I have been fortunate to travel to many places in my life. Perhaps the most exciting and fascinating were his two trips to China in 2016 and her 2017. These trips were inspired by the fact that one of our children he moved to Shanghai for work. He lived there for six and a half years, along with a nine-month sojourn in Vietnam, until a colleague of his died of COVID and was prompted to return home due to the lack of a vaccine.
Almost every day in America we hear that China is about to replace America as the world’s greatest superpower, and that China’s economy is surpassing America’s. I read that they are amassing a huge army, especially a navy.
Recent news reminds me of the old Cold War fog that covered America’s cities and towns in the 1950s and 1960s. For many of us who are older, it is enough to remember our neighbors and friends with bomb shelters. They were lowered from their classrooms into the school basement, with their heads bowed and their arms covered, and given strict orders never to open their eyes for fear of being blinded. A flash of light from a nuclear explosion.
At the time, the president’s resume included leading an Allied force in the largest amphibious assault in human history. D-Day, June 6, 1944. After him came the young Senator from Massachusetts, who had bravely commanded his PT boat in the same war and authored a book titled Profiles in Courage.
Next was a veteran senator from Texas who took office from the assassination of his predecessor. A tough, smart Texan who plunged America into a bloody war to stem the tide of communist invasion. He was followed by the former Vice President, who, despite his ethical flaws and political misconduct, displayed formidable American resolve through his outstanding Secretary of State.
In the United States today, a string of military scandals has hurt public self-esteem, apart from the annihilation of the inferior Iraqi army in 1991 after an autocratic leader’s erroneous decision to invade Kuwait. I came. Our recent Oval Office residents don’t enjoy the same height as the man above.
However, it requires a certain reality check.
When we were in Shanghai, a city of over 28 million people, we stayed in an Airbnb apartment in a nice part of the city. We were among the locals and went back and forth exploring the city and its surroundings. Like most city dwellers, our apartment was in an alley off the main street.
One morning, just before 8am, I was awakened by a bang on my apartment door. I got down and carefully opened it. There stood a very loud and angry man with a clipboard in his hand. He started yelling at me in Chinese, stuck a clipboard and pen in my face, and asked me to fill out a piece of paper and sign it.
Our son, who is fluent in Mandarin, did not live with us and was in his own apartment. However, our youngest, who studied Chinese in high school, was able to communicate with this man and explain to him that we were just visiting. Then he seemed to calm down. I didn’t fill out the form or sign it. He eventually left in a huff.
Our conclusion was that one of our neighbors, or perhaps an official, had observed us and reported it to the ‘authorities’. Despite all the positive coverage our media gives of China’s economic and military rise, it has made us all aware that it all comes at a heavy price.
One evening we were treated to a wonderful dinner by our son’s friends. We had a lively conversation until I asked the host what he thought. Paul fell on the table and I was told they didn’t discuss such things.End of discussion!
We have experienced other signs of government domination and total submission of the people. You must write and submit essays regularly about what you have done for Public servants earn twice as much as her private sector counterparts as a way of maintaining party stability and loyalty.
What lessons should be learned? Our free enterprise system and government, founded on the principle of orderly freedom, can withstand not only the ravages of war, but also the incompetence and corruption of its leaders. Our economic power is measured in real numbers, not national activity that synthesizes GDP.
We Americans must always be vigilant to protect our way of life from enemies at home and abroad, but never give in to the centralized domination that distorts the economy and controls the people of China. should not be
Harbor Hill resident Theodore Xenakis writes this column for the Eagle Tribune’s Wednesday opinion page. You can reach him at his TXenakis1951@gmail.com.
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