China may have problems but so does globalisation
Not one of the three superpowers USA, Russia nor China is fully democratic
Noah Smith's article "Chinasplaining will backfire" provides an interesting insight into David Daokui Li's book "China's World View: Demystifying China to Prevent Global Conflict". Despite Li's efforts to explain China's view to the West, he fails to convince that understanding China would solve the real problems of democracy, international peace, equality, competitiveness and economic freedom for the country. Li boasts of China’s economic stability, while China has just had several economic crises. Many of his facts are out of date. Other ones are not scientific, like that China escaped the Black Death because of its alternate medicine.
Internal problems in China
China, as one of the world's leading nations, has its own internal challenges, but at the same time, neoliberalism and globalization are increasing the unequal distribution of resources and wealth, potentially leading to conflict. None of the dominant countries in the world - the US, Russia or China - are fully democratic.
It is clear that an egalitarian interpretation of economic policy, such as Stephanie Kelton's 'deficit myth' theory, is needed to create a society where all citizens have the opportunity to live a good and equal life without threatening nature, the climate or biodiversity.
Kissinger, a prominent political advisor and Nobel Prize winner, warned of the growing competition between China and America, which was likened to the pre-World War I period. This economic and technological competition, together with political tensions, creates a worrying situation that requires understanding and action from world leaders.
Financial capitalism unequal and less competitive
In the US and other Western countries, financial capitalism has created an unequal economic structure, similar to the aristocratic order of 18th century Europe. While some make huge fortunes through speculation and stock trading, workers and the middle class suffer from low wages and inadequate welfare.
Globalization has contributed to this by making Western countries dependent on cheap labor and foreign resources. The economic inequality and environmental degradation resulting from this global integration requires a more equitable and sustainable economic system.
To avoid conflict and promote world peace and stability, countries must work together to create economies that benefit all citizens and protect the environment. This requires not only economic restructuring, but also a change in perception of what real wealth means - not just money and profits, but also prosperous communities, a healthy environment and justice for all.
Photo by Kevin Engelke on Unsplash
The sad thing is that I doubt that the leaders of the North Atlantic sphere are ready to du as you would like. They are full of hubris after 400 years of success, and they wouldn't believe that the world has changed until they do it the hard way.
What might, just might possibly do it is if they meet increasing opposition from within. But also, and sadly, this fails to materialize. The main theme of angry opposition seems to be "all is the foreigners' fault", not, as it should be, "all is the fault of our stupid leaders, political and economical".
The last two times we had this kind of systemic chaos there were popular challengers with a reasonable programme, focusing not least inequality and inefficiencies. And thay did also mass-mobilize. They were not content sitting at a facebook account chatting with their friends.