The Daily OrangeChina's reputation as United States threat not warranted
By Andrew Swab
Posted: 9/14/09, 12:02 AM EST Section: Opinion
China is not the biggest threat to the United States in the 21st century.
Many Americans may not agree with that statement. I've found that China is seen as one of the scariest, most threatening countries in the world. China can be a friend of the U.S. on issues as varied as nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and development in Africa. In the words of Norman Kutcher, a SU professor with a doctorate in Chinese history, "When it comes to the China fear, people have to pick apart certain elements to find out where they come from."
Let's look at why Americans fear the rise of China and try to dispel some hearsay and rumors with fact.
1) We should fear communism in China.
While it is true that China is ruled by the Communist Party, communism isn't spreading anytime soon. The last country to become communist was Vietnam, almost 40 years ago. In that time, several dozen new democracies have been born. Democracy seems to be winning this fight.
The brutal suppression of people's rights during the Tiananmen Square Riots of 1989 doesn't help China's image. However, that was the China of 20 years ago.
In a recent interview, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said, "I believe that…we [China] also need to advance political reforms…Number one, we need to gradually improve the democratic election system, so that the state power will truly belong to the people, and state power will be used to serve the people." This is the future of China.
We need to look at tomorrow a little more than Tiananmen.
2) We should also fear China's economic rise.
Constant information is pouring in about China's expanding economic power. The New York Times reports, "In the last five years, China has spent as much as one-seventh of its entire economic output buying foreign debt." According to The Wall Street Journal, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner "believes that China is manipulating its currency."
Newsweek's Rana Foroohar, senior editor of business and economics for Newsweek's international editions, said that "the Japanese … will probably loose their spot as the No. 2 economy in the world (and the No. 1 player in Asia) to China by the end of the year."
Many Americans may not agree with that statement. I've found that China is seen as one of the scariest, most threatening countries in the world. China can be a friend of the U.S. on issues as varied as nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and development in Africa. In the words of Norman Kutcher, a SU professor with a doctorate in Chinese history, "When it comes to the China fear, people have to pick apart certain elements to find out where they come from."
Let's look at why Americans fear the rise of China and try to dispel some hearsay and rumors with fact.
1) We should fear communism in China.
While it is true that China is ruled by the Communist Party, communism isn't spreading anytime soon. The last country to become communist was Vietnam, almost 40 years ago. In that time, several dozen new democracies have been born. Democracy seems to be winning this fight.
The brutal suppression of people's rights during the Tiananmen Square Riots of 1989 doesn't help China's image. However, that was the China of 20 years ago.
In a recent interview, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said, "I believe that…we [China] also need to advance political reforms…Number one, we need to gradually improve the democratic election system, so that the state power will truly belong to the people, and state power will be used to serve the people." This is the future of China.
We need to look at tomorrow a little more than Tiananmen.
2) We should also fear China's economic rise.
Constant information is pouring in about China's expanding economic power. The New York Times reports, "In the last five years, China has spent as much as one-seventh of its entire economic output buying foreign debt." According to The Wall Street Journal, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner "believes that China is manipulating its currency."
Newsweek's Rana Foroohar, senior editor of business and economics for Newsweek's international editions, said that "the Japanese … will probably loose their spot as the No. 2 economy in the world (and the No. 1 player in Asia) to China by the end of the year."
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John Doe
posted 9/14/09 @ 9:26 PM EST
I've heard and read a lot of crazy things from left wingers in my lifetime, but this is the first time I've been told that Americans should not be concerned about China's economic rise. (Continued…)
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