Saturday, June 20, 2015

SECRETS OF CHINESE WORDS AND SAYINGS: ANCIENT WISDOM FOR TODAY THE IMPORTANCE OF CHINESE LANGUAGE TO MODERN SUCCESS

SECRETS OF CHINESE WORDS AND SAYINGS: ANCIENT WISDOM FOR TODAY THE IMPORTANCE OF CHINESE LANGUAGE TO MODERN SUCCESS BY FRANCIS C. W. FUNG, PH.D. The importance of learning the Chinese language is not limited to the fact that almost one fourth of the world’s population, in East and South Asia and the rest of the world use it wholly or partly. Neither is the newly discovered importance of Chinese language in world commerce and world affairs. Apart from its uniquely beautiful calligraphy the Chinese language obviously also has inherent world cultural significance. Most of all to the author, the Chinese nation owes its repute as a nation of wisdom to the innovative cultural formation of its language. This I will venture to elaborate in this announcement. Learning the distinctly spatial Chinese words will expand the mental capacity of citizens of the world who speak native phonetic tongues, increasing their capacities for different types of intelligence. Added to this is the cultural wisdom embedded in the formation of the characters, and in the meaning of Chinese sayings. As most of the major languages of the word are phonetic, a bilingual person who also speaks Chinese will exercise different parts of his brain in their daily undertakings. The Chinese nation with its continuous and uninterrupted history of 5000 years stands out among ancient nations of the world. Its language is early and being non-phonetic is also unique among world languages. Chinese pictographs or characters were discovered as early as 3000 years ago and predated oracle bones. The Chinese characters were created by diverse ingenious and imaginative ways throughout its long history. It is a collective treasure of wisdom and art by design. Different from the world’s major phonetic languages, the Chinese language consists of a system of more than 5000 basic characters instead of a limited number of letters in an alphabet. This larger system of basic characters at one hand presents a challenge to non native learners at the outset but it also renders Chinese a language of wisdom as we shall soon realize. From this creatively crafted system of basic characters, new words, two- word- “nomenclatures” and four- word- “ Chinese sayings” (Cheng Yu) are innovatively created to suit evolution of times. For example the word commonly meaning patience (REN) is the character knife (Dao) held above the character heart (Xin). The world martial (WU) is formed by the character stop (Zi) and the character weapon (Ge). The term crisis is formed by the two words meaning danger and opportunity (Wei Ji) simultaneously. The term harmony is made up of two words each of two characters (He Xie) together they mean content and consensus. Thus the words patience, martial, crisis and harmony impart deeper wisdom above mere meaning for the common use of the words. This continuing development has persisted without major disruption for 5000 years. A well learned Chinese shows his pedigree by frequent use of these cultural related nomenclatures and other famous sayings as explained in the following. Thus the Chinese language incorporates the richness of the Chinese historical development and culture. There are many modern advantages to the Chinese language. The modern Japanese and Korean languages evolved from heavy dependence of Chinese words into phonetic languages during recent history. Because of the usefulness and versatility of the Chinese characters, today many educated Japanese and Koreans read Chinese characters and still prefer not to totally divorce from the use of Chinese words. Most of all, the Chinese language is attractive to those well heeled in the wisdom and cultural content of the innovative words, nomenclatures and famous sayings mentioned previously. Individual Chinese characters are monosyllabic, and the four character sayings which embody Chinese wisdom are as short and as easy to learn and memorize as acronyms in English. These acronyms like simple wisdom phrases are handed down through generations and become the cumulative reservoir of Chinese cultural jewels with deep meaning. Two most well known four word idioms are (Zhi Ji Zhi Bi, Bai zhan Bai Sheng), together they mean “know thyself and know thy enemy, hundred battles hundred victories.” This has come to be one of the utmost important military strategies of all time. Because it is simple and easy to remember like an eight letter acronym, even Chinese kids know it by heart. The other modern advantages of the Chinese language are many. Chinese language is concise and compact. A similar length book in Chinese will take half the space of a phonetic language book. Because of its compact pictographs, Chinese writing lends itself readily for speed reading. As a bilingual person of 50 years and receiving most of my education in America, I can read Chinese books much faster than English books. This makes it significantly less of a chore to go through long documents in Chinese than English. Chinese verbal commands are more limited in sounds, because the basic system of characters are finite in number so are Chinese words. English alphabets may be only twenty six but the sounds of phonetic English words are infinite. Thus the first fully functional verbal input computer most likely will be Chinese. The first Chinese language input computer is well advanced is well on its way to commercialization. This will eliminate the key board input disadvantage of Chinese language computer once and for all. Although current key board input Chinese language computers are reasonably efficient, the verbal input Chinese language computer may prove to be even more efficient and easy to use. As a bilingual person practicing a wide range of disciplines of study from physical sciences to social sciences, from commerce to international affairs I have discovered a curious phenomenon. Over the years I noticed that many of my Chinese associates and myself are more adept in picking up new disciplines of studies. It also seems rather easy for Chinese to practice new discipline in late life. My personal career of over 50 years has included many vastly different fields and professions. The reason may be the threshold of crossing between various disciplines, is lower in Chinese language. Or Chinese culture is a more flexible and harmonious from aeronautics to world affairs. To reach definitive conclusion on this interesting premise will require more detail analysis on the possibilities of the Chinese language and the Chinese learning attitude. One obvious observation that surfaces is the fact that Chinese nomenclatures in different disciplines are more standardized because the meaning of the common pictographs that makes the different jargons of the trades. In the English language jargons, it is easy to deliberately create different new jargons for different trades. By nature of the phonetic language infinite number of words with different sounds can be created by combination and permutation of the 26 alphabets. This does not necessarily make cross discipline studies any easier. Because the Chinese system of basic characters is finite, even when the Chinese nomenclatures appear to be different in each discipline the pictographs will give away its intended meaning. The beauty of the Chinese pictograph language system as opposed to the phonetic system most of the world uses, is its relative simplicity. Once a Chinese learner knows a relatively small sample of pictographs he is less likely to need the dictionary when pursuing a new discipline. This significantly lowers the threshold of cross discipline studies and communications. This introductory announcement of the secrets of the Chinese words and sayings is an excerpt of a compilation of the wisdom of ancient Chinese language for modern success. This new compilation entitled “Secrets of Chinese Words and Sayings: Ancient Wisdom for Success Today” goes beyond the usual writings on Chinese wisdom for success. The compilation goes into the secret roots of the Chinese words and language itself beyond the mere scope of Chinese ancient philosophical and military wisdom in print. We welcome comments and contributions on Chinese ancient wisdom and the modern importance of the Chinese language from our interested readers. Like · Comment · Share

Thursday, June 18, 2015

WHY PRESIDENT XI JINPING IS GOOD FOR CHINA AND WORLD HARMONY, abridged version

WHY PRESIDENT XI JINPING IS GOOD FOR CHINA AND WORLD HARMONY By Francis C W Fung, Ph. D. The Arrival of Xi Jinping Era With the arrival of Xi Jinping era China is going through momentous changes to reclaim her ancient position as Middle Kingdom through Xi Jinping’s grand vision of China Dream, Great Rejuvenation and the One Belt One Road New Silk Road Initiative. The China dream is every Chinese’s dream as well as the collective national dream for rejuvenation. To guide China towards rejuvenation Xi called for increase teaching of Chinese history and ancient philosophy in schools and universities. It is most befitting for Xi to promote Chinese teaching as he personally is very well read in Chinese classics as amply demonstrated by his use of Chinese classic teaching in his speeches. His use of Chinese ancient teaching in his speeches is well documented in his book “China Governance” which sold over 5 million copies worldwide in a short time span of 3 months. The essence of Chinese ancient teaching is harmony supported by both sages Confucius and Laotze and described in my book “China’s Harmony Renaissance What the World must Know” and numerous of my published essays on the subject of harmony renaissance, harmony diplomacy and harmony faith (see www.worldharmonyforum.blogspot.com ). The idea of respect and coexist with diverse opinions and philosophies is maintained throughout Chinese history. This is the key reason why Chinese civilization continued over 5000 years uninterrupted by absorbing and synthesizing foreign cultures, religions and foreign invasions. This practice of harmony also explains that there never was a major war on religion, instead Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and Islam coexisted in China for centuries. The current government under Xi Jinping maintains the Chinese harmony tradition of a stable yet constantly ever changing nation by dynamic balance of inside and outside influences. This expressed as continue to learn from outside and reform from within. China’s continuing growth is predicated upon mutual win win development and world harmony of common community destiny. The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in 2013. This is the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by the New Silk Road Initiative. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail in my published subject paper. All this is because of Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in “Belt and Road Action Plan” published by the Boao 2014 Conference. This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true world harmony, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA

WHY PRESIDENT XI JINPING IS GOOD FOR CHINA AND WORLD HARMONY

WHY PRESIDENT XI JINPING IS GOOD FOR CHINA AND WORLD HARMONY By Francis C W Fung, Ph. D. The Arrival of Xi Jinping Era With the arrival of Xi Jinping era China is going through momentous changes to reclaim her ancient position as Middle Kingdom through Xi Jinping’s grand vision of China Dream, Great Rejuvenation and the One Belt One Road New Silk Road Initiative. The China dream is every Chinese’s dream as well as the collective national dream for rejuvenation. To guide China towards rejuvenation Xi called for increase teaching of Chinese history and ancient philosophy in schools and universities. It is most befitting for Xi to promote Chinese teaching as he personally is very well read in Chinese classics as amply demonstrated by his use of Chinese classic teaching in his speeches. His use of Chinese ancient teaching in his speeches is well documented in his book “China Governance” which sold over 5 million copies worldwide in a short time span of 3 months. The essence of Chinese ancient teaching is harmony supported by both sages Confucius and Laotze and described in my book “China’s Harmony Renaissance What the World must Know” and numerous of my published essays on the subject of harmony renaissance, harmony diplomacy and harmony faith (see www.worldharmonyforum.blogspot.com ). The idea of respect and coexist with diverse opinions and philosophies is maintained throughout Chinese history. This is the key reason why Chinese civilization continued over 5000 years uninterrupted by absorbing and synthesizing foreign cultures, religions and foreign invasions. This practice of harmony also explains that there never was a major war on religion, instead Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and Islam coexisted in China for centuries. The current government under Xi Jinping maintains the Chinese harmony tradition of a stable yet constantly ever changing nation by dynamic balance of inside and outside influences. This expressed as continue to learn from outside and reform from within. China’s continuing growth is predicated upon mutual win win development and world harmony of common community destiny. The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in 2013. This is the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by the New Silk Road Initiative. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail in my published subject paper. All this is because of Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in “Belt and Road Action Plan” published by the Boao 2014 Conference. This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true world harmony, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA From the preface of the “Belt and Road” Action Plan titled “VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD” published at The Boao 2013 Conference We quote: “MORE THAN TWO MILLENNIA AGO THE DILIGENT AND COURAGEOUS PEOPLE OF EURASIA EXPLORED AND OPENED UP SEVERAL ROUTES OF TRADE AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES THAT LINKED THE MAJOR CIVILIZATIONS OF ASIA, EUROPE AND AFRICA, COLLECTIVELY CALLED THE SILK ROAD BY LATER GENERATIONS. FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT - "PEACE AND COOPERATION, OPENNESS AND INCLUSIVENESS, MUTUAL LEARNING AND MUTUAL BENEFIT" - HAS BEEN PASSED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION, PROMOTED THE PROGRESS OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION, AND CONTRIBUTED GREATLY TO THE PROSPERITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE SILK ROAD. SYMBOLIZING COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WEST, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IS A HISTORIC AND CULTURAL HERITAGE SHARED BY ALL COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. IN THE 21ST CENTURY, A NEW ERA MARKED BY THE THEME OF PEACE, DEVELOPMENT, COOPERATION AND MUTUAL BENEFIT, IT IS ALL THE MORE IMPORTANT FOR US TO CARRY ON THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IN FACE OF THE WEAK RECOVERY OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, AND COMPLEX INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL SITUATIONS. WHEN CHINESE PRESIDENT XI JINPING VISITED CENTRAL ASIA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER OF 2013, HE RAISED THE INITIATIVE OF JOINTLY BUILDING THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND THE 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD (HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS THE BELT AND ROAD), WHICH HAVE ATTRACTED CLOSE ATTENTION FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. AT THE CHINA-ASEAN EXPO IN 2013, CHINESE PREMIER LI KEQIANG EMPHASIZED THE NEED TO BUILD THE MARITIME SILK ROAD ORIENTED TOWARDS ASEAN, AND TO CREATE STRATEGIC PROPELLERS FOR HINTERLAND DEVELOPMENT. ACCELERATING THE BUILDING OF THE BELT AND ROAD CAN HELP PROMOTE THE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC COOPERATION, STRENGTHEN EXCHANGES AND MUTUAL LEARNING BETWEEN DIFFERENT CIVILIZATIONS, AND PROMOTE WORLD PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT. IT IS A GREAT UNDERTAKING THAT WILL BENEFIT PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE IS A SYSTEMATIC PROJECT, WHICH SHOULD BE JOINTLY BUILT THROUGH CONSULTATION TO MEET THE INTERESTS OF ALL, AND EFFORTS SHOULD BE MADE TO INTEGRATE THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD. THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAS DRAFTED AND PUBLISHED THE VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD TO PROMOTE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INITIATIVE, INSTILL VIGOR AND VITALITY INTO THE ANCIENT SILK ROAD, CONNECT ASIAN, EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN COUNTRIES MORE CLOSELY AND PROMOTE MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL COOPERATION TO A NEW HIGH AND IN NEW FORMS.” The New Silk Road Globalization-World Answer to America Military Hegemony in 21st Century By Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. The Rise and Fall of U.S. Hegemony Influence China has accumulated 5000 years of wisdom to know that hegemony powers do not last long. That is why China has no wish to become a hegemon. By obsession, hegemony powers tend to over reach before they finally decline. Also weaker nations eventually get tired of being pushed around and topple the hegemon by uniting together. For a hegemon to sustain its clout it must also has economic as well as pure military power. Together the twin wings of economic and military power enables the hegemon to soar above the rest. The collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of Cold War was due mostly a classic example of the collapse of its economies. In the case of our current hegemon, America, all factors are working to decrease its influence, plus the fact that in the 21st century military as the only hegemony power is obsolete. Economic and cultural power is the new paradigm of world influence. Although the U.S. is still the military as well as economic power today its economic wing will be clipped by the New Silk Road Globalization led by China as we will see in following. We shall describe how the rise of emerging and developing countries because of the worldwide connectivity ushered in by the New Silk Road infrastructure, communication and commerce that will drastically trim the America eagle’s economic wing. Although America will remain the dominant military power for a long time to come. According to Michael T. Klare, a professor of peace and world security studies at Hampshire College, “For decades, being a superpower has been the defining characteristic of American identity. The embrace of global supremacy began after World War II when the United States assumed responsibility for resisting Soviet expansionism around the world; it persisted through the Cold War era and only grew after the implosion of the Soviet Union, when the U.S. assumed sole responsibility for combating a whole new array of international threats. As General Colin Powell famously exclaimed in the final days of the Soviet era, “We have to put a shingle outside our door saying, ‘Superpower Lives Here,’ no matter what the Soviets do, even if they evacuate from Eastern Europe.” “Strategically, in the Cold War years, Washington’s power brokers assumed that there would always be two superpowers perpetually battling for world dominance. In the wake of the utterly unexpected Soviet collapse, American strategists began to envision a world of just one, of a “sole superpower” (aka Rome on the Potomac). In line with this new outlook, the administration of George H.W. Bush soon adopted a long-range plan intended to preserve that status indefinitely. Known as the Defense Planning Guidance for Fiscal Years 1994-99, it declared: “Our first objective is to prevent the re-emergence of a new rival, either on the territory of the former Soviet Union or elsewhere that poses a threat on the order of that posed formerly by the Soviet Union.” “H.W.’s son, then the governor of Texas, articulated a similar vision of a globally encompassing Pax Americana when campaigning for president in 1999. If elected, he told military cadets at the Citadel in Charleston, his top goal would be “to take advantage of a tremendous opportunity -- given few nations in history -- to extend the current peace into the far realm of the future. A chance to project America’s peaceful influence not just across the world, but across the years.” “For Bush, of course, “extending the peace” would turn out to mean invading Iraq and igniting a devastating regional conflagration that only continues to grow and spread to this day. Even after it began, he did not doubt -- nor (despite the reputed wisdom offered by hindsight) does he today -- that this was the price that had to be paid for the U.S. to retain its vaunted status as the world’s sole superpower.” “The problem, as many mainstream observers now acknowledge, is that such a strategy aimed at perpetuating U.S. global supremacy at all costs was always destined to result in what Yale historian Paul Kennedy, in his classic book The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, unforgettably termed “imperial overstretch.” As he presciently wrote in that 1987 study, it would arise from a situation in which “the sum total of the United States’ global interests and obligations is… far larger than the country’s power to defend all of them simultaneously.” “Indeed, Washington finds itself in exactly that dilemma today. What’s curious, however, is just how quickly such overstretch engulfed a country that, barely a decade ago, was being hailed as the planet’s first “hyperpower,” a status even more exalted than superpower. But that was before George W.’s miscalculation in Iraq and other missteps left the U.S. to face a war-ravaged Middle East with an exhausted military and a depleted treasury. At the same time, major and regional powers like China, India, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey have been building up their economic and military capabilities and, recognizing the weakness that accompanies imperial overstretch, are beginning to challenge U.S. dominance in many areas of the globe. The Obama administration has been trying, in one fashion or another, to respond in all of those areas -- among them Ukraine, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and the South China Sea -- but without, it turns out, the capacity to prevail in any of them.” “Nonetheless, despite a range of setbacks, no one in Washington’s power elite -- Senators Rand Paul and Bernie Sanders being the exceptions that prove the rule -- seems to have the slightest urge to abandon the role of sole superpower or even to back off it in any significant way. President Obama, who is clearly all too aware of the country’s strategic limitations, has been typical in his unwillingness to retreat from such a supremacist vision. “The United States is and remains the one indispensable nation,” he told graduating cadets at West Point in May 2014. “That has been true for the century past and it will be true for the century to come.” “How, then, to reconcile the reality of superpower overreach and decline with an unbending commitment to global supremacy? The first of two approaches to this conundrum in Washington might be thought of as a high-wire circus act. It involves the constant juggling of America’s capabilities and commitments, with its limited resources (largely of a military nature) being rushed relatively fruitlessly from one place to another in response to unfolding crises, even as attempts are made to avoid yet more and deeper entanglements. This, in practice, has been the strategy pursued by the current administration. Call it the Obama Doctrine.” “After concluding, for instance, that China had taken advantage of U.S. entanglement in Iraq and Afghanistan to advance its own strategic interests in Southeast Asia, Obama and his top advisers decided to downgrade the U.S. presence in the Middle East and free up resources for a more robust one in the western Pacific. Announcing this shift in 2011 -- it would first be called a “pivot to Asia” and then a “rebalancing” there -- the president made no secret of the juggling act involved. “After a decade in which we fought two wars that cost us dearly, in blood and treasure, the United States is turning our attention to the vast potential of the Asia Pacific region,” he told members of the Australian Parliament that November. “As we end today’s wars, I have directed my national security team to make our presence and mission in the Asia Pacific a top priority. As a result, reductions in U.S. defense spending will not -- I repeat, will not -- come at the expense of the Asia Pacific.” New 'Silk Road' could alter global economics and usher in the next globalization March 31, 2015 is an historic moment. China successfully launched the Asian Infrastructure Bank to fund the New Silk Road Initiative to provide connectivity for the world. By now all U.S. allies have all broke from their military alliance with America and join the peaceful mutual development initiative. The only redeeming grace for America is to join as observer country at a later day. It is natural for China to launch the New Silk Road Initiative for all historical, technological, financial capable and infrastructure building experience reasons. China in the last 39 years has built 20 trillion dollars of infrastructure in her own country. This super scale of construction in such a short time has no historical precedence! All silk roads completed will eventually all connect to China like ancient days. In rejuvenation, she will be truly, the Middle Kingdom like her name implies! This time China will lead the Second Commercial Globalization, which will grow to be much larger than the first globalization led by the U.S. in the 20th century. America will remain the dominant military power but not the largest economic power in 21st century. Which means America can no longer behave in her hegemony way dominating the world as in the 20th century. India will replace China as the world factory with her biggest population and technology capability. With her middle class growing to the biggest of the world because of Silk Road connectivity prosperity China will be the market of the world and lead the world globalization. With all developing countries rise, the mutual development will benefit all humankind with the resulting people connectivity, prosperity and cultural equal exchange the world may reach true equality and harmony. This world harmony world with mutual respect and equality will be a great improvement compare to the 20th century world dominated by America hegemony. An article in USA Today by Robert Berke, Summarizes the New Silk Road Initiative as follows: “Beginning with the marvelous tales of Marco Polo's travels across Eurasia to China, the Silk Road has never ceased to entrance the world. Now, the ancient cities of Samarkand, Baku, Tashkent, and Bukhara are once again firing the world's imagination. China is building the world's greatest economic development and construction project ever undertaken: The New Silk Road. The project aims at no less than a revolutionary change in the economic map of the world. It is also seen by many as the first shot in a battle between east and west for economic dominance in Eurasia.” “The ambitious vision is to resurrect the ancient Silk Road as a modern transit, trade, and economic corridor that runs from Shanghai to Berlin. The 'Road' will traverse China, Mongolia, Russia, Belarus, Poland, and Germany, extending more than 8,000 miles, creating an economic zone that extends over one third the circumference of the earth. The plan envisions building high-speed railroads, roads and highways, energy transmission and distributions networks, and fiber optic networks. Cities and ports along the route will be targeted for economic development. An equally essential part of the plan is a sea-based "Maritime Silk Road" (MSR) component, as ambitious as its land-based project, linking China with the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea through Central Asia and the Indian Ocean. When completed, like the ancient Silk Road, it will connect three continents: Asia, Europe, and Africa. The chain of infrastructure projects will create the world's largest economic corridor, covering a population of 4.4 billion and an economic output of $21 trillion.” The idea for reviving the New Silk Road was first announced in 2013 by the Chinese President, Xi Jinping. As part of the financing of the plan, in 2014, the Chinese leader also announced the launch of an Asian International Infrastructure Bank (AIIB), providing seed funding for the project, with an initial Chinese contribution of $47 billion. “China has invited the international community of nations to take a major role as bank charter members and partners in the project. Members will be expected to contribute, with additional funding by international funds, including the World Bank, investments from private and public companies, and local governments. Some 58 nations have signed on to become charter bank members, including most of Western Europe, along with many Silk Road and Asian countries. There are 12 NATO countries among AIIB´s founding member states (UK, France, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Norway), along with three of the main US military allies in Asia (Australia, S. Korea and New Zealand). After failed attempts by the US to persuade allies against joining the bank, the US reversed course, and now says that it has always supported the project, a disingenuous position considering the fact that US opposition was hardly a secret. The Wall Street Journal reported in November 2014 that "the U.S. has also lobbied hard against Chinese plans for a new infrastructure development bank…including during teleconferences of the Group of Seven major industrial powers.” The Huffington Post's Alastair Crooke had this to say on the matter: "For very different motives, the key pillars of the region (Iran, Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan) are re-orienting eastwards. It is not fully appreciated in the West how important China's "Belt and Road" initiative is to this move (and Russia, of course is fully integrated into the project). Regional states can see that China is very serious indeed about creating huge infrastructure projects from Asia to Europe. They can also see what occurred with the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), as the world piled in (to America's very evident dismay). These states intend to be a part of it." “Buttressing this effort, China plans on injecting at least $62 billion into three banks to support the New Silk Road. The China Development Bank (CDB) will receive $32 billion, the Export Import Bank of China (EXIM) will take on $30 billion, and the Chinese government will also pump additional capital into the Agricultural Development Bank of China (ADBC).” “A look at the first project, currently under development, provides a good example of how China plans to proceed. The first major economic development project will take place in Pakistan, where the Chinese have been working for years, building and financing a strategic deepwater port at Gwadar, on the Arabian Sea, that will be managed by China as the long-term leaseholder. Gwadar will become the launching point for the much delayed Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline, which will ultimately be extended to China, with the Persian section already built and the Pakistan-Chinese section largely financed and constructed by the Chinese. The pipeline is also set to traverse the country, following the Karakoram Mountain Highway towards Tibet, and cross the Chinese western border to Xinjang. The highway will also be widened and modernized, and a railroad built, connecting the highway to Gwadar.” “China and much of the world is intent on developing the largest economic development project in history, one that could have dramatic ripple effects throughout the world economy. The project is expected to take decades, with costs running into the hundreds of billions of dollars, if not trillions. What that will mean for the world economy and trade is almost inconceivable. Is it any wonder then, that the world's largest hedge funds, like Goldman Sachs and Blackstone, are rushing to market new multi-billion dollar international infrastructure investment funds? No doubt a project as large and complex as this is likely to have failures, and is certain to face many western geopolitical obstructions. Assuredly, the "great game" will continue. Look no further than US President Barack Obama, who also senses the urgency. "If we don't write the rules, China will write the rules out in that region," he said in defense of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In a world where economic growth is tepid, with Europe still struggling with the aftermath of the global recession, along with China's growth slowdown, where else could a project that promises so much opportunity be found? It's a good bet that giant iron mining companies like Vale, that have seen their business fall to a thirteen-year low, are currently busy figuring how much steel goes into construction of a new, high speed 8,000 mile railroad. If the project is successful, it could very well spark a boom across the entire depressed international mining, commodities, and construction sectors. Consider how many jobs could be created in a decades-long construction project that spans a huge region of the world. In practically every sector, the prospects are enormous for a revival of trade and commerce.” “The ancient Silk Road increased trade across the known world, but the Road also offered far more than trade. One of its least anticipated benefits was the widespread exchange of knowledge, learning, discovery, and culture. Beyond the riches of silks, spices, and jewelry, it could be argued that the most important thing that Marco Polo brought back from China was a famous nautical and world map that was the basis for one of the most famous maps published in Europe, one that helped spark the Age of Discovery. Christopher Columbus was guided by that map and was known to have a well-annotated copy of Marco Polo's travel tales with him on his voyage of discovery of a new route to India.” “For the world at large, its decisions about the Road are nothing less than momentous. The massive project holds the potential for a new renaissance in commerce, industry, discovery, thought, invention, and culture that could well rival the original Silk Road. It is also becoming clearer by the day that geopolitical conflicts over the project could lead to a new rebalance between East and West for dominance in Eurasia and the world.” The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in2013, the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by world connectivity. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail below. As if God send, Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in the following “Belt and Road Action Plan” This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true worldwide harmony, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. From the preface of the “Belt and Road” Action Plan titled “VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD” we quote:“MORE THAN TWO MILLENNIA AGO THE DILIGENT AND COURAGEOUS PEOPLE OF EURASIA EXPLORED AND OPENED UP SEVERAL ROUTES OF TRADE AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES THAT LINKED THE MAJOR CIVILIZATIONS OF ASIA, EUROPE AND AFRICA, COLLECTIVELY CALLED THE SILK ROAD BY LATER GENERATIONS. FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT - "PEACE AND COOPERATION, OPENNESS AND INCLUSIVENESS, MUTUAL LEARNING AND MUTUAL BENEFIT" - HAS BEEN PASSED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION, PROMOTED THE PROGRESS OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION, AND CONTRIBUTED GREATLY TO THE PROSPERITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE SILK ROAD. SYMBOLIZING COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WEST, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IS A HISTORIC AND CULTURAL HERITAGE SHARED BY ALL COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. IN THE 21ST CENTURY, A NEW ERA MARKED BY THE THEME OF PEACE, DEVELOPMENT, COOPERATION AND MUTUAL BENEFIT, IT IS ALL THE MORE IMPORTANT FOR US TO CARRY ON THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IN FACE OF THE WEAK RECOVERY OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, AND COMPLEX INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL SITUATIONS. WHEN CHINESE PRESIDENT XI JINPING VISITED CENTRAL ASIA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER OF 2013, HE RAISED THE INITIATIVE OF JOINTLY BUILDING THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND THE 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD (HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS THE BELT AND ROAD), WHICH HAVE ATTRACTED CLOSE ATTENTION FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. AT THE CHINA-ASEAN EXPO IN 2013, CHINESE PREMIER LI KEQIANG EMPHASIZED THE NEED TO BUILD THE MARITIME SILK ROAD ORIENTED TOWARDS ASEAN, AND TO CREATE STRATEGIC PROPELLERS FOR HINTERLAND DEVELOPMENT. ACCELERATING THE BUILDING OF THE BELT AND ROAD CAN HELP PROMOTE THE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC COOPERATION, STRENGTHEN EXCHANGES AND MUTUAL LEARNING BETWEEN DIFFERENT CIVILIZATIONS, AND PROMOTE WORLD PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT. IT IS A GREAT UNDERTAKING THAT WILL BENEFIT PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE IS A SYSTEMATIC PROJECT, WHICH SHOULD BE JOINTLY BUILT THROUGH CONSULTATION TO MEET THE INTERESTS OF ALL, AND EFFORTS SHOULD BE MADE TO INTEGRATE THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD. THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAS DRAFTED AND PUBLISHED THE VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD TO PROMOTE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INITIATIVE, INSTILL VIGOR AND VITALITY INTO THE ANCIENT SILK ROAD, CONNECT ASIAN, EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN COUNTRIES MORE CLOSELY AND PROMOTE MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL COOPERATION TO A NEW HIGH AND IN NEW FORMS.” The Belt and Road is the first 21st Century globalization that will modernize almost all the developing countries of the world and bring endless commercial opportunities for them to prosper. This first 21st Century first Economic Opportunity tide may also be called the 21st Century Infrastructure Revolution. For any country to develop its wealth, the first priority is to build first class infrastructures as witnessed by the rise of America and China during the 20th Century that follows massive infrastructure construction. The second Economic Opportunity Tide is the Second Commercial Globalization brought about by the superior infrastructure due to the enhanced worldwide “Belt and Road” connectivity. This will bring flourishing world trade to all countries in the world thus commercial successes in every corners of the world unlike the first 20th century globalization. During the first globalization initiated by America only Europe, China and parts of Asia prospered. This time the whole world will prosper. Because of this 21st Century infrastructure revolution and Second Commercial Globalization tides initiated by China the wealth generated by expanded global commerce due to the rising developing world will empower India to become the new “factory of the World” replacing China. Because of its rising middle and huge population China will become the “Market of the world” replacing the U.S. America will remain the dominant military power and policeman of the world but not the hegemony power of the world as it enjoyed throughout most of 20th century. For its number one economic position will be surpassed by China in both national and per capital GDP. This is due mainly by the wealth generated by the commercial return by China acting as the initiator and main funding partner in the great belt and road infrastructure building and trading network. Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA THE GREAT 21ST CENTURY HARMONY WEIQI GAME BETWEEN CHINA AND AMERICA WILL HERALD WORLD HARMONY By Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Weiqi is a great ancient Chinese mental exercise board game play by Asians with two opposing group of black and white stones. The game is played on a 19 by 19 squares board with two very simple rules. Despite its simplicity but with a large board and 391 pieces that allow infinite variations, it is a game that requires high degree of concentration of basic mental processes such as flexibility, connectivity and inclusivity. The objective is to reach territory dynamic balance (harmony) through a series of encirclement and counter encirclement moves. The player declared to have the upper hand between equal players sometimes is only ahead by one or two squares. It is called the “Harmony Game” of sharing by the most famous Chinese weiqi “Saint” Wu Chingyuan, because the end game is for both players to accept the dynamic balanced state with only one or two occupied differences in squares. Because of its infinite variations, no two weiqi games are the same. The fact that computer can beat the top notch chess player but cannot beat a top notch weiqi player is due mostly to the infinite variations of the game. Compared to weiqi the European chess game is played on an 8 by 8 squares board. There are only 16 chess pieces from each side, with each piece has its own distinct power, ranking and way to move. The end game is to subdue your opponent by capturing his king. Sometimes in the process to capture your opponent’s king you will not hesitate to eliminate all his pieces. So chess is a very aggressive game of merciless killing, unlike the harmony weiqi game of dynamic balance and sharing. As current international events revealed, the peaceful strategical and tactical thinking used by China is more in accordance with weiqi thoughts. They are flexibility (no ideology), mutual economic win-win development (inclusivity) and infrastructure connectivity building. In a previous paper I announced “The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization” as following: America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in 2013, the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by world connectivity. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail below. As if God send, Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in the following “Belt and Road Action Plan” This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true worldwide harmony of a multipolar world, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. In another previous paper under the heading “New 'Silk Road' Globalization could alter global economics” I sated as follows: March 31, 2015 is an historic moment. China successfully launched the Asian Infrastructure Bank to fund the New Silk Road Initiative to provide connectivity for the world. By now all U.S. allies have all broke from their military alliance with America and join the peaceful mutual development initiative. The only redeeming grace for America is to join as observer country at a later day. It is natural for China to launch the New Silk Road Initiative for all historical, technological, financial capable and infrastructure building experience reasons. China in the last 39 years has built 20 trillion dollars of infrastructure in her own country. This super scale of construction in such a short time has no historical precedence! All silk roads completed will eventually all connect to China like ancient days. In rejuvenation, she will be truly, the Middle Kingdom like her name implies! This time China will lead the Second Commercial Globalization, which will grow to be much larger than the first globalization led by the U.S. in the 20th century. America will remain the dominant military power but not the largest economic power in 21st century. Which means America can no longer behave in her hegemony way dominating the world as in the 20th century. India will replace China as the world factory with her biggest population and technology capability. With her middle class growing to the biggest of the world because of Silk Road connectivity prosperity China will be the market of the world and lead the world globalization. With all developing countries rise, the mutual development will benefit all humankind with the resulting people connectivity, prosperity and cultural equal exchange the world may reach true equality and harmony. This world harmony world with mutual respect and equality will be a great improvement compared to the 20th century world dominated by American hegemony. In contrast to China’s weiqi moves as described above, the military strategic and tactical thinking used by America is more in accordance of chess game of aggression and war. These moves are typically in contrast to weiqi moves such as America’s rule making and ideology promotion (infexibility), America’s economic sanctions (exclusivity) instead of China’s win-win mutual economic development, America’s military alliance and base building (intrusive interference) in contrast to China’s inclusive infrastructure connectivity building as the New Silk Road initiative. There is no lack of actual example of above moves launched by America around the world in the essential 21st century weiqi game as it plays out. They are the current America’s economic sanction of Russia on top of the half a century of senseless Cuban sanction. Obama’s “pivot to Asia Initiative” is proven to be nothing more than reaffirming America’s military alliance and bases in Asia. Obama’s signature Transpacific Partnership (TPP) trade bill that he tries to steamroll is all about rule making by America to contain China. Judging by China’s phenomenal economic rise from an under developed country to world’s second economic power in the short span of three decades it is not hard to see that all the previous rulemaking such as World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund and World Bank by America failed to stop China’s rise. China managed to work through all the American rules and obstacles simply by being flexible as a good weiqi player. One cannot help now but ask how is another set of TPP rules going to stop China from continuing to develop. In promoting his TPP trade bill Obama has made two speeches that in order for America to win it must write the rules to prevent China from writing the rules. This is totally pointless argument to support his TPP (IN Chinese TPP happens to sound like kick ass, and TIPP sounds like kick my own ass). As China development of the last three decades shown America made rules cannot contain China because of her flexibility we cannot stop China from writing their own rules. This is amply demonstrated by China’s successful launching of the New Silk Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Bank (AIIB) despite America obstruction as described above. The obvious outcome of this great weiqi game of dynamic balance belongs to China who plays by the weiqi instead of chess thought process. China will outlast America’s military expansion because mutual development will have more sustaining power. This will validate Laotze”s ancient philosophy that the soft will eventually overcome the hard like water will erode the rock in time. The day of “World Harmony” by multipolar dynamic balance away from American hegemony will surely come. From 5000 years of continuous wisdom, China is confident that hegemons do not last indefinitely. Sooner or later the world will rise up against it when challenged by another world power of more legitimacy. As stated in the opening of this essay and I importantly repeat: “The objective of weiqi game is to reach territory dynamic balance (harmony) between the two players through a series of encirclement and counter encirclement moves. The player declared to have the upper hand between equal players sometimes is only ahead by one or two squares. It is called the “Harmony Game” of sharing by the most famous Chinese weiqi “Saint” Wu Chingyuan, because the end game is for both players to accept the dynamic balanced state with only one or two occupied differences in squares.” I proclaim humbly despite all the American aggressive moves, the ultimate end game of the 21st century weiqi game between China and America is for both great nations to accept a dynamic balance of sharing the world stage. That will finally bring in the true multipolar world of “World Harmony” without American hegemony as I predicted earlier in this and many of my previous “World Harmony” essays! May the best of harmony to all! Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

THE GREAT 21ST CENTURY HARMONY WEIQI GAME BETWEEN CHINA AND AMERICA WILL HERALD WORLD HARMONY

THE GREAT 21ST CENTURY HARMONY WEIQI GAME BETWEEN CHINA AND AMERICA WILL HERALD WORLD HARMONY By Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Weiqi is a great ancient Chinese mental exercise board game play by Asians with two opposing group of black and white stones. The game is played on a 19 by 19 squares board with two very simple rules. Despite its simplicity but with a large board and 391 pieces that allow infinite variations, it is a game that requires high degree of concentration of basic mental processes such as flexibility, connectivity and inclusivity. The objective is to reach territory dynamic balance (harmony) through a series of encirclement and counter encirclement moves. The player declared to have the upper hand between equal players sometimes is only ahead by one or two squares. It is called the “Harmony Game” of sharing by the most famous Chinese weiqi “Saint” Wu Chingyuan, because the end game is for both players to accept the dynamic balanced state with only one or two occupied differences in squares. Because of its infinite variations, no two weiqi games are the same. The fact that computer can beat the top notch chess player but cannot beat a top notch weiqi player is due mostly to the infinite variations of the game. Compared to weiqi the European chess game is played on an 8 by 8 squares board. There are only 16 chess pieces from each side, with each piece has its own distinct power, ranking and way to move. The end game is to subdue your opponent by capturing his king. Sometimes in the process to capture your opponent’s king you will not hesitate to eliminate all his pieces. So chess is a very aggressive game of merciless killing, unlike the harmony weiqi game of dynamic balance and sharing. As current international events revealed, the peaceful strategical and tactical thinking used by China is more in accordance with weiqi thoughts. They are flexibility (no ideology), mutual economic win-win development (inclusivity) and infrastructure connectivity building. In a previous paper I announced “The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization” as following: America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in2013, the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by world connectivity. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail below. As if God send, Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in the following “Belt and Road Action Plan” This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true worldwide harmony of a multipolar world, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. In another previous paper under the heading “New 'Silk Road' Globalization could alter global economics” I sated as follows: March 31, 2015 is an historic moment. China successfully launched the Asian Infrastructure Bank to fund the New Silk Road Initiative to provide connectivity for the world. By now all U.S. allies have all broke from their military alliance with America and join the peaceful mutual development initiative. The only redeeming grace for America is to join as observer country at a later day. It is natural for China to launch the New Silk Road Initiative for all historical, technological, financial capable and infrastructure building experience reasons. China in the last 39 years has built 20 trillion dollars of infrastructure in her own country. This super scale of construction in such a short time has no historical precedence! All silk roads completed will eventually all connect to China like ancient days. In rejuvenation, she will be truly, the Middle Kingdom like her name implies! This time China will lead the Second Commercial Globalization, which will grow to be much larger than the first globalization led by the U.S. in the 20th century. America will remain the dominant military power but not the largest economic power in 21st century. Which means America can no longer behave in her hegemony way dominating the world as in the 20th century. India will replace China as the world factory with her biggest population and technology capability. With her middle class growing to the biggest of the world because of Silk Road connectivity prosperity China will be the market of the world and lead the world globalization. With all developing countries rise, the mutual development will benefit all humankind with the resulting people connectivity, prosperity and cultural equal exchange the world may reach true equality and harmony. This world harmony world with mutual respect and equality will be a great improvement compared to the 20th century world dominated by American hegemony. In contrast to China’s weiqi moves as described above, the military strategic and tactical thinking used by America is more in accordance of chess game of aggression and war. These moves are typically in contrast to weiqi moves such as America’s rule making and ideology promotion (infexibility), America’s economic sanctions (exclusivity) instead of China’s win-win mutual economic development, America’s military alliance and base building (intrusive interference) in contrast to China’s inclusive infrastructure connectivity building as the New Silk Road initiative. There is no lack of actual example of above moves launched by America around the world in the essential 21st century weiqi game as it plays out. They are the current America’s economic sanction of Russia on top of the half a century of senseless Cuban sanction. Obama’s “pivot to Asia Initiative” is proven to be nothing more than reaffirming America’s military alliance and bases in Asia. Obama’s signature Transpacific Partnership (TPP) trade bill that he tries to steamroll is all about rule making by America to contain China. Judging by China’s phenomenal economic rise from an under developed country to world’s second economic power in the short span of three decades it is not hard to see that all the previous rulemaking such as World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund and World Bank by America failed to stop China’s rise. China managed to work through all the American rules and obstacles simply by being flexible as a good weiqi player. One cannot help now but ask how is another set of TPP rules going to stop China from continuing to develop. In promoting his TPP trade bill Obama has made two speeches that in order for America to win it must write the rules to prevent China from writing the rules. This is totally pointless argument to support his TPP (IN Chinese TPP happens to sound like kick ass, and TIPP sounds like kick my own ass). As China development of the last three decades shown America made rules cannot contain China because of her flexibility we cannot stop China from writing their own rules. This is amply demonstrated by China’s successful launching of the New Silk Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Bank (AIIB) despite America obstruction as described above. The obvious outcome of this great weiqi game of dynamic balance belongs to China who plays by the weiqi instead of chess thought process. China will outlast America’s military expansion because mutual development will have more sustaining power. This will validate Laotze”s ancient philosophy that the soft will eventually overcome the hard like water will erode the rock in time. The day of “World Harmony” by multipolar dynamic balance away from American hegemony will surely come. From 5000 years of continuous wisdom, China is confident that hegemons do not last indefinitely. Sooner or later the world will rise up against it when challenged by another world power of more legitimacy. As stated in the opening of this essay and I importantly repeat: “The objective of weiqi game is to reach territory dynamic balance (harmony) between the two players through a series of encirclement and counter encirclement moves. The player declared to have the upper hand between equal players sometimes is only ahead by one or two squares. It is called the “Harmony Game” of sharing by the most famous Chinese weiqi “Saint” Wu Chingyuan, because the end game is for both players to accept the dynamic balanced state with only one or two occupied differences in squares.” I proclaim humbly despite all the American aggressive moves, the ultimate end game of the 21st century weiqi game between China and America is for both great nations to accept a dynamic balance of sharing the world stage. That will finally bring in the true multipolar world of “World Harmony” without American hegemony as I predicted earlier in this and many of my previous “World Harmony” essays! May the best of harmony to all! Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA

Saturday, June 6, 2015

CONTEMPORARY CONFUCIAN RENAISSANCE, MY CHINA DREAM AND HARMONY RENAISSANCE

CONTEMPORARY CONFUCIAN RENAISSANCE, MY CHINA DREAM AND HARMONY RENAISSANCE Viewed 347 times 2014-7-7 21:27 |System category:News| perfect, heaven, DREAM, earth CONTEMPORARY CONFUCIAN RENAISSANCE, MY CHINA DREAM AND HARMONY RENAISSANCE BY FRANCIS C W FUNG, PH.D. ABSTRACT The contemporary renaissance of Confucianism has triumphantly rediscovered the kingly way or Humane Authority Way (named after Jiang Qing) of governance based on the three legitimacy of perfect governance, the will of heaven, the will of the earth and the will of people. This contemporary Confucian Renaissance is a result of deep debate based on traditional concept of Confucian ideal governance by contemporary Confucian scholars worldwide and may prove to be of more universal significance for future governance way than the rediscovery of Greek democracy that led to European Renaissance. Both the Western Liberal Democracy and the Middle Eastern Theocracy by definition and implementation each is only grounded in one of their traditional legitimacy. Therefore they are less ideal and lacking in legitimacy compared to the three legitimacy requirements of the Humane Authority Way. They will be proved not as enduring as the Humane Authority Way in the long history of mankind As predicted by the book "The Fourth Revolution, The Global Race to Reinvent the State". The three pillars of legitimate governance have been named by the present author as the House of Morality(HOM), the House of Tradition and Culture(HTC) and the House of Constituent Democracy(HCD) in a previous paper titled “Order of the Humane Authority Endowed with Spirit of China Dream and Harmony Renaissance”. An in-depth and objective study of contemporary China governance reveals that present day China is already operating under these three Confucian principles based on the importance of the legitimacy of socialist core value, legitimacy of the most important Chinese historical tradition upheld by the Communist Party of China and the legitimacy of constituent democracy. These three principles are manifested by the Communist Party of China’s (CPC) upholding of the socialist core value, the important historical role in liberating and modernizing China and the role played by the People’s Consultative Conference within the Chinese government. Most of all, the CPC is the only governing party in China today that has the successful track record, resources and the will power to carry on these three principles to the fruition of an ideal modern government that will serve as a universal legitimate governance model for the world. Going forward, there is every reason to believe that China will formalize these three principles into a Humane Authority Way (the Kingly Way) in the Confucian tradition as a grand tradition continuing ancient Chinese tradition to the modern legitimate government under CPC leadership. This evolution of the Chinese government has been herald in China and will be implemented in the coming years. The 18th National Congress of the CPC laid out a strategy for building a culturally strong nation on the basis of ideals that, while having their roots in Chinese civilization, are different from those of the West and ancient China, and project a new China with new spirit of global significance. This is CPC’s call for the way of modifying Confucian constitution as part of China dream to rejuvenate the Chinese nation and contribute to world culture through Confucian and Harmony Renaissance. INTRODUCTION In a paper titled “The Chinese dream can enrich world civilization” the well-known academic Yue Dai Yuan from Peking University posted the following questions to the Chinese nation: “First, what kind of ideological and conceptual schemes do we need to effectively tackle the world’s problems? Without fundamental conceptual capabilities, no great ideals can be created nor can a strong culture and society be built. Second, what kind of social system can make a virtuous man willing to live in a society? Our future social designs must surpass both those of the ancients and those of the West. Only in this way will we benefit the people and make a contribution to world civilization. Third, what way of life can make people feel that their lives are meaningful? This requires society to cultivate spiritual values. No society can sustain a sense of purpose merely by achieving ever-higher living standards. It is only by developing a spiritual dimension that life can be enriched”. She answered her questions by looking into ancient Chinese civilization. There are reasons why the Chinese civilization continued 5000 years uninterrupted despite foreign invasions unlike all other ancient civilizations of the world that has ended. There are reasons why the Chines civilization influenced the whole world without hegemony or outright occupation. No other ancient or modern civilization has influenced the Far East as much as China did. According to Yue Dai Yuan, “The history of world civilization has demonstrated that Chinese civilization is a cultural system with powerful resonance. Since ancient times, Chinese culture has put the pursuit of a spiritual and moral life at the center of its concerns. Its harmony principles stand for reconciliation between man and nature, for healing the rift between logic and spirituality, between the pursuit of material wealth and the good life, between natural science and humanism” “ If these intrinsically Chinese cultural genes can be brought up to date and fused with our modern, culturally diverse world, a new Chinese dream that represents a new historical epoch will emerge and benefit all of humanity”. The 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) laid out a strategy for building a culturally strong nation on the basis of ideals that, while having their roots in Chinese civilization, are different from both of those of the West and ancient China, and project a new China with new spirit of global significance. This CPC call opens the way for modifying Confucian inspired constitution for China dream and rejuvenation of world culture. CALL FOR CONFUCIAN AND HARMONY RENAISSNCE Along the above line of call by the 18 National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and his own outstanding research, the Confucian and Marxist scholar Jiang Qing, the most original, provocative Confucian political thinker, has single handedly led the contemporary debate on Confucian and Harmony Renaissance that led to the discovery of ancient Confucian teaching of the Humane Authority governance system or the Royal Way of governance (known by the ancients as the Kingly way). This ancient paradigm of superior governance explained why Chinese ancient civilization outlasted all other ancient world civilization and satisfied Prof. Yue Dai Yuan above three questions most expertly. The Humane Authority Governance System upholds that the legitimacy of governance follows the tradition of the Gongyang school of Confucius politics according to the contemporary Confucian and Harmony Renaissance debate. And this new contemporary Confucian teaching encompasses religion, philosophical and political thought, all three parts are integral of Confucius Renaissance. The key feature of the Way of the Humane Authority lays down the theoretical basis for Confucian Constitutionalism and a Tricameral Parliament according to Jiang Qing’s book “A Confucian Constitutional Order, how China’s ancient culture can shape its political future”. In this book and other contemporary Confucian and Harmony Renaissance debate one can find more details on Humane Authority governance tradition and discovery. According to current worldwide debate, the multifaceted Tricameral nature of Humane Authority governance system offers the promise of future solution for a world with diverse culture surpassing the Western liberal Democracy and Middle Eastern Theocracy. Because the Humane Authority Tricameral Parliament requires three legitimacy for good governance and defined as will of heaven, spirituality; will of earth, tradition and harmony; and will of the people. In the Western liberal democracy, the legitimacy of the U.S. government is entirely grounded in the will of the people lacking the legitimacy of will of the tradition, harmony and will of heaven or spiritual qualities. On the other side of the world, the Middle East governance is strongly grounded in religion but lacking in the will of the people. The promise of the Humane Authority Governance for the future diverse world forecasts the importance of Confucian and Harmony Renaissance will far surpass the discovery of democracy during European Renaissance. It is more universal and puts China in a higher moral high ground than liberal democracy as we shall see. The rediscovery of the Humane Authority political thinking in time will totally repudiate Margaret Thatcher’s triumphant statement that “China is unlikely to become a superpower because it lacked an independent ideology with global clout” and the U.S. media often echo in chorus, that China will never catchup with the U.S. because it has no original idea of importance to offer to the rest of the word. WESTERN LIBERAL DEMOCRACY WITHOUT CONCURRENT SUPORT OF HUAMNE AUTHORITY WILL NOT WORK IN CHINA The deficiencies of Western liberal democracy without the concurrent support of Humane Authority are many, despite the famous tunnel vision statement by Churchill and the prediction by Professor Francis Fukuyama of Stanford University, in his book “The end of history and the last man “he concluded that Western liberal democracy is the answer all political solution for the world. In a New York Times article, titled “A Confucian Constitution for China” by Jiang Qing and Daniel Bell, the authors in response to Hillary Clinton’s criticism of China, sum up the deficiency of Western liberal democracy as “Democracy is also flawed in practice. Political choices come down to the desires and interests of the electorate. This leads to two problems. First, the will of the majority may not be moral: it may favor racism, imperialism or fascism. Second, when there is a clash between the short-term interests of the populace and the long-term interests of mankind, as is the case with global warming, the people’s short-term interests become the political priority. As a result, democratically elected governments in America and elsewhere are finding it nearly impossible to implement policies that curb energy usage in the interests of humanity and of future generations.” Of late, news of U.S. government’s shortcomings seems to flood the West’s own media. Outstanding examples are: the U.S. 2008 financial crises that dragged down the world economy due to corrupt creation of toxic mortgage investments, to this day none of the U.S. culprit that caused the multi-trillion dollar loss has been sentenced; the U.S. government’s gridlock that led to government shut down in 2013; the U.S. sky rocketing deficit spending; years of PEW survey leaves no doubt the alarming low confidence of U.S. public towards the direction the U.S. is heading. The loss of public confidence has a lot to do with the U.S. style election, the lack of performance, and the U.S. politician in order to win reelection tend to be short sighted and engage in negative campaign strategies. The U.S. Supreme Court which has the ultimate say in law making is concerned only with matters of legality without moral guidance resulting in rulings such as “money is speech freedom” in U.S. political campaign thus allowing voting to be disproportionately dominated by the rich. Liberal democracy tends to favor community self-interest and narrow vision as oppose to measures that are more holistic and may benefit the world and the nation as a whole. The fact that the U.S. is only major developed nation did not sign the Kyoto Ecology Accord is a good example. The U.S. elections for president are more about popularity as opposed to meritocracy, the proven value system in the Far East. The uninformed public often is emotional and whimsical. The election of an alcoholic president who led us to the disastrous Iraq nation building war under false pretenses is unlikely to happen in a constituent representative democracy as practiced in Hong Kong and the Bahai faith. For more discussions of the inadequacy of the U.S. liberal democracy and why it will not work in a country as large, complex and with 5000 years of history as China please read the revealing book “The Fourth Revolution” by chief editors of “The Economist” magazine John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge. The conclusion of the book is that Western Liberal Democracy has a lot to learn from East Asia’s political system of selection by meritocracy combined with constituent representative democracy. Their brave and pointed warning is that without East West exchange and mutual learning to improve Western liberal democracy the U.S. is heading to the forth coming political Fourth Revolution. According to the Fourth Revolution, as the longest Civilization State in history, Western liberal democracy will not work in China. For detail analysis of China as a Civilization State please refer to the book “When China Rules the World” by Martin Jacques, the seasoned China observer, and “China Wave” by Zhang Weiwei, who maintained that China needs its own Confucian constitution brand for long term reform and lasting contribution to world civilization and political rejuvenation. CORRECT WAY IN CHINA AND RELEVANT NAME FOR THE THREE PARLIAMENT HOUSES OF HUMANE AUTHORITY The names of the three Parliament Houses in China adopted by the contemporary debate must be revised to fit their functionality in China. Confucius himself advised “before one acts one must have correct names.” I propose the following reasons for changing the three Humane Authority Way parliament house names. 1) The name House of Heaven is not appropriate for China because it is not necessary to install state religion in Humane Authority Way to work, although in China, ancestor worship is traditional and widespread. Ancestor worship is an important element of Confucius religion to remember and respect our common origin and continuity of Chinese civilization. We only need is the system of Confucian moral teaching as a noble guide for China. This moral teaching can be modified by the Chinese social core value or can be substituted by other nations cultural values deemed as more appropriate for each different country. This makes the Humane Authority Way more universal compared to the U.S. worldwide forceful enforcement of its bill of rights and systems of values, which may or may not be universal in other cultures having to deal with other higher rights priority such as the rights of livelihood, medical health and education. I propose that in China the House of Heaven be revised to House of Morality as suggested by my wife Julia Devendorf, the consummate teacher. The spiritual quality of Confucian teaching is what highly recommended by Professor Yue Dai Yuan, another renowned and dedicated teacher, in the previously cited essay “The Chinese dream can enrich world civilization.” I draw upon her inspiration of China dream to rename the House of Heaven as House of Morality (HOM). Although in some Islamic or Christian culture they may want to use the names “House of Ala” or ”House of God” to be appropriate for their culture and tradition. 2)The name of “House of Earth” should be revised to “House of Tradition and Culture” (HTC) because the Humane Authority Way deals with good governance for a nation. The organic growth of any nation cannot be broken from its tradition and culture as witnessed by the immense chaos and tragedy created by U.S. nation building in Iraq that disrupts Iraqi on going tradition and political stability. In all nations, political change must be continuous otherwise we are inviting chaos and revolution that can be very costly. Most of all, a nation denies its tradition and culture has lost its soul. As a priority I strongly advised China must not look away from its 5000 years of continuous culture but must engage actively in Confucian and harmony renaissance because they are the essence of Chinese ancient culture. I strongly support the CPC dedication to rejuvenate China with Chinese characteristics. Because the continuation of a nation depends on tradition and culture. 3) The “House of Tradition and Culture” (HTC) must be able to exercise its guidance on Humane Authority Way with authority. So it shall be the only house given the veto power in the deliberation of national policy. The three houses are bound to work harmoniously by consensus but all laws including declaration of war, must pass with at least two houses to be adopted. The granting of veto power to the House of Tradition and Culture is that as the executive arm of the government it can avoid gridlock and to stop social disturbance without calling upon the military. In the U.S. the president is granted the veto power. Unfortunately, giving one person the veto power will never win the hearts and minds of any nation. That is why Obama recently faces vigorous objections from the opposition party, the public and even the Supreme Court on legal grounds without needed moral judgment. On the other hand veto power to the “house of tradition and culture”, HTC , collectively is very necessary at times of emergency to curb unnecessary and misguided violence. As an aside, the U.S. president is also given the power to wage war, to appoint Supreme Court judges and cabinet ministers. That makes the President effectively a dictator at times. It is most logical to grant those similar powers to the “House of Tradition and Culture”, HTC, to maintain national stability with no need to call on the military. That fulfills the teaching of the Humane Authority Way. 4)The House of People’s Will should be more specific, because of the selfish and near sighted short comings of U.S. liberal democracy. U.S. liberal democracy has infected China’s uninformed public to look away from its tradition and culture and other developing nation’s stability are disturbed by international media controlled by the U.S. and West. Not the least let us not forget the warning of the forth coming Western political Fourth Revolution conclusion in the book “The Fourth Revolution” (by John Micklewait and Adrian Wooldridge on Liberal democracy short comings). An appropriate name that exercises the people’s will but allows more universality without falling into the trap of Western liberal democracy short comings is constituent democracy. This form of democracy works to accommodate both election and selection by meritocracy. Constituent democracy has been proven in the success of Singapore, Hong Kong and the Bahai Faith. The House of the people’s will shall be revised to “House of Constituent Democracy” HCD. China already has the equivalent of the HCD in the form of People’s Consultative Congress that advices the present government. All China needs is to formalize it to become the HCD. THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA HAS PROVEN RECORDS TO CONTINUE CHINA’S SUCCESS, CULTURE AND TRADITION. The CPC has ample track records to prove that it is the most logical entity to head the “House of Tradition and Culture”( HTC)with 51% vote in China. As much as the aforementioned three houses of parliament are bound by the principle of Humane Authority Way to work harmoniously, the power of veto to the “House of Tradition and Culture” is necessary to ensure smooth government function, so it is the most important house among the three pillars of the Humane Authority Way. HTC needs to be the strongest house so it can act as the executive branch of the three houses. The most credible and able of all political parties in China is the CPC, which can head the HTC for the following reasons: 1) CPC is the most natural, logical and able choice to continue the Chinese tradition to take charge of the HTC and to continue running all government functions to assure the most smooth transition to a Humane authority Way nation and society. CPC’s current role is already the consensus leader of all the political parties and the 56 minorities of China. Its leadership style is one by constituent democracy in keeping with Humane Authority Way as a shining example of how the House of Constituent Democracy (HCD) can work in China. 2) In 1949 under the leadership of Mao Zedong as the founder and Chairman, the CPC together with other minority political parties founded a unified Chinese People Republic that started the important tradition of the new China. Mao’s revolutionary theories not only liberated the whole China under imperialist powers occupation but also for the first time in Chinese history liberated the masses and women as equal citizens. His famous saying on women rights that “Women hold up half of the sky” started and was put into action from the early Yan An revolutionary days. His love for the minorities won the hearts and minds of the Tibetan, Xinjiang and Mongolia minorities. That is why Peoples Republic of China was able to unite Tibet, Xinjiang and Mongolia under Mao but not under the previous Nationalist government. All these monumental achievements make an undeniable modern Chinese epic tradition that will be long lasting and must be preserved for all Chinese history. In recognition of CPC’s epic liberation legacy tradition under Chairman Mao’s leadership CPC should be given 51% voting rights to head the HTC. Chairman Mao because of the liberation legacy he left for China will always be remembered as the father of modern China. despite his mistakes of over enthusiastic for the future of China in his old ages. Deng Xiaoping, the paramount leader that launched todays reform and open up era of modern China summed up correctly that he gave Mao 80% for correct leadership and 40% for impatience at old age, resulting in a 60% overall score. The Western media’s constant malicious attack on Chairman Mao is very inconsiderate and insensitive to the majority of Chinese people’s feelings. 3) Chairman Mao during his rule of China also correctly predicted the catching up with U.K. in economy during 1980s ,when China was so poor and behind it was inconceivable by the West that China can catch up with U.K. China’s economy eventually did catch up with U.K. in 2000 under Deng Xiaoping. Mao’s prediction is just a little early; however it sets the goals for China to continue to surpass the imperialist powers as a laudable tradition. 4) The progress made by China during the last 30 or so years starting with the reform and open up movement launched by Deng Xiaoping is nothing short of miracle. Its modernization broke all kinds of world records. It accomplished the modernization achievements in 30 years while it took the West centuries to accomplish. Coming from its poor agriculture background China today accounts for 90% of the world’s poverty reduction by moving 600 million people out of abject poverty. It has higher life expectation and lower infant mortality rate than the U.S. It has more college graduates than the U.S. and soon will have more engineers and scientists working than the U.S. In 2012 its economy caught up with Japan to become the second largest economy in the world. Today it is the largest export country in goods surpassing the U.S., which came from mere millions in export in 1949 to today’s trillions. It is expected by World Bank and many experts that China’s economy will catch up with the U.S. in real terms by 2020 if not earlier. For more discussion of China’s ascendance please refer to the book “China’s Mega Trends” by John Nassbitts, “China in 2020” by Hu Angang, “ The China Wave” by Zhang Weiwei and “When China Rules the World” by Martin Jacques. WHAT LIES AHEAD AFTER CHINA IMPLEMENTED THE HUMANE AUTHORITY WAY? Since the Humane Authority Way originated in ancient China it is natural for China to transition into it. As mentioned in previous section the CPC has also been in practice as political party for the last 60 years for the role as the consensus leader in the most important HTC of Humane Authority Way. According to the eminent scholar Yue Dai Yuen in Introduction, I quote again, “The history of world civilization has demonstrated that Chinese civilization is a cultural system with powerful resonance. Since ancient times, Chinese culture has put the pursuit of a spiritual and moral life at the center of its concerns. Its harmony principles stand for reconciliation between man and nature, for healing the rift between logic and spirituality, between the pursuit of material wealth and the good life, between natural science and humanism.” Thus with renaissance of Confucianism and harmony brought about by China Dream and the Humane Authority Way, China will further her modernization in the direction as called for by the 18 National Congress of CPC under the leadership of Xi Jinping. As a visionary new leader Xi already called for a China dream to rejuvenate the Chinese nation by rediscovery what is best in the past to combine with what is best in the future to bring a better life for all China with improved environment, better social and health services and an responsive governance according to the Humane Authority Way, a truly socialist nation with Chines characteristics. By today’s news China already is the country with the biggest production of renewable energy products including solar energy products. Based on the conclusion of all cited references we can expect that China will be most exemplary in its undertakings entrusted by the Chinese people’s wisdom. The CPC is the largest political party with 75 million active members, it has 60 years of proven nation building record as mentioned in the last section, it has the most resources among all political parties in the world, it is accustomed to manage large projects as witnessed by the perfect hosting of the 2008 Beijing Olympic with the theme “One world, One dream” and the 2010 Shanghai World Expo with the theme “Better City, Better Life”. Both event themes accurately forecast China‘s dream and future action. All predictions expect China to become exemplary in political reform and modernization far exceeding its past achievements. China will become a good model to the multipolar world in all human endeavors beneficial to the world. No matter how strong China becomes it will never become a hegemony power. It will always practice harmony and mutual development as promised by President Xi Jinping in numerous world speeches. It is not in the Chinese gene to practice hegemony. China’s culture profoundly influenced the world especially the East in the past but it was always through resonance instead of hegemony in contrast to the U.S. Ever since the end of second World War , as the world’s only superpower the U.S. always seek to extend its influence through wars such as the Vietnam war and the Iraq war. In the future the world will become more multipolar, more democratic and more peaceful because the U.S. will have to share its power position with China and other nations. As liberal democracy comes under more world denial beginning at the home front challenged by the political fourth revolution predicted by the book “The Fourth Revolution.” The U.S. will involuntarily concede some of the moral high ground to China and thus become less aggressive and arrogant for the better. The U.S. postured shining light on the hill will become less blinding to the world , that allows a more diverse world culture with hundred flowers blooming in a verdant and beautiful world cultural garden. Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization San Fancisco, CA (Opinions of the writer in this blog don't represent those of China Daily.)

The New Silk Road Globalization-World Answer to America Military Hegemony in 21st Century

The New Silk Road Globalization-World Answer to America Military Hegemony in 21st Century By Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. The Rise and Fall of U.S. Hegemony Influence China has accumulated 5000 years of wisdom to know that hegemony powers do not last long. That is why China has no wish to become a hegemon. By obsession, hegemony powers tend to over reach before they finally decline. Also weaker nations eventually get tired of being pushed around and topple the hegemon by uniting together. For a hegemon to sustain its clout it must also has economic as well as pure military power. Together the twin wings of economic and military power enables the hegemon to soar above the rest. The collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of Cold War was due mostly a classic example of the collapse of its economies. In the case of our current hegemon, America, all factors are working to decrease its influence, plus the fact that in the 21st century military as the only hegemony power is obsolete. Economic and cultural power is the new paradigm of world influence. Although the U.S. is still the military as well as economic power today its economic wing will be clipped by the New Silk Road Globalization led by China as we will see in following. We shall describe how the rise of emerging and developing countries because of the worldwide connectivity ushered in by the New Silk Road infrastructure, communication and commerce that will drastically trim the America eagle’s economic wing. Although America will remain the dominant military power for a long time to come. According to Michael T. Klare, a professor of peace and world security studies at Hampshire College, “For decades, being a superpower has been the defining characteristic of American identity. The embrace of global supremacy began after World War II when the United States assumed responsibility for resisting Soviet expansionism around the world; it persisted through the Cold War era and only grew after the implosion of the Soviet Union, when the U.S. assumed sole responsibility for combating a whole new array of international threats. As General Colin Powell famously exclaimed in the final days of the Soviet era, “We have to put a shingle outside our door saying, ‘Superpower Lives Here,’ no matter what the Soviets do, even if they evacuate from Eastern Europe.” “Strategically, in the Cold War years, Washington’s power brokers assumed that there would always be two superpowers perpetually battling for world dominance. In the wake of the utterly unexpected Soviet collapse, American strategists began to envision a world of just one, of a “sole superpower” (aka Rome on the Potomac). In line with this new outlook, the administration of George H.W. Bush soon adopted a long-range plan intended to preserve that status indefinitely. Known as the Defense Planning Guidance for Fiscal Years 1994-99, it declared: “Our first objective is to prevent the re-emergence of a new rival, either on the territory of the former Soviet Union or elsewhere that poses a threat on the order of that posed formerly by the Soviet Union.” “H.W.’s son, then the governor of Texas, articulated a similar vision of a globally encompassing Pax Americana when campaigning for president in 1999. If elected, he told military cadets at the Citadel in Charleston, his top goal would be “to take advantage of a tremendous opportunity -- given few nations in history -- to extend the current peace into the far realm of the future. A chance to project America’s peaceful influence not just across the world, but across the years.” “For Bush, of course, “extending the peace” would turn out to mean invading Iraq and igniting a devastating regional conflagration that only continues to grow and spread to this day. Even after it began, he did not doubt -- nor (despite the reputed wisdom offered by hindsight) does he today -- that this was the price that had to be paid for the U.S. to retain its vaunted status as the world’s sole superpower.” “The problem, as many mainstream observers now acknowledge, is that such a strategy aimed at perpetuating U.S. global supremacy at all costs was always destined to result in what Yale historian Paul Kennedy, in his classic book The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, unforgettably termed “imperial overstretch.” As he presciently wrote in that 1987 study, it would arise from a situation in which “the sum total of the United States’ global interests and obligations is… far larger than the country’s power to defend all of them simultaneously.” “Indeed, Washington finds itself in exactly that dilemma today. What’s curious, however, is just how quickly such overstretch engulfed a country that, barely a decade ago, was being hailed as the planet’s first “hyperpower,” a status even more exalted than superpower. But that was before George W.’s miscalculation in Iraq and other missteps left the U.S. to face a war-ravaged Middle East with an exhausted military and a depleted treasury. At the same time, major and regional powers like China, India, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey have been building up their economic and military capabilities and, recognizing the weakness that accompanies imperial overstretch, are beginning to challenge U.S. dominance in many areas of the globe. The Obama administration has been trying, in one fashion or another, to respond in all of those areas -- among them Ukraine, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and the South China Sea -- but without, it turns out, the capacity to prevail in any of them.” “Nonetheless, despite a range of setbacks, no one in Washington’s power elite -- Senators Rand Paul and Bernie Sanders being the exceptions that prove the rule -- seems to have the slightest urge to abandon the role of sole superpower or even to back off it in any significant way. President Obama, who is clearly all too aware of the country’s strategic limitations, has been typical in his unwillingness to retreat from such a supremacist vision. “The United States is and remains the one indispensable nation,” he told graduating cadets at West Point in May 2014. “That has been true for the century past and it will be true for the century to come.” “How, then, to reconcile the reality of superpower overreach and decline with an unbending commitment to global supremacy? The first of two approaches to this conundrum in Washington might be thought of as a high-wire circus act. It involves the constant juggling of America’s capabilities and commitments, with its limited resources (largely of a military nature) being rushed relatively fruitlessly from one place to another in response to unfolding crises, even as attempts are made to avoid yet more and deeper entanglements. This, in practice, has been the strategy pursued by the current administration. Call it the Obama Doctrine.” “After concluding, for instance, that China had taken advantage of U.S. entanglement in Iraq and Afghanistan to advance its own strategic interests in Southeast Asia, Obama and his top advisers decided to downgrade the U.S. presence in the Middle East and free up resources for a more robust one in the western Pacific. Announcing this shift in 2011 -- it would first be called a “pivot to Asia” and then a “rebalancing” there -- the president made no secret of the juggling act involved. “After a decade in which we fought two wars that cost us dearly, in blood and treasure, the United States is turning our attention to the vast potential of the Asia Pacific region,” he told members of the Australian Parliament that November. “As we end today’s wars, I have directed my national security team to make our presence and mission in the Asia Pacific a top priority. As a result, reductions in U.S. defense spending will not -- I repeat, will not -- come at the expense of the Asia Pacific.” New 'Silk Road' could alter global economics and usher in the next globalization March 31, 2015 is an historic moment. China successfully launched the Asian Infrastructure Bank to fund the New Silk Road Initiative to provide connectivity for the world. By now all U.S. allies have all broke from their military alliance with America and join the peaceful mutual development initiative. The only redeeming grace for America is to join as observer country at a later day. It is natural for China to launch the New Silk Road Initiative for all historical, technological, financial capable and infrastructure building experience reasons. China in the last 39 years has built 20 trillion dollars of infrastructure in her own country. This super scale of construction in such a short time has no historical precedence! All silk roads completed will eventually all connect to China like ancient days. In rejuvenation, she will be truly, the Middle Kingdom like her name implies! This time China will lead the Second Commercial Globalization, which will grow to be much larger than the first globalization led by the U.S. in the 20th century. America will remain the dominant military power but not the largest economic power in 21st century. Which means America can no longer behave in her hegemony way dominating the world as in the 20th century. India will replace China as the world factory with her biggest population and technology capability. With her middle class growing to the biggest of the world because of Silk Road connectivity prosperity China will be the market of the world and lead the world globalization. With all developing countries rise, the mutual development will benefit all humankind with the resulting people connectivity, prosperity and cultural equal exchange the world may reach true equality and harmony. This world harmony world with mutual respect and equality will be a great improvement compare to the 20th century world dominated by America hegemony. An article in USA Today by Robert Berke, Summarizes the New Silk Road Initiative as follows: “Beginning with the marvelous tales of Marco Polo's travels across Eurasia to China, the Silk Road has never ceased to entrance the world. Now, the ancient cities of Samarkand, Baku, Tashkent, and Bukhara are once again firing the world's imagination. China is building the world's greatest economic development and construction project ever undertaken: The New Silk Road. The project aims at no less than a revolutionary change in the economic map of the world. It is also seen by many as the first shot in a battle between east and west for economic dominance in Eurasia.” “The ambitious vision is to resurrect the ancient Silk Road as a modern transit, trade, and economic corridor that runs from Shanghai to Berlin. The 'Road' will traverse China, Mongolia, Russia, Belarus, Poland, and Germany, extending more than 8,000 miles, creating an economic zone that extends over one third the circumference of the earth. The plan envisions building high-speed railroads, roads and highways, energy transmission and distributions networks, and fiber optic networks. Cities and ports along the route will be targeted for economic development. An equally essential part of the plan is a sea-based "Maritime Silk Road" (MSR) component, as ambitious as its land-based project, linking China with the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea through Central Asia and the Indian Ocean. When completed, like the ancient Silk Road, it will connect three continents: Asia, Europe, and Africa. The chain of infrastructure projects will create the world's largest economic corridor, covering a population of 4.4 billion and an economic output of $21 trillion.” The idea for reviving the New Silk Road was first announced in 2013 by the Chinese President, Xi Jinping. As part of the financing of the plan, in 2014, the Chinese leader also announced the launch of an Asian International Infrastructure Bank (AIIB), providing seed funding for the project, with an initial Chinese contribution of $47 billion. “China has invited the international community of nations to take a major role as bank charter members and partners in the project. Members will be expected to contribute, with additional funding by international funds, including the World Bank, investments from private and public companies, and local governments. Some 58 nations have signed on to become charter bank members, including most of Western Europe, along with many Silk Road and Asian countries. There are 12 NATO countries among AIIB´s founding member states (UK, France, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Norway), along with three of the main US military allies in Asia (Australia, S. Korea and New Zealand). After failed attempts by the US to persuade allies against joining the bank, the US reversed course, and now says that it has always supported the project, a disingenuous position considering the fact that US opposition was hardly a secret. The Wall Street Journal reported in November 2014 that "the U.S. has also lobbied hard against Chinese plans for a new infrastructure development bank…including during teleconferences of the Group of Seven major industrial powers.” The Huffington Post's Alastair Crooke had this to say on the matter: "For very different motives, the key pillars of the region (Iran, Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan) are re-orienting eastwards. It is not fully appreciated in the West how important China's "Belt and Road" initiative is to this move (and Russia, of course is fully integrated into the project). Regional states can see that China is very serious indeed about creating huge infrastructure projects from Asia to Europe. They can also see what occurred with the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), as the world piled in (to America's very evident dismay). These states intend to be a part of it." “Buttressing this effort, China plans on injecting at least $62 billion into three banks to support the New Silk Road. The China Development Bank (CDB) will receive $32 billion, the Export Import Bank of China (EXIM) will take on $30 billion, and the Chinese government will also pump additional capital into the Agricultural Development Bank of China (ADBC).” “A look at the first project, currently under development, provides a good example of how China plans to proceed. The first major economic development project will take place in Pakistan, where the Chinese have been working for years, building and financing a strategic deepwater port at Gwadar, on the Arabian Sea, that will be managed by China as the long-term leaseholder. Gwadar will become the launching point for the much delayed Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline, which will ultimately be extended to China, with the Persian section already built and the Pakistan-Chinese section largely financed and constructed by the Chinese. The pipeline is also set to traverse the country, following the Karakoram Mountain Highway towards Tibet, and cross the Chinese western border to Xinjang. The highway will also be widened and modernized, and a railroad built, connecting the highway to Gwadar.” “China and much of the world is intent on developing the largest economic development project in history, one that could have dramatic ripple effects throughout the world economy. The project is expected to take decades, with costs running into the hundreds of billions of dollars, if not trillions. What that will mean for the world economy and trade is almost inconceivable. Is it any wonder then, that the world's largest hedge funds, like Goldman Sachs and Blackstone, are rushing to market new multi-billion dollar international infrastructure investment funds? No doubt a project as large and complex as this is likely to have failures, and is certain to face many western geopolitical obstructions. Assuredly, the "great game" will continue. Look no further than US President Barack Obama, who also senses the urgency. "If we don't write the rules, China will write the rules out in that region," he said in defense of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In a world where economic growth is tepid, with Europe still struggling with the aftermath of the global recession, along with China's growth slowdown, where else could a project that promises so much opportunity be found? It's a good bet that giant iron mining companies like Vale, that have seen their business fall to a thirteen-year low, are currently busy figuring how much steel goes into construction of a new, high speed 8,000 mile railroad. If the project is successful, it could very well spark a boom across the entire depressed international mining, commodities, and construction sectors. Consider how many jobs could be created in a decades-long construction project that spans a huge region of the world. In practically every sector, the prospects are enormous for a revival of trade and commerce.” “The ancient Silk Road increased trade across the known world, but the Road also offered far more than trade. One of its least anticipated benefits was the widespread exchange of knowledge, learning, discovery, and culture. Beyond the riches of silks, spices, and jewelry, it could be argued that the most important thing that Marco Polo brought back from China was a famous nautical and world map that was the basis for one of the most famous maps published in Europe, one that helped spark the Age of Discovery. Christopher Columbus was guided by that map and was known to have a well-annotated copy of Marco Polo's travel tales with him on his voyage of discovery of a new route to India.” “For the world at large, its decisions about the Road are nothing less than momentous. The massive project holds the potential for a new renaissance in commerce, industry, discovery, thought, invention, and culture that could well rival the original Silk Road. It is also becoming clearer by the day that geopolitical conflicts over the project could lead to a new rebalance between East and West for dominance in Eurasia and the world.” The Coming of 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization America initiated the 20th Century world trade globalization. But the 2008 world financial crisis caused by the U.S. toxic asset collapse and its worldwide devastating spread signaled the end of the good days of world trade globalization of the 20th Century. Seven years later world major economies in the world still mired in great recession with the exception of China. The whole world is looking for new economic or technology breakthrough to bail the world economy out of its quagmire. The coming 21st Century New Silk Road Globalization in short is the Great Infrastructure Revolution bring on by China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in2013, the second Globalization as a result of world connectivity of the infrastructure revolution and the 21st Century Transportation Revolution brought about also by world connectivity. All these economic and technology breakthroughs will be described in more detail below. As if God send, Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013 got the inspiration to announce the modernization of the ancient Silk Road. This is the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Ocean Silk Road Initiative or the “Belt and Road” initiative in short. The initiative is to launch modern transportation and communication infrastructure to connect Asia through Central Asia to Europe and from South East Asia through ocean to Middle East and finally Africa. More details of the “Belt and Road” initiative will be revealed in more detail in the following “Belt and Road Action Plan” This vast “Belt and Road” initiative will thus greatly advance Commerce, communication, cultural and technology exchange, people and people contact all over the world to benefit human progress in the brave 21st century era. The resulting world connectivity will bring trade globalization to another height far exceeding the 20th century because this time the connectivity expands to a far greater world. This time we may experience true worldwide harmony, mutual development and prosperity like no other time in history before. From the preface of the “Belt and Road” Action Plan titled “VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD” we quote:“MORE THAN TWO MILLENNIA AGO THE DILIGENT AND COURAGEOUS PEOPLE OF EURASIA EXPLORED AND OPENED UP SEVERAL ROUTES OF TRADE AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES THAT LINKED THE MAJOR CIVILIZATIONS OF ASIA, EUROPE AND AFRICA, COLLECTIVELY CALLED THE SILK ROAD BY LATER GENERATIONS. FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT - "PEACE AND COOPERATION, OPENNESS AND INCLUSIVENESS, MUTUAL LEARNING AND MUTUAL BENEFIT" - HAS BEEN PASSED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION, PROMOTED THE PROGRESS OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION, AND CONTRIBUTED GREATLY TO THE PROSPERITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE SILK ROAD. SYMBOLIZING COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WEST, THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IS A HISTORIC AND CULTURAL HERITAGE SHARED BY ALL COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. IN THE 21ST CENTURY, A NEW ERA MARKED BY THE THEME OF PEACE, DEVELOPMENT, COOPERATION AND MUTUAL BENEFIT, IT IS ALL THE MORE IMPORTANT FOR US TO CARRY ON THE SILK ROAD SPIRIT IN FACE OF THE WEAK RECOVERY OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, AND COMPLEX INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL SITUATIONS. WHEN CHINESE PRESIDENT XI JINPING VISITED CENTRAL ASIA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER OF 2013, HE RAISED THE INITIATIVE OF JOINTLY BUILDING THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND THE 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD (HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS THE BELT AND ROAD), WHICH HAVE ATTRACTED CLOSE ATTENTION FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. AT THE CHINA-ASEAN EXPO IN 2013, CHINESE PREMIER LI KEQIANG EMPHASIZED THE NEED TO BUILD THE MARITIME SILK ROAD ORIENTED TOWARDS ASEAN, AND TO CREATE STRATEGIC PROPELLERS FOR HINTERLAND DEVELOPMENT. ACCELERATING THE BUILDING OF THE BELT AND ROAD CAN HELP PROMOTE THE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC COOPERATION, STRENGTHEN EXCHANGES AND MUTUAL LEARNING BETWEEN DIFFERENT CIVILIZATIONS, AND PROMOTE WORLD PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT. IT IS A GREAT UNDERTAKING THAT WILL BENEFIT PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE IS A SYSTEMATIC PROJECT, WHICH SHOULD BE JOINTLY BUILT THROUGH CONSULTATION TO MEET THE INTERESTS OF ALL, AND EFFORTS SHOULD BE MADE TO INTEGRATE THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF THE COUNTRIES ALONG THE BELT AND ROAD. THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT HAS DRAFTED AND PUBLISHED THE VISION AND ACTIONS ON JOINTLY BUILDING SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT AND 21ST-CENTURY MARITIME SILK ROAD TO PROMOTE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INITIATIVE, INSTILL VIGOR AND VITALITY INTO THE ANCIENT SILK ROAD, CONNECT ASIAN, EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN COUNTRIES MORE CLOSELY AND PROMOTE MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL COOPERATION TO A NEW HIGH AND IN NEW FORMS.” The Belt and Road is the first 21st Century globalization that will modernize almost all the developing countries of the world and bring endless commercial opportunities for them to prosper. This first 21st Century first Economic Opportunity tide may also be called the 21st Century Infrastructure Revolution. For any country to develop its wealth, the first priority is to build first class infrastructures as witnessed by the rise of America and China during the 20th Century that follows massive infrastructure construction. The second Economic Opportunity Tide is the Second Commercial Globalization brought about by the superior infrastructure due to the enhanced worldwide “Belt and Road” connectivity. This will bring flourishing world trade to all countries in the world thus commercial successes in every corners of the world unlike the first 20th century globalization. During the first globalization initiated by America only Europe, China and parts of Asia prospered. This time the whole world will prosper. Because of this 21st Century infrastructure revolution and Second Commercial Globalization tides initiated by China the wealth generated by expanded global commerce due to the rising developing world will empower India to become the new “factory of the World” replacing China. Because of its rising middle and huge population China will become the “Market of the world” replacing the U.S. America will remain the dominant military power and policeman of the world but not the hegemony power of the world as it enjoyed throughout most of 20th century. For its number one economic position will be surpassed by China in both national and per capital GDP. This is due mainly by the wealth generated by the commercial return by China acting as the initiator and main funding partner in the great belt and road infrastructure building and trading network. Francis C W Fung, Ph.D. Director General World Harmony Organization, San Francisco, CA