Question for "Beijing 2008": In what ways do you think the comparison with Germany, Mexico, and South Korea is useful or not useful in understanding the Beijing Olympics of 2008? Give one textual evidence with page number to support your view.
Question for "Shanghai in the 21st Century": In what ways do you think the comparison with "world fairs" in history and other cities in the world is useful or not useful in understanding the Shanghai Expo of 2010? Give one textual evidence with page number to support your view.
Question for "Future": What interests you most in these 13 questions about China's future? Give one textual evidence with page number to support your view.
Due Wednesday 12/4 by 8 pm. Comments to two other responses due Wednesday 12/4 by 10 pm. Please be prepared to share the progress of your third and final paper in class this week.
In contrasting the Olympics of Beijing in 2008 with those held in other countries such as Germany, South Korea, and Mexico, the author demonstrated the way that the Olympics, as an example of large-scale national events, have a lasting influence on the public’s underlying attitude towards politics and the state. Public events like the Olympics bring people together and inspire a sense of nationalism. "The Olympic Games have played a crucial role in shaping modern world history, influencing many aspiring nations' foreign policies and articulations of national identity” (226). In 2008, Beijing had the honor of hosting the Olympics as a sovereign place. This opportunity increased nationalism and encouraged Beijing to support Communism.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the author, Shanghai is "a re-globalizing, post-socialist, futuristic city" (138). Compared to other metropolises such as Dubai, Shanghai's Expo is not just globalizing, post-socialist or futuristic. Instead, Shanghai has actually successfully combined all of those qualities, choosing not to focus exclusively on globalism, socialism or the future. Shanghai's Expo is not just globalizing, post-socialist or futuristic but has actually successfully combined all the qualities. When contrasting the 2012 Shanghai Expo with the world fairs held in other cities around the world and across history is useful in understanding the Shanghai Expo because there is an apparent difference between Shanghai and other cosmopolitan cities in this type of comparison; when we compare Shanghai to Dubai, Istanbul or Paris, Shanghai’s progressiveness becomes visible. Shanghai is not built on "memories of a colorful past" (134). Instead, this city is "a re-globalizing, post-socialist, futuristic city" (138). For example, Dubai is just futuristic, whereas Shanghai is globalizing as well.
In terms of the future, what interested me most was that "only the United States and Japan stand higher in terms of gross domestic product." (121). China is a very rapidly growing nation as demonstrated by this quote, and may actually catch up to the US within this century. This is a huge improvement from its recent history of economic struggle. This is such a leap!
I disagreed with Wasserstrom's viewpoint on how long it will take China to top America and Japan in GDP. China is a master of evolution, and if we continue to make assumptions about them and their future, they will continue to prove us wrong by stepping it up a notch (I will probably be proved wrong now that I mention this). We were wrong before about where they would be today, and I am almost positive that we will be wrong about where they will be tomorrow.
DeleteI also talked about how only the United States and Japan stood higher in terms of gross domestic product. This means in 50 years they conquered all their failures and made a name for their nation contributing to economic strength. But it is unlikely that they will surpass the US even through all their success.
DeleteI agree with you that "public events like the Olympics bring people together and inspire a sense of nationalism." I think both of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and 2010 Shanghai Expo are the chances for China to flaunt its strength. Big events like these brought Chinese people together to show their best side to the world.
Delete“Beijing 2008”
ReplyDeleteThe most useful comparison, from my perspective, for the 2008 Beijing Olmpics was Xu’s comparison with Mexico in the 1960’s. He mentions that “Mexico had endured repeated national identity crises” (228) and that they struggled to maintain a “representative national image” (228); furthermore, he argues that this struggle carried into the planning of their Olympic games (228). The last mention that caught my attention was that he acknowledged Mexico as a “forward looking nation with a proud ancient civilization” (228). These attributes scream “China” as I consider the rich 5000+ year history that China maintained, yet has been permanently (arguably) disrupted –their unity and nationalism – by the crises that occurred throughout the 19th and 20th centuries (revolution, war, etc.). Furthermore, I believe we saw confusion in the 2008 Olympic games, because very few of us – the focus being predominantly on Americans – know what to think of China; for years, our view has been set within this “communist mold,” thinking only of the sickle and hammer, Mao and the color “red.” Then, we turn on the television the summer of 2008 and we see this extravagant, modern, somewhat capitalistic China and realize that we may have been fed lies; have we bought into lies, or is China just confused on who they are and choose to ignore the problem at hand?
“Future”
I was fascinated by the section “Will China, long thought of as a land of villages, soon be called a land of cities?” (121) in Wasserstrom’s book. “In the past twenty years, more than 120 million internal migrants have headed into Chinese cities… the largest voluntary migration in the history of the world” (122) and the thought that by 2030 “the country will have more than one hundred cities with populations exceeding a million” (123) leaves me awestruck at the massiveness of this country and its potential, but also worried – like Wasserstrom – for the future of China and whether they will be able to support that population and be able to provide enough energy and food to keep them alive. If so, China can be the strongest superpower this planet has ever seen, harnessing the power of all its inhabitants, reaching its goal of “dominant economic power” much quicker than Wassertrom may think (120-121). If not, however, it could be a great tragedy not only for China, but for anyone directly or indirectly impacted by the country (the rest of the world).
I agree with your observation about the correlations with Mexico, including their history and their search for a national identity. It is interesting that these very different countries would have similar aspects.
DeleteI like the quote you focused on: Mexico as a “forward looking nation with a proud ancient civilization”. I agree, China does fit this profile very nicely, grounded as it is in its history and with an eye towards progress and development.
DeleteIn my opinion, migrants as an important part of development, did not get enough recognization or attention. The problem is that, by the "hukou" system, things are getting harder for migrants.
DeleteI agree with your views on China's growth as a nation of cities. If they can manage to be able to support themselves they will be a force to be reckoned with; however, conversely if they cannot support their enormous population they may suffer a great fall and could take a huge chunk of the world's economy with them.
DeleteI also agree with you on this one. The cities really do make up China as far as the economy goes. Each city has its own special product to be produced and booming cities like Shenzhen that suddenly pop out of nowhere really prove this point even more so.
DeleteChina is the host of the 29th Olympic Games, and the 29th Olympic Games was held in Beijing on August 8, 2008 at 8:00 pm. In China, the number eight is a homophone for the word for getting rich. I think this article focuses on the closely connection between Olympic Games and China’s internationalization. “the 2008 Olympic Games offer a tremendous opportunity for Beijing to effectively communicate with the world about its vision of the future and the very course of its internationalization” (Xu, unknown page number) Through the unremitting pursuit of the Olympic Games and this international arena, let China to the world. And it also makes the world has a deeper understanding of China.
ReplyDeleteShanghai is a super city like London and New York, which set the world agenda in finance and fashion and everything in between. (p.137) With more than 30 years China’s opening up and development, Shanghai is rapidly integrating into the global network, building an international metropolis is an inevitable choice. Keeping its pace with the dynamics of our times, Shanghai, a legend name in urban revolution, has become one of the most dynamic, exciting and promising global cities. Like high-speed “maglev” train, hosting 2010 World Expo, “East-meets-West visions, etc. In some ways, the growth of Shanghai tells the story of contemporary China. “Development is a good thing, and as a Chinese I’m proud of Shanghai’s development. But when you’re developing, you have to balance it with the lives of people” (125, Jeffery) I agree with this point, I have also seen how China’s rapid economic growth has created some problems, such as environmental damage and a gap between urban and rural development.
“What kind of government will China have in a decade?” on page 125 interests me most in the “Future” article. As a Chinese, I am concerning about the development direction of the government. The development direction of government has closely relation with the people. The article refers to two contrasting visions: China’s Democratic Future and The Coming Collapse of China. I think this is interesting, because China has complex national condition. I hope China will make true democracy even it will be difficult to do so. I am also interested in the “adaptive authoritarianism”, which is regarded as the best way to categorize PRC politics in the article. It is said: “the CCP as a protean organization, which has proved capable of adapting itself to the needs of particular moments”. (p.125) CCP is adjusting itself to adapt the constantly changing circumstance and hold the regime after Mao era.
I think the problem of rapid economic growth is a definitely serious and needs to be considered as China develops as a nation. If this doesn't happen, then China will outgrow its current boundaries and suffer major consequences
Delete"In China, the number eight is a homophone for the word for getting rich. I think this article focuses on the closely connection between Olympic Games and China’s internationalization." I thought this was great to point out! I did not know that number eight symbolized getting rich. It is perfect to describe the growth of a nation from failures to making a name for their nation and finally getting to host the 2008 Olympics. Great connection.
DeleteYou bring up a very good point regarding the degradation of the environment as a side effect to progress. There are unfortunately many consequences to rapid growth and over-development if we are not prepared with a sustainable plan in place.
DeletePeople always compare Shanghai to New York City. However, I think every city has its own identity. Even though there might be some similiarities, the cultures are totally different.
DeleteI found your talking about the Future piece was very interesting, wondering what kind of government China will have in a decade. How the government is constantly adapting to hold power.
DeleteI agree with you.I also hope CCP can let our country become more and more democratic. CCP is adjusting itself, it will take time.
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ReplyDelete"The Olympic dreams" basically compared Mexico, Germany, South Korea and China together. For Germany, the author relate political issues to comparison. "Both Nazi and the PRC regimes considered themselves masters of propaganda." (Xu, p.227) However, I think it is useless for comparison in political opinions. The Olympic spirits only concerned about the athlete's spirits. The ceremony itself is just exhibiting the city or country itself. I did not see too much political relating to the Olympic games. For Mexico and South Korea, I agree with the points the author talked about, " despite international doubts and domestic problems, organizers of the 1968 Games wish to present Mexico as a modern, forward-looking nation with a proud civilization. "(Xu, p.228) The advantages of proud civilization benefit the exhibiting.At the same time, the problems did not disappear within the progress of Olympic Games. "The 1988 Summer Games held in South Korea were perhaps the most controversial problematic of the three problems. "( Xu, p.229)
ReplyDeleteIn the "Twenty-first-century Shanghai," the comparison of South Korea and Japan could be one point of cultural broadcasting. "One could point to the enormous importance of Japan and products and popular culture, including anime and manga and horror movies from South Korea, among young people in this and nearly all other east Asian cities." ( p.131) The brand of culture is quite important. So the EXPO is kind of a brand of Shanghai. But the influence, compared to Kpop or Japanese animation, is a little bit weaker.
For the third paper, one of the most interesting question to me is "how can the United States and China adjust an era in which they are two superpowers?" As already hint at above, there is at least one thing might that, in a small way, help to combat both U.S. misunderstanding of the PRC and Chinese misunderstanding of the United States."( p.131) I think the best solution for misunderstanding is to communicate frequently.
I like your observation about South Korean and Japanese cultural impact. There seems to be a lot of contemporary culture from those two countries in the United States nowadays, but not as much from China.
DeleteI like what you said in the third paragraph. Yes they are both power houses and they can adjust to the times and will stay on top.
DeleteI agree with what you said "EXPO is kind of a brand of Shang Hai." Shang Hai is a city which combined eastern and western cultures and Chinese people wish to host an exposition of global and multicultural convergence. So EXPO has significant meaning to Shang Hai.
DeleteI agree with your idea about" the best solution for misunderstanding is to communicate frequently. " It is the right thing that the U.S. and China can help each other.
DeleteI hope that China and the United States can correct handling foreign relations.Don't each other to fake news reported.
DeleteAgree with the last point. communication was the best way of solution to the misunderstandings to the both nation's people, but to these two "superpower" nations, it is not that simple. How to adjust it? I guess, to create more opportunities to understand each other and balance the benefits of two nations.
DeleteIn the reading “Beijing 2008” it first began talking about the different situations Germany, Mexico and South Korea have all been in before they hosted the Olympics. I thought it was very helpful comparing the situations these countries were in with China’s 2008 Olympic run. It was key to understand the struggle of a nation before China hosted the Olympics and how they had to come together to prepare the city for all they different tourists. I thought the section about trying the new sport, yachting, in the America’s Cup was the most inspiring. They were trained and sponsored by the French. On page 264 it says, “This shift toward involving foreigners in Chinese sports is a new and healthy one for China. And when more China or international entrepreneurs sponsor, own, or otherwise finance sports teams or events, they are creating a new type of sports separate from the state-controlled sports in China.” Not only did they come together as a nation but they involved themselves with other nations to become more nationally recognizable in sports and other events not played in their culture.
ReplyDelete"Shanghai in the 21st Century" about the uprising of the imperial city Shanghai in China. It is a city of comparison but Zhang described it as a unique city. It is not comparable to New York, London or Paris because they are not re-globalizing (pg 133). They are big cities that deal with the latest fashion, economic statues, trades and finances. However, China is a “global” city, learning and re-globalizing from other cities and will soon stand out more and more as a model for other urban cities that had golden ages as cosmopolitan hubs (pg 134). They had so much success developing their past failures to leading future trends.
In “Future” the question that interested me the most was “Will China become the world’s dominant economic power?” It said that only the United States and Japan stand higher in gross domestic product (pg 121). China has come a long way to even be considered as the highest economic status from the previous years of failure including Great Leap Forward. In 50 years, China has caught up to the United States but it is very unlikely that they will surpass the US in economic status. They should still be proud of their progress.
I'm going to disagree with you on your view of China's economy. I believe they may eventually, possibly even soon, surpass the U.S.'s economic status. They have an enormous workforce and produce many goods.
DeleteLike Bradley, I'll have to disagree with you in your last paragraph. I think the fact that China has come so far just proves that it's possible for it to keep improving. Like Bradley said, with such an enormous workforce and production of so many goods, it could certainly happen in the near future.
DeleteStephanie is in my group so I have to come to her defense. Yes, China has come a long way with their enormous workforce along with their production efficiency, but you all fail to realize that the US controls whether we want to supply China with this abundant flow of business. The United States could do the very same thing with Malaysia or Indonesia.
DeleteThe three case studies posed interesting questions for the international impact the image of the Olympics holds for each country. Germany, under the leadership of the Hitler, sought to propagate the strength and prosperity of the Nazi regime. Mexico’s pursuit of a unified national identity and developing international image relates maybe the best to China’s situation. “Despite international doubts and domestic problems, organizers of the 1968 Games wished to present Mexico as a modern, forward-looking nation with a proud ancient civilization” (228). Developing into a modern nation, as well as proving stability, such as South Korea’s case, attracted the highest efforts in hosting the Games. China’s involvement in the Olympics, relevant to these case studies, wished to confirm the PRC, flex the muscles of China’s growing economic strength, and display a positive social and political legacy.
ReplyDeleteThe comparison to world fairs contained in “Twenty-first century Shanghai” led to a better understanding of China’s efforts to form a new self-concept, “If Shanghai’s initial globalization deserves to be treated as much more than just a tale of East-meets-West, the same holds true in spades for the city’s re-globalization” (129). The city’s ‘re-globalization’ did not just contain Western ideas, but increased tourism applied these domestically. Shanghai was also described as a complex, futuristic city, “one that inspires dreams and nightmares” (137). Similar to other cities hosting world fairs in the past, Shanghai was setting the standard for new technology and modern living, and willing to take the risk of trying something new.
The question, “What big issues relating to the environment and energy does China face?” was the most interesting to me in regards to Wasserstrom’s analysis on China in the 21st century. Industrialization has increased the need for power sources such as coal and oil, the latter particularly driving China to form relations with other countries who can supplement their own limited supply. He also mentions that even more factories will need to be opened to continue development and the growing middle class. The author asserts that water is the main resource concern, “Due to polluted rivers, melting Himalayan ice caps, and a declining North China water table (which was never in good shape to begin with: per capita water amounts there have long been well below 10 percent of the global average), shortages of drinking water and water for irrigation are already a serious problem and are likely to get much worse in the years to come” (128). Water issues are generally focused in under-developed nations, but China’s environmental concerns for supporting the population and irrigation for its agriculture to feed the people should not be overlooked.
You did a good job. I think all these problem like water pollution and agriculture and so on are connected each other, if one of them did not solved, the next one will not do good.
DeleteI like the quote you used about the similarities between Mexico and China during their hostings of the Olympic Games. Well done
DeleteGreat quotes, I used one of the same ones. I also think that by showing the different countries the olympics have been in helped the writer to make good points about the differences and comparisons.
DeleteI like your third article point of view. Now China face a big problem in environment and energy. I think China need to continue to development sustainable development road.
DeleteRight, pollution is a big issue in China. Especially in Beijing.
DeleteOlympic Games has now become a symbol of peace and friendship, it is a sports, education, culture as comprehensive, sustained, integrated global activity, but also reflects the spread of a culture, such as the spread of the Olympic Games in can be fully demonstrated. 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, represent the world's recognition and support to the country. "The Olympic Games have played a crucial role in shaping modern world history, influencing many aspiring nations' foreign policies and articulations of national identity" (226). So a country can host the Olympics to let the world know you can learn about a country, which has an important impact on the development of the country.
ReplyDeleteShanghai is China 's most famous commercial city and cosmopolitan city , is the largest comprehensive industrial city , is also China 's economy, transportation , technology, industry, finance, trade , exhibition and shipping center . The first city of China’s GDP ranks. Is "a re-globalizing, post-socialist, futuristic city" (138) 2010 Expo provides an opportunity to improve China's international image , the Shanghai Expo will become a favorable international political arena , so as to enhance Shanghai 's international influence. Shanghai World Expo will affect the Chinese economy, promote the Chinese. Shanghai Expo economic development has brought to China and creates a new vitality.
In "Future" that interested me the most was "Will China becomes the world's dominant economic power?" It said that only the United States and Japan stand higher in gross domestic product (121). Rapid growth of China's economy, it is possible catch up with the United States in the future, this way, people are proud of.
I think even China's GDP would catch up with the US, there are still many standard such as technology or military that force China to compare with the top countries. it is not easy.
DeleteI support your idea about China will become the top of developing country because comparing 90's China, China shows rapid growth of economy and technology now.
DeleteI agree with "it is possible catch up with the United States in the future, this way, people are proud of." But I do not think China can become the world's dominant economic power. Because China has a huge population, country get rich, not means people will become rich.
DeleteIn “Beijing 2008,” Xu Guoqi made comparisons of the then-forthcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics to previous Olympic events held in Mexico, Germany, and South Korea in order to develop theories about how the 2008 Games might affect China and the world. His description of South Korea seems to be the most similar to China, and thus the most useful country to help understanding of the Beijing Olympics. When hosting the Olympics, South Korea seized an opportunity to display Korean society in a positive light to the rest of the world (Xu, p.231), a goal that was achieved, as “The Games served as a bridge to better relations with countries…” (Xu, p. 230) Similarly, the goal of the Chinese government for the 2008 Games seemed to be to present China as a forward-thinking, powerful world player. Xu says, “…China was trying to convey to the world that it was a normal and more mainstream nation, not the isolated, ideologically determined country it had been earlier.” (p.245) Other actions taken by officials, such as the steps to make Beijing citizens more welcoming to foreigners (Xu, p.252), reinforce the idea that appearance was of the utmost importance during the Games.
ReplyDeleteLike those in the previous piece, the examples in the chapter “Conclusion: ten theses on twenty-first-century Shanghai” have varying degrees of relevancy. The examples from expos held in the West would be much less pertinent than examples from those held in the East, because world expos have a different degree of popularity and importance in Europe and America than they do in Asia. (Wasserstrom, p.127) For example, the Osaka Expo of 1970 is similar in that both the Japanese and Chinese governments wanted to change other peoples’ preconceived ideas about the country (p.127).
The most interesting questions for me in “The Future” were the last three (p.131-135), because they deal with how China and the United States relate to each other. These questions and others that Jeffrey Wasserstrom addresses in “Future” demonstrate how relatively little the average American knows about China. A similar lack of information in other countries is why it was so important to China to put on a good appearance and achieve worldwide recognition during the 2008 Olympics and the 2010 Shanghai Expo.
The quotes you used in the first paragraph were great in supporting your point that appearance was most important to China during the Games. Great post!
DeleteIn the reading “Olympic Dreams” Xu Guoqi compare three countries which all of them has host of the Olympic Games to Beijing’s. The Beijing Olympic Games and the Mexico City games I think it is quite similar. “Both suffer from serious national identity crises as well as self-doubt and a certain inferiority complex. Both are worried about their citizen’s behavior and have tried to teach their people how to behave for an international audience.” [page 229] “Will Beijing similarly fail to live up to its aspirations regarding the 2008 Games” [page 299]. I think Beijing did well in the 2008 Olympic Games. It did change the life in China and Chinese people always appreciate the purposes and principles of Olympic ideal, support the efforts of Olympic Games to promote world peace.
ReplyDelete“Shanghai is not like London or Paris …She is not like New York …She is not even like Jakarta…Shanghai’s development path has been unique. Shanghai is just Shanghai”[page 133] Shanghai are full of history and it was a global city in the past and now it is a “re-global” city. “as we have seen, was in many ways more like other Chinese cities in the 1970s than of the twentieth century and was more like other Chinese cities in the 1970s than it was in the 1870s. Sice Shanghai is now routinely called a “global city”. [page 134]
I agree with you that Olympic brings China hope and lead China to chase for higher goal in the future. Shanghai as global city prove itself successfully.
DeleteI agree with your view on the Olympics. Olympic is a symbol of peace and friendship. It makes people get better.
DeleteLike the other two here, I agree that the Olympics is a symbol of peace and friendship. Even if countries are in disagreements at the time, they still come together to compete in the games, demonstrating world peace for a brief time.
Delete“Beijing 2008”
ReplyDelete“Which among these Games from the past is likely to hold the most pertinent lessons for Beijing? The answer is both none and all.” [Xu Guoqi, p. 231] All three countries sought to use the games as a way to further their selves internationally. Germany wanted to utilize the opportunity to advance the Nazi propaganda. Mexico wanted to be respected both as an ancient civilization and as a modern nation. South Korea’s goal was to gain respect amongst the larger nations and to be noticed. I believe the Beijing Games was a conglomeration of these three aspects; to advance their ideals and to earn recognition and respect.
“Shanghai in the Twenty-First Century”
“Few cities, especially those determinedly striving to be seen as futuristic, are as intensely concerned with their own past as is post-socialist Shanghai.” [Wasserstrom, p.131] Shanghai has sites of historical importance such as the Hongkou section where people with ties to Japan as well as Jews fleeing Nazi Germany clustered. Shanghai has also entered a category of “futuristic cities – the kinds of places that people look to when trying to figure out… where the world is headed.” [Wasserstrom, p. 136] During the 1800s, Paris and London were these cities; then New York and Tokyo joined them in the 20th century as did Los Angeles. Dubai and Shanghai can now also be considered part of this futuristic group of metropolises. Shanghai is its own unique city, but comparing it to these other great cities we can see how it and its World’s Fair are such achievements that they are.
“Future”
“It now seems that by 2030 (and perhaps by 2020), more than half of China’s population will reside in cities.” [Wasserstrom, p. 122] China’s people are internally migrating to cities; in the past 20 years, more citizens have moved into cities than moved across the Atlantic into the United States during its industrialization. By 2020, China may have more than 100 cities with populations greater than 1 million. China currently has the most urban residents than any other place on Earth.
I like your analysis of the Beijing Olympics containing aspects of each of the 3 nations used as example. The projection of 100 cities with more than 1 million is pretty interesting to think about too.
Delete“Olympic Dreams” by Xu question about the nature and future of China and particularly find sports as utmost international expression in the Olympic. “The Game served as a bridge to better relations with countries with which South Korea had not before enjoyed diplomatic relations, such as China.” (P230). It is useful to understanding because once the Olympic held, the country will standing and become powerful. Olympic will affect countries to communicate and patch up their relationship.
ReplyDelete“Global Shanghai” by Jeffrey summarized the historical heritage, east-west mixture, Reglobalization, post-socialist and futuristic nature of Shanghai. “ Shanghai is many sided...unqiue among the cities of World.” “Shanghai may be setting pattern or beginning to serve as a model for other urban centers.” (P133) help me understanding that the 2010 Expo demonstrate its commercial success and brings more people to know the popularity of Shanghai.
“Future” by Jeffrey make me interesting about environment question of China, because of increasing population size, China highly demand oil and allocation of coal project.
I agree with you it is useful to understanding because once the Olympic held, the country will standing and become powerful.Olympics is the opportunity to show their country to the world, in every country to grab this opportunity. The state should have the strength to be strong enough to hold the Olympics.
DeleteI also think that the the olympic games serve as a "bridge", I think it is a very powerful thing and statement from the hosting country to the world.
DeleteThe Olympic games serve more than just a bridge between the nations, in fact it was more of a way for the nations to get together peacefully and build relationships among them.
DeleteI really enjoyed your post. I also like the "bridge" reference and that was a good quote to support your ideas.
DeleteI like your quote. “The Game served as a bridge to better relations with countries with which South Korea had not before enjoyed diplomatic relations, such as China.” (P230) "Bridge" is an excellent thing to describe the Olympic's function, and Olympic games have a significant effect to countries relationship.
DeleteIn the "Olympic Dreams" by Xu Guoqi, the 2008 Beijing Olympics is compared and contrasted to the games that were hosted in Germany, Mexico, and South Korea. I found the comparison of Mexico's games to be very relevant to China in wanting to promote their image to the rest of the world. "Mexico envisioned its Games as a cultured, high-minded experience and had grand expectations that the Games would allow it to project a better image and enhance its status in the world-hopes that China holds for its upcoming Olympics" (Xu, pg. 229). Even though both countries' Olympic Games were four decades apart, they had a lot in common about what they wanted to achieve through their Olympics.
ReplyDeleteIn "Twenty-first Century Shanghai" we learn about Shanghai's growth and what sets it apart "The rapidity with which Shanghai has been changing and continues to change makes it difficult to predict what lies in store for it" (Wasserstrom, pg. 125). I thought it was interesting that even though Shanghai is constantly considered to be like Paris or New York, there are things that set the big city apart. "Shanghai is now routinely called a "global city", drawing attention to its "re-globalizing" nature can help analysts in urban studies better understand the varied routes that a metropolis can take to top tier status" (Wasserstrom, pg. 134). The city has many different influences and is constantly "re-globalizing" which sets it apart.
In "Future" I think the question I found most interesting was "Is China bent on world domination?" (Wasserstrom, pg. 116) because of how over-hyped things can become just to instill fear about another nation. Because of their large army size, it causes people to feel uneasy about China. "It sees having a powerful military as crucial for maintaining control at home" (Wasserstrom, pg. 118) because when things get out of control in China, it is likely their military will take care of it.
I also thought along the same lines as you when reading "Future", though I focused on politics as the driving factor in whether or not China would eventually start a conquest.
DeleteGood comparison with New York and Paris to Shanghai. Shanghai really has become a globalizing city which doesn't just attract for tourist purposes, but acts as an almost "world-market".
DeleteI enjoyed your quote for "Shanghai in the 21st Century". Shanghai (and even China in general) is coming up quick and to predict the future of its growth would be quite a challenge.
DeleteI feel that it is a major difference between the US and China. China will use military power at home and the US rarely uses military power at home.
DeleteIn the reading “Beijing 2008”, I think it is useful comparison with Germany, Mexico, and South Korean. “ The 1936 Berlin Olympic Games into an aggressive instrument of German propaganda(Xu 226)”. Mexico was the first developing country to host the Olympic Game in 1936. “Mexico wanted to use the Games to present itself in very positive way”(Xu228). South Korea was the most “controversial and problematic” country compared with German, Mexico and China, such as the problem of diplomatic. There are same common points in these four countries, such as politics, economics. Compared with the other three countries, I understand the Olympic Games let other countries to understand China. “The tense international system will influence China’s political system and social ability”(xu, 232). “What is certain is that the 2008 Beijing Games will shape both China’s relationship with other countries and its national development”(xu, 232).
ReplyDelete2010 World Expo occurred in Shanghai. This was as important as the 2008 Beijing Olympic. “Shanghai local officials are using the term ‘Economic Olympic’ to refer to the Shanghai Expo”(Shanghai 129). The purpose of the event was to let international people know about Shanghai. As Los Angles Times Magazine article wrote, Shanghai is a super-city now, which is the same as London and New York. The urban certers in Shanghai can “set the world agenda in fiancé and fashion and everything in between”(shanghai 137). The event still want to let other countries to know about the development of China.
In the reading “Future”, I am interested in the question “what other kinds of things do China and the United Stated have in Common”. The author lists several common points. For example, between late 1800s-mid 1900s, the U.S. built railway and “highway system which connected to parts of country that were previously cut off from one another and were sometimes hailed as engineering marvels”, just as China has been building the rail which connected Tibet. (Future, 134) In my opinion, this common points mean that China is developing.
In “Beijing 2008” the reading talks about different situations leading up to the Olympics in Mexico, Germany, and South Korea. It helped that the readings compared the three countries because it is always good to see how different people will handle different situations. It is important that everyone gets to see change the countries have because before hosting the Olympics these countries had some struggle especially China. On page 264 is says ““This shift toward involving foreigners in Chinese sports is a new and healthy one for China. And when more China or international entrepreneurs sponsor, own, or otherwise finance sports teams or events, they are creating a new type of sports separate from the state-controlled sports in China.” The Olympics are a huge shift, but one necessary for good change in a country and the Olympics put China back on the map.
ReplyDeleteThe second reading “Shanghai in the 21st Century” is about hoe the imperial city of Shanghai rose up against the current government. It is a very great and unique city that compares to no other city today. “If Shanghai’s initial globalization deserves to be treated as much more than just a tale of East-meets-West, the same holds true in spades for the city’s re-globalization” (129). This city is very different and has new technologies and is always coming up with new ones. Shanghai today has set standards for what all technological advances should be like and in a way China and its large cities hold a new standard for the worlds technology.
What Interests me most in “Future” is the question that I have been hearing for years. “Will China become the world’s dominant economic power”? Personally I want to say yes. Everything is made in China today, if you look on the back tag of just about anything it says “Made In China” clearly they have the production levels and economic status to take over the united states. It is very scary to think about because most of us as Americans do not know a world where the United States is on top. It is just a different view of the world but I think that it could happen.
In “Olympic Games”, I think the comparison between China and South Korea is interesting. Xu said “The 1988 Summer Games held in South Korea were perhaps the most controversial and problematic of the three example.”(p229) During that period of time, South Korea was itself politically unstable(p230) At that time, China also faced some tough diplomatic problems such like Taiwan issue. Chinese government absolutely don’t want to conflict with other countries, but some insurgents still plan to make trouble. Therefore, Chinese government paid high attention to ensure safety during the Olympic Games.
ReplyDeleteShang Hai is a typical city in China because this city combined eastern and western culture. To compare with European and American cities, Shang Hai shows more the integration of different cultures. Jeffrey said “It has long been commonplace both within and beyond Shang Hai to talk about the city as a locate that connects Europe and America to China.”(p128) It shows Shang Hai is a modern city that include different kinds of different cultures. Shang Hai EXPO is a good chance to introduce Shang Hai to people from all over the world.
In the future, I think one of the biggest issue for CCP is how to maintain sustainable economic development. In the last two decades, China has completed the rapid economic development. However, how to keep this high growth rates become a big problem. Jeffrey said “The party has come to depend so heavily on high growth rates that it needs the economy to perform not just well but very well.”(p123) China is like a huge ship, and how to make sure this ship always on the right lane really need our government leaders to consider.
When you hear the Olympics, you picture the entrance ceremony, that one guy that runs the fire to the alter, and the insane competition that everyone competes in order to represent their country. But could you imagine how the cities are selected? In the reading, Olympic Dream, the countries that were competing in order to win the privilege of hosting the Olympic Game's went crazy in trying to appeal to the people that were in charge. "With the cooperation of the police and traffic control departments, turned every light green as they approached an intersection" (PG 235 Xu Guoqi) shows how much effort one city went through just to impress someone on the bidding committee. That was taken place in Sydney Australia, however, China was also bending over backwards to impress the biding committee as well. "The government even closed factories so black fumes wouldn't mar the skies. Electricity was shut off in neighborhoods that the IOC inspection team would not visit..." (PG 235 Xu Guoqi) shows that even Beijing was going to go through everything and anything in order to impress the people that came to the country to visit. Of course hosting the Olympic games would not only put China on the map but it would also begin to strengthen its relationship with other world powers.
ReplyDeleteI like how in "Future", they showed aspects where the United States and China had in common. Considering the fact that both China and the United States are both major world powers, a similarity I found interesting was on page 134. "1800's and mid 1900's, the United States built railways and highways...just as China was" (pg 134 Jeffrey Wasserstrom) shows that even though China and the United States are on opposite ends of the world, there seem to be an underlining similarity between the them.
I think not only the US and China have the common parts, but also other developing countries have the same points. That's why we call global village today
DeleteI agree with your idea of China and US have many similarities. I think that the US's economy is ahead of China's and China is following US's footsteps right now.
Delete"Beijing 2008" compares the effect of hosting the Olympics on China to the effect it had on Germany, Mexico, and South Korea. While each country related to China in some way or another, (Germany propaganda, Mexico trying to improve how it was viewed by the world, and South Korea was a similar Asian country) the one I paid the most attention to was South Korea. Both countries were trying to gain recognition as world powers from other nations. "Most basically, the Games were their ticket to international recognition and membership in the family of nations. The official slogan of the Seoul games was 'Seoul to the world, the world to Seoul.'" (Xu Guoqi, 230) I believe the Seoul Olympics relates more to the Beijing Olympics than the Germany or Mexico Games since it had the most similar political and cultural situation.
ReplyDeleteComparing how cosmopolitan Shanghai is with other global cities such as London, Tokyo, or New York can be somewhat useful but not completely accurate. Each of the above cities is very diverse and cultures from all around the world can be found there. However, there will always be a dominating culture that stands out from the others. For example British in London, Japanese in Tokyo, and mainland Chinese in Shanghai. This point is supported by the following quote: "While it is undeniable that in many specific regards Shanghai is unlike any other place on earth, in trying to understand its current state and future prospects, comparison with other places can help." (Wasserstrom, 133)
Out of all the questions posed in "Future", the one that interests me the most is the question of China's political system. Will China ever be a democracy? This interests me because if China is to eventually surpass the United States and become the dominant world power, I'd like to make sure the leaders of that nation have good intentions rather than those of conquest. Both China surpassing the U.S. and democracy seem to be far off though since, according to the text, "the CCP has been working tirelessly to learn how to avoid precisely the scenarios alluded to above. Ironically, for this reason, the constant predictions of the party's imminent demise may have made its fall less rather than more likely." (Wasserstrom, 123)
I also think the quote you used in the last paragraph is extremely interesting regarding the CCP's efforts to prevent democracy from taking hold. I think, like you said, China's future as a democracy relies very heavily on China's leadership.
Delete"Beijing 2008" discusses the hardships China would go through when preparing to host the Olympics in Beijing. The reading describes the similar situations of Germany, Mexico, and South Korea. The thing that all of these countries had in common was that they all had governmental struggles during the time that they hosted and prepared for the Olympics. Hosting the Olympics requires the entire nation to come together in order to accommodate the mass amounts of tourists that would be visiting the country for several weeks. China began working with others countries to improve their skills in Olympic events to make them involved even with foreign sports.
ReplyDelete"Shanghai in the 21st Century" describes the advancement of the city into becoming a "global" city. The city cannot be compared to New York, London, or Paris because they are not reglobalizing, they're already at the top in terms of cities in the world. The reading describes how Shanghai is learning from big cities like these in order to catch up with them.
A question from "Future" that I'd like to comment on is "Will China become the world's dominant economic power?" "Only the United States and Japan stand higher in terms of gross domestic product." (121) China has come a very long way economically in the past century. The country has very many workers and they produce very many products, so I think it is entirely possibly for the country to advance to become the world's dominant economic power. I don't think it's something that would happen any time soon, but eventually it could happen.
In the first article “Olympic Dreams”, it used an angle of view to compare Beijing Olympic Games with other three hosted countries which are Mexico, Germany, and South Korea. These countries brought a lot of experience and lessons to Beijing. “The Olympic Games have played a crucial role in shaping modern world history, influencing many aspiring nations' foreign policies and articulations of national identity”( Xu,226) I believe that the Olympic Games host country is not only to promote the sports spirit. It also need the host through this opportunity to propagandize their country's culture and democratic spirit. Like “the hosts of all Olympic Games, Mexico wanted to use the games to present itself in very positive ways.”(Xu, 228) The Beijing Olympic Games also used its 5000 years history and culture like Confucius culture to tell this world China is a great nation. Government and people were through the effort to make Beijing's environment better and to greet the arrival of the Olympic Games. I think the Host country needs based on the economic, political and culture to attract the attention of the world.
ReplyDeleteIn the "Twenty-first-century Shanghai," it mainly talked about “globalization” or “regionalization”. The author’s major concern, as seen in this focus, is the relation between China and the world, mediated and reflected through the lens of Shanghai. Shanghai is a city of combining eastern and western culture. It has a unique charm to attract the world tourists. It is different from Paris and New York. “If Shanghai’s initial globalization deserves to be treated as much more than just a tale of East-meets-West, the same holds true in spades for the city’s regionalization”( Shanghai, 130) Shanghai to host the world Expo can well show the world culture from country to country.
In “Future”, I am interested in the question “What big issues relating to the environment and energy does China face?” With the rapid development of China’s Economy, environment and energy issue become more important thing. I think the number of China's huge population and development patterns lead to environmental and energy problems. “China has oil reserves (some in politically sensitive areas, like Xinjiang, and near Pacific islands that are claimed by both the PRC and Japan), but not enough to meet its growing needs.”(Future, 128) I think China should continue to sustainable development road.
I am interested in the same question you talked about in the future, too. China has a rapidly economic growth company with the environment and energy issues. I guess if the government would not take effective measures to deal with those problems, the country's economic "miracle will end soon, because the environment can no longer keep pace.
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ReplyDelete"Beijing 2008"
We see that in this story China (or more specifically the city of Beijing) is compared to other cities/nations which have held the Olympics in the past. Such places such as South Korea, Germany, and have shown the rest of the world what their individual cultural identity represents and what their own culture signifies in comparison to other cultures. This allowed China to show the rest of the world who the were, are, and will ever become. This in hand brings change to that country as well. "The Olympic Games have played a crucial role in shaping modern world history, influencing many aspiring nations' foreign policies and articulations of national identity" (Page 226).
"Shanghai in the 21st Century"
The story thoroughly explained the culture and historical uniqueness that is seen in the city of Shanghai. It is a city different from the rest of China in multiple ways. (Like Hong Kong and Taiwan, Shanghai has its own unique dialect of Chinese, Shanghainese (which differs very much from Standard Mandarin). Shanghai has also been heavily influenced by the West for decades. It is one of the earliest modernized cities in China. This story even mentions how to predict the future of Shanghai is a difficult thing itself. It is a city that is constantly growing and is a major player in international business. "Shanghai is a super city like London and New York, which set the world agenda in finance and fashion and everything in between" (Page 137).
"Future"
I thought the most interesting part was with the question of "What kind of government would China have in a decade?" (Page 125). This is an especially important question because with China not only becoming a crucial part of the economy of the United States but across the globe as well, it will only become more important for international economics and business in the near future.
For the reading “Beijing” I thought that the author did a great job in first setting up the reading with some background information. Introducing how China’s 2008 Olympic “could” be like one of the three previous Olympics; South Korea, Germany, or Mexico was a great way to encompass the idea that China’s Olympics would be one to remember. These three previous Olympics provided information to allow the reader to interpret and make an inference on which Olympic China would be most like. Through the reading I found that China would be like no other previous Olympic. China, still confused on what type of country it wanted to be, seemed to still want to find a way to be a nationalistic country along with showing the world they were a unified, democratic nation. “Even now, as Beijing prepares for the Games, the Chinese are reassessing their self-image while they craft the view of China they will show the rest of the world. Whether the Games become a “coming-out part” that bring political legitimacy to the Chinese Communist regime, spark political reform and a new identity, or even bring down the existing political order, remains to be seen” (230). The author also enters subtle hints here and there that China may want that sense of “new identity” the country still stays true.
ReplyDeleteWhen reading “Twenty-first-century Shanghai” I particularly liked how the author started with the continuously rapid growth of Shanghai from just a city to a metropolis. “The rapidity in which Shanghai has been changing and continues to change makes it difficult to predict what lies in store for it” (125). This quote was a great example representing not just Shanghai but China. China through the 21st century was going through a number of changes. Confused on what exactly the end destination for the “face” of China to be, it could be agreed that China was moving with capitalistic ideas. In every world event, China was constantly dumping loads of money to illustrate to the world audience that China was indeed a “world market”. This is why product production has increased so much in China, along with the constant expanding nature the country has. It seems to only grow. Both this reading and the previous “Beijing” 2008” had to do with China’s past that influenced the decisions and where the country was now. From point 4, it sates “So strong was the nostalgia for “Old Shanghai” that developed in Taipei and Hong Kong that many residents of those cities without any actual family ties o the mainland metropolis were predisposed to view investing in the city as a natural and attractive as soon as it re-opened its doors to international business ventures” (132) We see that Shanghai was used as a tourist attraction, influencing all sources to invest in this ever growing metropolis. This is exactly what China wanted.
In “Future” I found the article to be particularly interesting because it introduces the 13 probably most discussed questions about China. However, the question that interested me the most was if China was likely to become a democracy. Seeing the quote “One reason for this is that the CCP has been working tirelessly to learn how to avoid precisely the scenarios alluded to above” (123) showed China’s efforts in stopping democratization is obvious. They do not want the country to have a democratic “uprising” and therefore have to monitor and control their citizens.
You have a great and really informative. I also really like all of the support you used.
Delete"Shanghai in the 21st Century" is talking about a history of city in China and how this city grows up to become unique. Shanghai is a big national city in the world. This city include eastern and western cultures." shanghai is many-sided..unique among the cities of the world..almost indescribable"(millard,1928) "shanghai's development path has been unique.Shanghai is just shanghai"(zhang,1996). "comparing cities is alwasys tricky,since every metropolitan center has at least one or two features that make it not quite like any other place on earth."(133) They are all different like the lacations,beliefs,habits,food,culture but they all similar to each other.2010 World Expo occurred in Shanghai is a good chance to let the world know shanghai is the super city just like new york, london,tokyo.
ReplyDelete"In future" I am interested in "will china become the world's dominant economic power? I think the U.S. will still be the world's dominant economic power for some time to come. Even China have changed a lot than before and grow up very fast to let "China's current economic rank is third in the world; only the U.S states and Japan stadn higher in terms of gross domestic product."(121) But China still cannot catch up the U.S bacause China per capita income is still far behind that of developed countries. China have a huge population that course very low per capita income. Another reason is using a lot of wealth to help other countries when these are hit by disasters but use less wealth to help China when China hit by disasters.Is that too kind,selfless? I do not know.
I agree with your thoughts on Shanghai and how the city has become really unique. How the city has not only their own culture but incorporates the cultures of both western and eastern cultures.
DeleteI like your opinion. 2010 World Expo occurred in Shanghai is a good chance to let the world know shanghai is the super city just like new york, london,tokyo.
DeleteThe first reading, “Olympic Dreams” and the comparisons of each of the different countries, in my opinion, were very useful in dissecting the meaning of the Beijing Olympics. The different comparisons of the different events helped show how big of an impact the games had on the country that was hosting. Mexico who was not in the most stable state which was said to have been shown in their execution of the games; Germany who was run by Hitler wanted the games to be a propagation of the power and strength that Germany had; and South Korea who used the games in hope to gain respect from the larger nations. I think the Beijing games were successfully held, and also succeeded in all goals that the previous countries were trying to achieve. The games not only depicted China as a united, strong country but the modern show blew the minds of those all over the world. “In short, when Beijing won, the Chinese people were victorious as well.” (Xu, 247)
ReplyDeleteThe second reading, “Global Shanghai” and the comparisons helped readers understand the Shanghai Expo of 2010 because it allows us to see the similarities but mostly the differences between the growing cities. Other famous large cities such as New York, Paris, expand in ways such as fashion and setting the lasted trends where in contrast, Shanghai is building globalization as well as building in all the other areas as well. “Shanghai has once again become truly, as it once was, a site with one-of-a-kind mix of sensation and spectacle, exploitation and excitement,” (Wasserstrom, 140)
The last reading, “Future” interest me the most in the last question, Is this an argument for Americans to refrain from all criticism in China? I think that is not only a valid question but also an important opinion made by Wasserstrom. That for us to come together to understand one another and respect each other it is important for us to get to know one another. “Another thing that could help ease U.S-China misunderstandings would simply be for people in each country to know more about the people living in the other.” (Wasserstrom, 135) It’s safe to say from both countries that assumption about the other is made and if people were to just put those assumptions aside they might be surprised. Such as when one stated that they were surprised by the performance given in the Beijing games and how modern it was.
I completely agree on how you made the comparison the two cities such as New York and Paris and related it to the ever changing scene of Shanghai
Delete“Shanghai in the 21st Century”
ReplyDeleteThe comparison with “world fairs” in history and other cities in the world is useful in the understanding the Shanghai Expo of 2010, because it helps better explain the growth of Shanghai. “Shanghai has been changing and continues to change makes it difficult to predict what lies in store.” (pg 125) Shanghai is a big city and is constantly changing.
“Future”
What interested me the most about in the 13 questions was the question “Will China become the world’s dominant economic power?” (Page 120) This was interesting to me because the United States is currently the most dominant but that could possibly change in the future. China has already dramatically changed over the years. They have started at the very bottom and have grown to hold the third most dominant place of power. (Page 121) If United States were to fall from the number one spot it would be interesting to see how things would change and affect our country as a whole.
In Beijing 2008, the comparison of the Olympics in Mexico to the Olympics in China was very useful in understanding the nationalism of the two countries. Before the arrival of the Olympics, officials in Mexico wanted the Mexicans to learn the proper way to act in front of foreigners. Their message was, “Mexicans needed to modify their behavior to create a good impression, to present Mexico in the best possible light, and to lend dignity to the Mexican nation (pg. 229).” Like the Chinese government, the Mexican government also used the Olympics as a way for them to show the world that they are a civilized and strong nation. The Chinese used the Olympics as a way to announce to the world that they are like a raising star. They want to show their best to the world.
ReplyDeleteI thought that the comparison of Shanghai to other major cities was appropriate because Shanghai’s unique identity and influence are much like what other cities have went through. It is a city that does not sleeps. Paris Hilton had described Shanghai as “like the future” (pg. 125). By that time, it has become a cliché. The Shanghai Expo of 2010 gained much attention in China, but not as much attention as it would like from other countries. However, the timing was great. The 2008 Olympics had just passed and two years later China announced the Shanghai Expo. People around the world were already introduced to China and hearing the place Shanghai might sound familiar.
The question, will China become the world’s dominant economic power interested me the most. The author states, “There are good reasons to think that the United States will still be the world’s dominant economic power for some time to come. (pg. 120)” China has come a long way and have increased its GDP tremendously in a short period of time. It is catching up very fast. However, to surpass the United States might require long term economic reforms. I think that the way China is now, it may be hard for China to catch up with the US within the next 50 years.
It is the great honor to success in bid for every cities or nations to hold the world largest sports festival. Holding Olympics, the super media, is the best opportunity to attract the entire world’s attention, which much benefits to the host nation. Well at the same time, the world not always seemed to focus only on the sports. The comparisons were useful to understand the 08 Beijing Olympic Games. “Beijing… hosts the Olympic Games on its own account and therefore might feel more justified to use the Games to legitimize the Communist regime and its political system.” (pp. 227) They are common on political aspect. “The Beijing Olympic Games and the Mexico City Games, … In both cases, the hosts are developing countries that have enjoyed years of astounding economic growth. Both suffer from serious national identity crises as well as self-doubt and certain inferiority complex. Both are worried about their citizens’ behavior and have tried to teach their people how to behave for an international audience.” (pp. 229) Mexico did not do very much for its politically. After the Korean War, Seoul Olympic Games offered “ international recognition, acceptance, and membership in the family of nations” (pp. 231) During and after the Beijing Olympic games, China surprised the world I thought. A lot of people started to read and rethink about the China and their culture. It was good to solve the misunderstandings between China and the world, which was the a point we should proud of. Better understanding the Nazi Germany, Mexico cities, South Korea, you will better understand the Beijing, and China Olympic Games. Now, Olympic Games not only be considered as “world’s sports festival”, but also a “super media” or a powerful “tool” to disseminate or fix things to nations.
ReplyDeleteTo the Shanghai Expo 2010, I thought it was a good way to introduce the world to Chinese audiences and send out the messages that “China welcome you” through the Chinese people’ passion and tons of cameras to the world. The comparison also helpful to understand it too.
The comparison with South Korea is very useful in understanding the Beijing Olympics of 2008. Like China, South Korea used the Olympics as a way to show the world their economic success. The author writes, “Park She Jik was right. The Games provided an unparalleled chance to show South Korea to the world and to demonstrate what Koreans had accomplished since the end of the Korean War (pg.331).” South Korea wanted to show the world that they are growing and prospering. The Olympics in China did the same thing for China.
ReplyDeleteThe comparison with other cities in the world to Shanghai was not helpful in understand the Shanghai Expo of 2010. The author states, “national authorities have begun to take steps to encourage the world to view the Olympics and the Expo as a kind of one-two punch designed to knock-out old conceptions of China (pg.127).” I believe that the author wants to portray the Chinese government as trying to change the world’s view of Shanghai. Instead, other cites’ officials often tries to preserve and show their roots. China is trying to cover up their past.
I liked the question is China likely to become a democracy. The author writes, “Once new media took hold in China, a new form of politics would inevitably follow (pg.123).” However, I disagree on this. I do not think China will ever move to a democracy because of its large population. There are still so many uneducated people in China that allowing them to make political decisions may lead to undesired results.
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