Discussion: Relations with China

[regwec]

* They're not exactly right. Yet.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-18/china-seen-surpassing-the-u-s-as-superpower-in-polling.html

A big hurdle is that China's economy is over-leveraged in a similar way to the US/UK/Eurozone was in 2008.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23355572

The US is still seen more favorably than China by most of the world:

http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/07/18/americas-global-image-remains-more-positive-than-chinas/

Is this largely due to Barack Obama? I remember data of this type showing very different trends while GWB was president.

 

[Thundercrack85]

Well, China is an autocratic dictatorship, while America is a liberal democracy, that makes a big difference in the long run.

There's also the fact that half of China doesn't want to be part of China.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Obama has nothing to do with this

 

[regwec]

Did you read the third article?

 

[Ant-manic]

hey, maybe the terrorists will leave us alone now.

 

[ThePhantasm]

The third article says that The U.S.' image was higher in 2008 than it is now. U.S. 47%, China 20% in 2008. Now U.S. 41%, China 34%. If Obama is having an effect at all, doesn't look like the trend indicates it is a positive one.

 

[regwec]

I skimmed the analysis from 'Mostly Positive Views of U.S., Obama', which indicates the more favourable impression of him was helping to maintain America's (relative) popularity.

I suppose the reasoning is that it might be worse without him.

 

[ThePhantasm]

I think its probably hard to say... unless you took a more detailed statistical survey that asked people step by step what aspects of the U.S. they found favorable or unfavorable. There's a ton of different factors and honestly I can't say I've met two people in the UK who have the exact same views of the U.S. (not that we talk about it all the time or anything).

I generally have a favorable view of the U.S. but its perhaps because I spend a lot of time there and have a lot of friends there.

 

[hippie_hunter]

What Phantasm said

 

[Thundercrack85]

To be fair, part of the reason America has always been the "good guy" is because the other guy is always some cartoonish villain. Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, the Soviet Union, the Happy Democratic People's Republic of La La Land, etc.

China may become a superpower (it's already a major power), but like the Soviet Union, it's power is built on shaky foundations.

 

[Pink Ranger]

To be fair, part of the reason America has always been the "good guy" is because the other guy is always some cartoonish villain. Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, the Soviet Union, the Happy Democratic People's Republic of La La Land, etc.

China may become a superpower (it's already a major power), but like the Soviet Union, it's power is built on shaky foundations.

Don't forget the the British Empire. They had bright red coats and white tights for heaven's sale, that's as cartoonish as you can get.

 

[MessiahDecoy123]

Well, China is an autocratic dictatorship, while America is a liberal democracy, that makes a big difference in the long run.

There's also the fact that half of China doesn't want to be part of China.

They're both plutocracies.

China has the second most billionaires in the world.

China's plutocracy just warrants a somewhat stricter police state.

 

[Llama_Shepherd]

Don't forget the the British Empire. They had bright red coats and white tights for heaven's sale, that's as cartoonish as you can get.

But that was before the US was a super-power. The British Empire had their own cartoonish evils to fight, particularly in the Cold War prequel: The Great Game against those darn pesky Russians.

 

[Pink Ranger]

But that was before the US was a super-power. The British Empire had their own cartoonish evils to fight, particularly in the Cold War prequel: The Great Game against those darn pesky Russians.

Of course the US was a superpower back then. You guys had Jack Stiles!

 

[regwec]

We also worried about the 'yellow peril' before Fu Manchu made it fashionable.

 

[Pink Ranger]

We also worried about the 'yellow peril' before Fu Manchu made it fashionable.

If you're talking about the UK, yeah, Tolkien basically based his orcs on Chinese people, so there is a cultural artifact of that right there.

 

[regwec]

His Orcs spoke a Turkic dialect. The Easterlings and Wends were based on far Eastern cultures, but I don't think it's fair to say that the Orcs were really supposed to be allegorical of any human peoples.

But you can find references to the cruelty of the Chinese and other orientals throughout early 20th century English fiction- James Bond is a prime example.

 

[Destructus86]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...hold-largest-ever-joint-naval-drills/2491025/

Now THAT'S scary.

 

[Lily Adler]

 

[:eek:]

How Beijing’s ‘red lines’ over Taiwan could lead to war with US

 

[Lily Adler]

How Beijing’s ‘red lines’ over Taiwan could lead to war with US

I don't know we love China a little too much over here.

 

[:eek:]

Mystery seeds from China are landing in Americans' mailboxes