The Communist Party of China (CCP) did not allow the development of a true free market system..The larger enterprises have party members scrutinizing operations to guarantee party objectives are met. Socialist/communist systems are centrally planned, and party politics take precedence over business objectives..China watchers have known the economic indicators put out by the government were unreliable. Even local raw data is falsified because of political pressures. Most observers turned to Hong Kong and Singapore reporting of mainland economics. There are also complex methods for generating a more accurate picture of Chinese economic sectors..Gross Domestic Product includes building construction. To generate a greater GDP, China has built ghost cities, massive projects of extreme poor quality in which few, if any, people live or work..To show China is in the vanguard of EV conversion, thousands of vehicles are produced but then stacked in a junkyard to rust..Arrays of solar cells fill fields, none connected to the power grid. In addition, China’s technology, both military and commercial, is garnered as the price for a western company to setup in China. Sometimes, it is simply stolen..These well-known examples are part of the mirage presented to Westerners. A lake-sized tailings pond both radioactive and toxic from rare earth mining near Baotou and the two-a-week new coal-fired power plants are a real testimony to China’s commitment to the Green Movement..China’s house of cards is falling.. Perilous HillsLost in translation... Park sign warns of 'Perilous Hills.' .Real estate values are tumbling following the collapse of major players. Youth unemployment is so high the government stopped reporting. Even before COVID-19 lockdowns, multi-national corporations were leaving and COVID-19 accelerated these departures..Districts in Shanghai that once buzzed with Chinese and expats making deals, enjoying a meal, or living together now have empty streets and expensive apartments sit vacant..Crony capitalism, deception, theft, a lack of environmental standards is only possible because western powers give China a pass. They do so because of corruption, being power hungry, greedy, or buying into the mirage..Both parties have responsibilities here..Canadian elites see only what they want to see. Our PM apparently had plans where China would play an increasing role in trade and even military cooperation. Any such actions have now become quieted following several incidents such as China’s Arctic military activity and the 'two Michaels' case..Thinking deepening economic troubles in China will lessen the possibility of conflicts may prove to be part of the mirage. A standard political practice is to create an external focus when internal problems overwhelm..In times of mounting tensions to maintain peace, there are three main objectives that a prudent country needs to follow..Strengthen alliances and friendships with trade, political, military, and cultural exchanges. Because strong alliances mean stronger defense.Increase military spending.Increase diplomatic efforts with competitors and making new alliances. The CCP may have different ideas, but it is not so foolish as to discard peaceful relations extemporaneously..The Trudeau government has failed in two of these areas.. Tense moment 15 November 2022A tense moment between Prime Minister Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Xinping at the G-20 Summit in November last year. .Seeing what it wanted, Trudeau’s government turned down important requests from our friends in Berlin and Tokyo. According to reports, Trudeau told NATO Canada will not meet its obligations, a violation of the treaty..Further, coming out of the two World Wars, Canada was known as a serious military force punching well above its weight. This political advantage for Canada on the world stage, is now lost..One of the legs of the Canadian internal political system was good governance. This was demolished by Trudeau’s repeated corruption scandals and poor decisions..At one time, Canada could make a strong ethical argument trying to bring justice and reason forward in resolving difficulties around the world. That pedestal has been knocked over. Although some diplomatic efforts have been initiated, far more are needed..Canada needs to get its own house in order. Peace is undergirded by strength and rule of law is maintained when enforced. These goals are not just the USA’s or the UK’s responsibilities..They must also be Canada’s..(Second in a series of two. The first article by Dr. Barber appeared last week.).Dr. A.W. Barber is the former Director of Asian Studies at the University of Calgary. For several years, he lived and travelled in Asian countries, including Hong Kong, Taiwan and the People's Republic of China.
