Written by Frank Li
My new book “History 2.0” (Introduction to “History 2.0”) will be published within weeks. This is a blurb by Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, “a world-renowned economics professor, bestselling author, innovative educator, and global leader in sustainable development”.
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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 – It must stop its precipitous decline. Most importantly, there must be no war, trade or otherwise, between the two largest economies in the world!
So writes Dr. Frank Li in his thoughts on China, the U.S., and the relations between the two countries.
I have long enjoyed reading his online postings, and these are now collected together in this book.
I agree with much of what he writes and disagree with much of it too. Yet I greatly appreciate his honest search for truth, his ability to draw on the wisdom of both his native country and adopted country, and his efforts to help Americans better understand China. His efforts at understanding are especially important today given the many ignorant, mistaken, and dangerous views about China held in American society.
His online postings are brief, brash, in-your-face, entertaining, and insightful. They are not academic treatises, filled with detail and footnotes. They are nuggets to stir readers to think beyond cliches. He introduces many big simplifications, but does so to provoke thinking, not to hide facts. He is right on many important points and wrong on others (he completely misjudges JFK, for example), but he is always thinking!
He emphasizes that China has triumphed over long stretches of history. He champions the staying power of China’s great culture and its profound contributions to humanity. He also points out several disastrous failures, such as when Chinese leaders turned inward in the 15th century, succumbed to superior European technology and imperialism in the 19th century, and governed chaotically and cruelly in the 1950s and 1960s. Yet he also rightly emphasizes China’s remarkable strengths, for example, its great successes after 1978 in building a modern economy with advanced technologies in a remarkably short period of time.
He is certainly correct that America has been very poorly governed in recent years and that America’s poor governance reflects deep flaws in American society: racism, arrogance, weak education, militarism, and a willful ignorance of many Americans about the rest of the world. He rightly warns Americans to shape up!
He is no believer in voting and democracy, and on this important point I strongly disagree with him. He argues that meritocracy (government of the capable) and democracy (government of the people) are inherently in contradiction. China has chosen meritocracy, with many capable leaders, while America, according to him, has chosen democracy, neglecting merit.
In my view, America has not lived up to its democratic principles because its government has also been based on two deeply flawed principles: plutocracy (government by the rich and for the rich) and racism (government for white supremacy). These two persistent facts have profoundly and deeply weakened American democracy, steered it away from meritocratic governance, and led it to violence and militarism as well.
He rightly emphasizes the importance of virtue in government. Virtue means that government earns the trust of the people. There is much for Americans to ponder and admire in this Confucian perspective. If more Americans understand the need for both merit and virtue in government, they would stop voting for people like Donald Trump.
Dr. Li wants both the U.S. and China to succeed. He is certainly right to urge Americans to understand China much better and to appreciate China’s great contributions to humanity. The world’s well-being depends on China and the U.S. working together to promote peace, prosperity, and sustainability.
Read this book with an open mind. You will learn and enjoy!
Jeffrey Sachs, Ph.D.
New York, New York
March 1, 2021
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