The China Syndrome…

When I was growing up China, like the USSR, was considered an anti-democratic evil communist regime bent on a “conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids”. They were considered the evil to end all evils and via the “domino theory” would consume our nation if we didn’t vigilantly protect against them.

Now despite the fact that as far as I can tell little has changed in their governing style, they are a “preferential trade partner”.

So, what did change? Did they suddenly become a bastion of human rights? No. Did they suddenly allow freedom of press? No. Did they suddenly embrace democracy in any of its forms? No. Did they disavow communism and repent their evil ways? Not even close.

What did they do then???

They opened up to capitalism.

So what does that really say about the whole “red scare” we grew up with? What does it say about the dangers of communism?

It says it was all about money. It was all about property rights and government control of business. Once China allowed privatization, all was good again.

So much for the “evils” of communism.

And that of course is why Chavez is evil and Hu Jintao’s name doesn’t even come up. Chavez is for deprivatization and Hu is allowing privitization.

In short, it never was about freedom, or democracy, or human rights. It was about the profits of major American corporations, and China if anything today has only accelerated them. Chavez could massacre a 100,000 people tomorrow and be our best friend if only he would re-privatize Venezuela’s oil fields.

But they know how to manipulate us and in an Orwellian way those things that actually would benefit us are seen as bad and those things that hurt us are seen as good.

In any case, I don’t see China as evil, though certainly they do evil things (we as well), however I think it brings truth to the lie we grew up with. It wasn’t about communism (though I’m not saying it shouldn’t have been), it was about money.