Tag: xi jinping

Elsa and Xi (4) In A Democracy We Can Change Our Minds

Dear Xi:

Thank you so much for your reply. I was not expecting it.

Tomorrow is a great day for America. The nation gets to see a new president take office. We chose a different one because we disagreed with the direction Mr Trump was taking us in.

We didn’t like that he showed no inclination to bring us together as a nation. With him it was all about pleasing his supporters. But America is composed of many groups, all of which must learn to work together.

We didn’t like that he didn’t show competence in handling the pandemic.

We didn’t like that he tended to dismiss our longstanding allies, underestimating the work that had been patiently done over many decades.

We didn’t like that he got us out of the Paris Accord on climate change when the entire world is making efforts to stem global warming.

We didn’t like the way he was addressing our racial issues.

Xi, we could remove Mr Trump, because we have a democracy and the president is up for reelection every 4 years. And even if we liked a president, they wouldn’t be able to serve more than two terms.

Why do we do this? Because we know that human beings are fallible, all of us, and renewal is essential to our survival.

So, even if the Chinese like you a lot, they should have a right to hear other viewpoints and decide if you are the person to continue leading them forward.

There are so many examples of human beings’ propensity to think they own the truth. But truth about anything is hard to own. The search for it takes time and we must be open to hear other opinions.  

Science teaches us a great deal about this. To explain natural phenomena, scientists first come up with a theory. Then people set out to prove it. So long as research shows support for the theory then it is valid, but the moment new evidence is produced that disproves the theory, then the theory can no longer be supported and scientists have to come up with another one.

Science teaches us, then, that living with doubt is essential and so is the working to resolve it.

In a democracy, we can change our minds. In a democracy we accept that mistakes are part of growth and that we can rectify them.

This is why I was so disturbed when you decided to eliminate the limits on your presidency.

I understand that China has suffered from many invasions by foreign powers and that the Chinese people wish to affirm themselves in the world, but why should freedom of expression be sacrificed?

Just like inventions come up that help us do things better and more efficiently, so too with leaders. Others will come up who have a better idea to lead us forward.

To let the process work, we need freedom of speech. When speech is censored, those imposing the restriction are saying they are afraid of free thought and will use whatever force at their disposal to suppress it.

But that blocks the forward path of the nation.

Are you so afraid of what your people will think or say that you have to censor them?

To censor speech is to do to a mind what locking a child in a box will do to stunt their growth. The child will not have a chance to grow and when he or she is let out of the box their bodies will be deformed. It wasn’t so long ago, that some women in China had their feet bound to prevent their growth.

There is no justification to censor speech in a nation with the abundance of talent and creativity that China has. To do so is to stunt its development. To do is to deprive not only China of its possibilities, but the world’s as well.

Xi, you are now a respected leader. You have helped lead a nation to economic and military might. But the nation’s civic growth is just as important if it is to achieve a proper balance.

I am sure Confucius would agree.

The good news is that you can still change direction. We will all be most grateful. And in the eyes of the world you will have a very special place.

I look forward to hearing from you again,

Very best to you,

Elsa

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Xi Jinping Replies to Elsa (3) Nothing Will Stop Us

Dear Elsa:

I am glad to hear from a person interested in world affairs and with a specific interest in our country.

There are some thinking mistakes that you make, but it is understandable because your people lack the political education we have.

China is fond of America. How can we forget your great victory in WWII? And you are right. We have learned much from you and will continue to do so. We have learned more from you than you from us.

We understand that we have to borrow from the West to expedite our development. All Chinese know that. We do not see it as stealing. We see it as the price outsiders must pay for doing business with us and profiting from our great markets.

Now and then we will sign a trade agreement saying that we will not insist that a foreign country establishes a partnership with a local one, but that is just to get you to come over. Once you are here and see the benefits of working with our superb labor force, then you will not complain when we start copying your techniques to establish our own enterprises. Eventually, our own companies will outcompete you because we will make the product better and cheaper.

China is a much older country than America. You have not suffered like we have at the hands of foreign powers that came to repress and abuse us. And it is not only foreign powers that have brutalized us, we have been brutalized too by our own internal divisions.

But we have learned.

The world now knows that Chinese labor is the best in the world. The world also realizes that we are very creative. You mentioned our going to the moon. Did you know that we didn’t get help from any nation? That is right. We did it all on our own.

You mention censorship. The Chinese understand that this is simply part of a phase of development and they are willing to sacrifice.

The Chinese people also understand that human beings’ tendency to disorder – which I call human entropy – is at the root of individualism and its inevitable excesses. To counter this negative tendency, we created a collective system that is fast becoming the envy of the world. Our collective system works because it leads to greater creativity and a sense of national purpose. And it is this, along with our political discipline, what gives vigor to our common purpose and one day will make us the strongest nation in the world.

Yes, you are right. China wants to do that. And Elsa, there is nothing that can stop us.

America will not be able to. You love our products. You want more, not less.

Businesspeople from everywhere want to come here to work and invest. Like you say in America, this is where the money is.

In time, the Yuan will replace the dollar as the premier reserve currency for the world. That will be a great day. I may not see it but you will, for you are much younger than me.

I am proud to be China’s leader. Proud to lead a nation willing to sacrifice for our children and grandchildren as we march together toward an ever brighter future.

We can do it and will, for we have learned the power of patience and hard work.

May serenity and bliss be always with you.

Xi Jinping

Chairman

People’s Republic of China.

Founded October 1, 1949

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Elsa and Xi (2) Autocracies Don’t Work

Xi didn’t answer Elsa’s letter. She doesn’t even know it had reached him. Still, she decides to write again.

Dear Xi:

I trust you will get this letter. The previous one is probably stuck somewhere in traffic but I don’t give up easily. I just keep trying.

The rise of China has been fantastic. In a very short time, since WWII, you have steadily improved and become a powerful nation. Your people have reason to feel very proud of their accomplishments, same as the Japanese, the South Koreans and the Taiwanese (more on the last in another letter).

Before you came to power, there were many leaders before you that directed your nation’s growth. They deserve a share of the credit. Deng Xiaoping was of great relevance.

At this time you are speaking of China’s quest for world dominance. You may not use those words but your actions point to that.

This worries me.

You have altered China’s constitution so you can be reelected again and again. That is not good.

Autocracies don’t work. Just look at Russia. No one doubts that Russians are smart people but they have consented to a system of government that has hindered their political evolution. Boris Yeltsin deserves much blame for this, for it was him who chose Putin as his successor. Sadly, Yeltsin drank too much and that affected his judgment. Why else select the chief of the KGB, the secret service at the time, to be the leader of a nascent democracy? Ah, life is full of errors like that. If a man with a belief in democracy had been chosen instead, Russia would have been a different nation today.

Autocracies atrophy the potential of nations. In your own country, had Mao believed in the importance of the transfer of power, he would not have committed the grave blunder that was the Cultural Revolution, and China would have been spared years of much pain and suffering.

You went through that, as did your family, but here you are choosing to ignore the lessons of history. Unbelievable, isn’t it? How we humans make the same mistake again and again.

Autocracies keep leaders from speaking the truth, because the truth will threaten their power.

Democracy is an imperfect system, but it beats autocracy.

At present you are letting your desire for personal power to corrupt your thinking and mislead your people. You are letting your personal failing interfere with the wellbeing of your nation.

Nowhere is that more evident than in your persistent effort to censor free speech.

No one, Xi, no one, has a monopoly on the truth, which is why we need to encourage everyone’s opinion.

All those people who assembled in the hall that voted for you to be the leader of China until you die, did so out of intimidation, because they were afraid to speak the truth.

Democracies are filled with lies and deception also, but not as much as autocracies.

And you, having lived through the Mao period, should know it well.

The good news is that you still have time to reverse course and set your nation on a path to democracy.

Xi, imagine for a moment that you were to do that. Just imagine your restoring the right of people to express themselves. Then, the entire world would be grateful. Nations would ask for your advice and look to China as an example to follow. Wherever you went you would be greeted with enthusiasm.  

Which brings me to another point. You must be fully honest.

There is no doubt of your country’s multiple accomplishments, but China’s rise has benefitted from technologies created in the West and China has stolen much of it.

Level with your people. Tell the truth. Yes, you are a creative nation with much potential. You are hard working and ambitious. It is amazing, for instance, that you have gone to the moon already and have plans for further space exploration. But you have stolen and hacked plenty of intellectual secrets.

Just think about it.

Xi, I think I’ve said enough for today.

I hope it hasn’t upset you too much.

On another topic: I was glad to see Boris Johnson and the EU finally come to an agreement for Britain’s exit. Britain was never much into it, but they most definitely benefitted from the partnership with Europe, particularly by letting in so many foreigners who have enriched their genetic pool. I’m sure they will do well.

One final note: today, 1/6/2021, became a special day for America for two reasons. The state of Georgia elected two democratic senators, one Black, one White, which will give Joe Biden a majority in the Senate. And today also, a mob of Trump supporters, angry because their leader lost the election, burst into congress in protest before they were thrown out. So, yes, in a democracy abuses of power happen, but nations that are strong enough correct them.

Will you help China find its strength?

Hope you get his letter. Have a happy new year.

Elsa

Elsa and Xi – The Importance of Free Speech

Elsa W., an American woman based in Eugene, Oregon, USA., concerned about the way the Chinese government has used the WeChat app as a means to monitor and censor speech throughout China, sets about finding a way to communicate directly with the leader of that nation, Xi Jinping.

After much effort and frustration over a period of three months, she is able to finally breach the super secure fire walls protecting Xi’s communications and leaves him a personal note.

Xi is very upset when he finds her email in his private inbox. How could that happen?

He immediately calls the chief of cybersecurity for all of China wanting an explanation and asks that the matter be rectified immediately. But will he delete her message?

Here’s Elsa’s text:

Dear Mr Xi:

I have been much troubled by the way you are interfering with free speech in your nation. Human nature, in its infinite wisdom, is constantly creating more and more variety so that we will have more and more talent available to address our many problems. All of us, must be free to express ourselves so that, through our many interactions, we can find new ways to enhance our development and so benefit others.

When people are able to speak freely, then there will be more thought to deliver better ideas.

Free speech comes, of course, with responsibility, and that is fostered through education.

The major responsibility of governments everywhere ought to be to educate, that way every country’s productivity will be the greatest possible.

It is true that freedom can be perverted, but the more widely educated a nation’s citizens, the less likely that will happen.

Here in America, we are now emerging from a very dark four years under Mr Trump, who managed to persuade millions of voters that it was White America who had to be given priority.

But our nation is very varied and, in that variety, lies great strength. To think otherwise is to do ourselves great harm.

We Americans made a grave mistake when we were not sufficiently critical of Mr Trump as he campaigned for President. He was elected because vast sections of our citizens showed poor judgment. If they had paused to think, then they would have seen that Mr Trump was only a tribal leader, a man who had much difficulty reflecting on his emotions and, thus, could not manage the emotions of his tribe.

It is clear that we have paid a dear price for electing him.

And just like in America, so in China today.

I do not think you are the right leader for your country. I must be blunt because you may choose to delete me and not see another one of my letters.

To attempt to restrict free speech is to restrict and retard the civic and scientific development of China.

Your nation is filled with talent and the full expression of it will be a great boon to the entire world.

Don’t be like Trump. Think broadly and do not be afraid of letting Chinese people be all they can be.

Thank you.

Elsa W.

Xi read Elsa’s email and was upset that she compared him with Trump. He was about to hit delete but then changed his mind and kept it. He would reread it at another time

Will he eventually answer Elsa?

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