Written by Frank Li
Communism is a big and fat lie, but so is western [liberal] democracy! To appreciate this bold statement, we must truly understand human history, re-writing some, if necessary.
In a previous post (American History 2.0), I re-wrote parts of American history. In this post, I will attempt to re-write parts of human history.
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0. History
Human history of the past 2,500 years was most prominently made by the West and China, with some other folks making some intermittently, such as the Arabs (Early Muslim conquests), Mongols (Mongol Empire), and Turks (Ottoman Empire).
History is written by, and about, the victors. Because China was a big loser from 1776 to 1976, at least, most of the recent history has been written by the West, especially America.
Now, China is back, big time. It’s time to re-write the history, some of it, at least!
In this post, I will divide human history of the past 2,500 years into three periods:
- Period 1: 500 BC – 1492 AD.
- Period 2: 1492 – 2003.
- Period 3: 2003 – Present.
Let me elaborate on each …
1. Period 1: 500 BC – 1492 AD
Throughout this period, everything was “evolutionary”. Two highlights:
- Most countries were challenged in governance, from Greece (e.g. democracy) to China (e.g. “All under Heaven”). For more, read: Ancient Greece vs. Ancient China.
- Some empires were built. But they were mostly through land, over a long period of time (e.g. 200 years).
Two outstanding civilizations throughout this period:
- Western civilization: It was primarily shaped by the Romans, on top of Greek civilization.
- Chinese civilization: China actually led the world in almost everything throughout this period.
The image below highlights the key difference between the Roman Empire and the Chinese Empire, which is the key reason why Rome was long gone while China has long endured. For more, read: Civilizations: Past, Present, and Future.
Two informative readings:
The fortune of the West, especially when compared with China, came after 1492, when Christopher Columbus discovered the “new” world.
2. Period 2: 1492 – 2003
The discovery of the “new” world was “revolutionary”, in contrast with everything before, which was “evolutionary.”
With guns in one hand and the Bible in the other, the West (e.g. Spain, Britain, and France) Europeanized not only the “new” world, but also almost entirely the rest of the old world, including China.
For an overview of 500 years of European colonialism, watch the short video below.
As a result, not only did the West become exceptionally rich, but the rest of the world became exceptionally poor.
Worse yet, this extra-ordinary wealth gap between the West and the rest has resulted in two monstrous lies:
- America as a totally exceptional country, featuring, among other things, liberty and self-governing, both of which actually pre-date the notion of a nation-state formed quite a few thousand years ago. For more, read: American History 2.0.
- Democracy as a, if not the only, valid form of government.
Two facts against democracy:
- Democracy is a tried but failed doctrine throughout human history, without a single example of lasting success.
- Modern western [liberal] democracy is actually built on top of capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism, without which democracy has failed everywhere else (e.g. Egypt), without exception.
Worst of all, on March 20, 2003, America started spreading democracy to Iraq by force!
3. Period 3: 2003 – Present
The “revolution” started in 1492 appears over, and the world appears to have returned to its “evolution” mode. Three main reasons:
- China is back, ending the western dominance.
- Having consumed most of the wealth accumulated through its initial exceptionalism, America appears to be not exceptional at all. For example, today, America is facing the same challenges as many old countries (e.g. China and Egypt) faced, with effective governance topping the list. For more, read: Governance in America.
- The two monstrous lies, spread mostly by America over the past 200 years, were almost totally exposed by two recent events: (1) the launch of the Iraq War in 2003 and (2) the financial crisis in 2008. Together, they gave China an extra-ordinary confidence boost: The West is no longer the model to emulate, but a target to surpass.
Do not under-estimate China’s comeback over the past four decades! It actually took China some 200 years to have finally found its own path to success. For more, read: Will Xi Become Mao?
With no more new land to be conquered and no more new people to be subjugated, the West must now compete with China on more equal footings.
Who will win the head-on competition in this century? China!
Why? It’s the system, stupid!
Specifically, let’s just focus on America … China’s system (i.e. capitalism + autocracy), with many endemic problems of its own, appears to be slightly better than America’s (i.e. capitalism + democracy). The image below highlights the point.
In a 2-hiker world, all one hiker needs to do, when chased by a hungry grizzly, is to run a bit faster than the other hiker.
For more, read: End of Democracy?
4. Re-writing more history in period 2
Dividing human history of the past 2,500 years into three periods may be overly simplistic. But you get the message, hopefully: 1492 was the differentiator. Specifically,
- By discovering the “new” world in 1492, Christopher Columbus actually started a revolution that made the world totally “abnormal,†exceptionally good for the West and exceptionally bad for the rest.
- By coming back strongly over the past four decades, China has more or less restored the world to its “norm,” with a real and evolutionary model of prosperity for the rest to emulate, in stark contrast with a fat lie and a revolutionary model like western [liberal] democracy!
Let’s focus more on period 2 and answer four big questions:
- Was the British Empire the worst in history?
- What ended the British Empire?
- Has America become an evil empire?
- Is democracy really so bad?
4.1 Was the British Empire the worst in history?
Yes!
Most empires are evil, but the British Empire was by far the worst. The image below is worth more than 1,000 words.
4.2 What ended the British Empire?
WWI and WWII! Both were fought mostly between major powers (e.g. Germany, Japan, Britain, the USSR, and America), while suffocating the rest (e.g. China and Poland).
Two informative readings to get the WWII history right:
At the end of WWII, America replaced Britain as the new dominating empire.
4.3 Has America become an evil empire?
Yes!
The image below shows why America is an empire.
The image below shows why America is an evil empire.
In short, with exporting democracy by force, America has become an evil empire! The image below highlights it.
Three informative readings:
For more, watch the video in the end.
4.4 Is democracy really so bad?
Yes! As a matter of fact, democracy looks more and more like communism, with eight similarities as follows:
- Destruction of capitalism
- Brainwashing
- Ideology
- Kleptocracy
- ‘You Didn’t Build That’
- Stupidity
- Patriotism
- Utopia.
5. Discussion
Re-writing history is hard, but absolutely necessary at this time!
Today, democracy is deeply in trouble worldwide, from America (e.g. Trumpism), to Europe (e.g. Brexit), to the Mideast (e.g. Iraq). To truly understand the real reason behind this trouble, we must study history.
For the West to truly understand itself as well as China, we must re-write parts of the history. I have tried just that in this post, presenting a Chinese perspective to the West.
As a Chinese-American, I am caught between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, I wish China, my native country, well – She suffered too much over the past 200 years. On the other hand, I wish America, my adopted country, well – She must stop her precipitous decline. Most importantly, there must be no war, trade or otherwise, between the two countries (Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides’s Trap?)!
Criticism is easy – Everybody can do it.
Fortunately for America, I believe I have the most accurate diagnosis for America, as well as the best solution. Better yet, both have been well documented in my last book: American Democracy – Why is it failing & how to fix it? Please read and judge for yourself!
5. Closing
It’s time for the West to truly understand the past in order to truly understand the present and future! This post has helped a little bit, hopefully.
Now, please sit back and enjoy the excellent video below.
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