The Loss of Soft Power

American deaths in the Middle East have long stopped being headline news. Yet still, occasionally, there will be a blast large enough to warrant comment. In China, news of the war causes a few raised eyebrows and a lot of heads shaken. My family, at the dinner table, will talk about how terrible it is. The conversation goes something like this: “See? This is what happens when you interfere with other countries’ internal affairs.” Followed by a rhetorical question, aimed in my general direction: “So why do you suppose the US invaded Iraq? If they just knew enough to mind their own business, they wouldn’t be having this problem.” And finally the smug suggestion: “America should learn from China. China makes friends wherever it goes, not enemies. That’s because we don’t try to tell them what to do.”

Obama for President

The question confronting the American electorate is this: are we a decadent power? This query should not be misconstrued; I am not sure whether America’s finest days are behind her, nor is the goal of this essay to prove that they are. Rather the following must be understood as an attempt to understand the full implications of the current electoral cycle.

The past does not guarantee the future. Although the United States will still be the preeminent power in the world in 2012 regardless of who is elected as the next President, there is significant danger that the 2008 election could mark the beginning of the end of the American Century.

What are the implications of China’s latest spacewalk?

On September 25, 2008, China’s Shenzhou 7 space module took off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Inner Mongolia and two days later, on the afternoon of the 27th, Zhai Zhigang made history by becoming the first Chinese man to perform a spacewalk and the first human being to wave a miniature Chinese flag in space. China is now the third country, after the Soviet Union and the United States, to perform an extra-vehicular activity. Today, with the taikonauts back safe and sound, gilded replicas of the Shenzhou 7 are being sold in the Xidan bookstore.

What are the implications of China’s space program and the latest spacewalk? Is it a waste of money or the start of a new space race? Here are our thoughts.

Why is China Focused on Winning Gold Medals?

In a new column here at The Hypermodern we pose a question and have our writers offer their disparate opinions on the issue. Of course we welcome opinions from our readers as well. This first question comes from the results of the Olympics and China’s dominant number of gold medals. But why the emphasis on bringing home the gold? Here are our thoughts, in no particular order.

There’s no Ch-I-na in Team

A recent Asia Times article had a rather interesting take on the Olympic Games. Besides ranking countries by gold medals per capita (with China and the United States ranking 33rd and 47th respectively, and Jamaica a stunning 1st), it points out that while China is now the new Olympic powerhouse, China has an extremely inactive population. I’d like to expand on that.

Under Pressure

There has been a lot of conjecture as to the fate of China’s most beloved star, and his result in one of the most anticipated medal races. You’ve heard the two most popular hypotheses: that Liu Xiang will repeat his gold-medal performance in Athens, or he will choke under the pressure of 1.3 billion people demanding that his lightning strike twice. But in an astonishing twist worthy of an O. Henry award, China’s prized hurdler has withdrawn from competition without crossing a single hurdle.

An Exercise in Futility

This article is in response to the pro-Tibet banner hung near Olympic Park before the Olympics began.

Even before the Olympics began, the protests had begun. However, the perpetrators should be congratulated for defeating their own cause.

The merits of their Tibet argument aside, such tactics as shown the other day are highly ineffectual. China is currently at a high point for nationalism and patriotism. A high percentage of Chinese are reported to feel comfortable with their government, perhaps despite the low level of political freedom or perhaps because of their increasing prosperity. Since the Olympics is viewed by many as a way to show China’s development to an international player, events that would cause the Chinese to lose face will be magnified.

Why I Support a Perfect Olympic Games

Much time has been spent bemoaning the International Olympic Committee’s decision to award the Olympic Games to Beijing because the city is too polluted, or the government is too authoritarian or the Tibetans are too oppressed. While all of these are valid concerns, the fact of the matter is that IOC awarded Beijing the Olympics and the 29th Olympiad is going to start in less than two hours here in Beijing.

Dress Rehearsals

The Bird’s Nest was opened this week for full rehearsals of the Olympic opening ceremonies. My cousin and I were lucky enough to score a pair of tickets. I won’t give anything away; if you want details about the ceremony before the big day, you can read any number of reports based on a video leaked by a Korean television channel.

Olympics Go Home

I respectfully request that the Olympics leave China. Please take the Olympic flame back to Athens. Instead of bringing the joy, prosperity, and openness that was promised, the Games have brought us nothing but headache. Our lives have been made more complicated and wearying, so I make this appeal of behalf of foreigners in China, and not a few Chinese as well: Olympics go home.