Democracy, Divide & The Rise of A Giant

I love democracy, and I love capitalism. The West is the epitome of a democratic and capitalist success story. I love freedom more than most other things in life — Vive La Liberté.

But while we sit here and pontificate over who is the better president of America, and we watch the reds beat up the blues for this, and the blues beat up the reds for that; a nation like China is a one-party state that continues to roll full steam ahead in all areas including, economics, technology and military.

I’m not a fan of the Chinese system, although I am highly impressed by their progress and prowess over decades. The rise of China has been subtle but highly rapid. In my high school economics class, we had a module devoted to China as a rising economic power. Almost 15 years later, they reign as both an economic and military powerhouse on the global stage.

As a westerner who loves his autonomy and liberty, I feel afraid for what might come if China continues to rise, which I believe it will. Joe Biden once mentioned a meeting he had with President Xi Jinping from China. Xi told Biden that he believes the 21st century will be run by oligarchies — where a few elite reign supreme in making all decisions for the collective. If you look at Chinese politics, you could argue that they have adopted this hierarchical structure. Xi’s reasoning behind this was that Biden agreed with; that oligarchies are the way of the future because technology and society are now moving at such fast rates. There is no longer any time for debate or discussion because that slows everything down.

If we take history as a lesson, no communist party has ever maintained their spot at the top. They were all led to an eventual demise. However, note that we are looking back into the 20th century. The last century was much different to this century. The dynamics have changed dramatically. Perhaps, those communist parties fell because of the evil dictatorships that were the driving force behind them.

I don’t like communism. I’ve noticed many Westerners born and raised in prosperous capitalist societies claim that they believe in a communistic structure of society. I think those people are wrong — they are victimising themselves because they can’t seem to get ahead in a free capital market, so they want to tear everybody else’s building down instead of trying to develop their own.

The Giant Is Awake –

“Let China Sleep, for when she wakes, the world will shake” — these were the words uttered by French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte about 200 years ago.

If you have ever read the Art of War by Sun Tzu, you will notice how this philosophical text influences China’s pursuit towards domination. Unlike the West, who use physical force when they want to take something, the Chinese engage in other forms of warfare, like cyberattacks and economic and political coercion. I love what a friend of mine said to me a few months ago. He said, “if it’s true that China was directly involved in the creation of this pandemic, they have just won a war without even shooting a single bullet”. That statement has stuck with me, as it made me realise more of the very nature of how this superpower engages in their conflict. It’s subtle, silent and earth-shattering to the enemy. It makes me wonder whether Biden’s decision to leave Afghanistan was a sign of fear for China. If it was, I think re-allocating troops was the right choice, despite the incompetent way it was done.

I see China’s take over in places like Cambodia. There is no physical force, just a lot of money and political corruption. All the while, tourists from China arrive at Cambodian cities in droves, building their 5-star resorts, travel companies and casinos on Cambodian soil. Why not when your politicians are in cahoots with Cambodian politicians, you get to reap the benefits?

We in the West continue to sit here reflecting, contemplating and pontificating about the rise of this giant we call China, fearing that they will be the next big thing; a threat to our systems and way of life. I fear that this reality is already a truth; we can’t see it yet because China doesn’t move with the same force we know of so very well in the West. China moves in silence, and the divide we see in the West partly results from this subtle infiltration.

So, what do we do? Unification sounds swell in theory, but that’s not going to happen. If anything, things will only continue to worsen. There will always be those who beat up Trump for his “selfish, money-driven policies”, and there will always be those who beat Biden for his “economic and military incompetence, and his ideological and unrealistic utopian dreams”. This divide in the West has me feeling anxious. While we fight each other internally, a rising power is moving full steam ahead, and it poses a significant threat to our way of life.

I fear that there is no turning back from here. In saying that, I am also optimistic. Things like blockchain are decentralising technologies that pose a severe threat to governments, particularly those running dictatorships, as it places power in the hands of the people. Let’s use this as an opportunity to create more prosperity, more freedom and more peace — We are in great need right now.