about China

[3rdOption]

"...China has managed to raise more people out of poverty in the past few decades than any society ever has, and to give them hope for the future." - Zachary Karabell

Actually, Bill Clinton did this when he soaked up the political bribery from those "lobbyists", and then drove trade policies that gutted American manufacturing, all to the boon of China.

Their gain did not have to come at our expense.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to Walmart to buy some flag pins and yellow ribbon magnets so I can display my patriotism.

[Snowball]

"Actually, Bill Clinton did this when he soaked up the political bribery from those "lobbyists", and then drove trade policies that gutted American manufacturing, all to the boon of China."

Actually, I think it was Richard Nixon who started the ball rolling.

[3rdOption]

Correct.

But it took the best Republican President in recent history (Bill, according to Michael Moore) to demonstrate the cravenness necessary to fully open the floodgates.

And here we sit. Simpering about Olympics, gas prices, and foreclosures.