Xi-Biden meeting: the Buddha and the Monster and the Red Flag 習-登會: 佛陀與妖怪與紅旗
- Good summary from Rnaud Bertrand:
Rnaud Bertrand refers to China as the adult in the room calling the angry child back to reality: Come back to win-win or we are all f*cked https://nitter.net/RnaudBertrand/status/1724999642239390136#m
President Xi Jinping noted that there are two options for China and the U.S. in the era of global transformations unseen in a century:
One is to enhance solidarity and cooperation and join hands to meet global challenges and promote global security and prosperity;
and the other is to cling to the zero-sum mentality, provoke rivalry and confrontation, and drive the world toward turmoil and division.
The two choices point to two different directions that will decide the future of humanity and Planet Earth.
2: The Buddha and the Beast: I prefer the analogy of the Buddha and the Beast:
China spells out a path for the US and China to achieve peace and prosperity: for solidarity & cooperation, instead of rivalry and confrontation:
Think of this as 5 easy-to-follow steps, modelled on the 8 fold path of the historical Buddha
Notice also that everything was about “jointly developing:
Right Perception (=Right View): China is not out to get you. Jointly develop clear understanding.
Right Communication (=Right Speech): Jointly manage disagreements skillfully
Right Cooperation (=Right Action): Jointly develop mutual cooperation
Right Responsibility/Right Example (=Right Livelihood): Jointly shoulder responsibility and develop public goods for the whole world
Right Relationship (=Right Effort): Jointly develop people-to-people exchanges to support the above
All of these are positive steps, positive injunctions. Note how modest and reasonable they are.
These are counterpoints to the 5 No’s (No regime change, no cold war, no hot war, no economic war, no taiwan provocation) that the US intoned in Bali, but never kept.
China is seeking to heighten the positive. Each is an antidote to the US’s formulation:
- No regime change: Use Right perception
- No cold war (no bloc forming): Use Right relationship, Right cooperation
- No hot war: Use right communication
- No economic war: Use right livelihood
But note also the warning about 5.Taiwan island (This is where Right intention is called for), avoid the poison pill
- How does the US respond? The Beast turns up, with the usual Imperial Knapsack:
The Monster of Greed (Envy, Jealousy):
“Nice car you have there, [dude][I want one of those].
Did you know ours is called “the monster”?”–The Hongqi is the “red flag” to the monster–a threat.
https://nitter.net/TripInChina/status/1725051893905547762#m
The Monster of Ignorance and Delusion:
https://twitter.com/unusual_whales/status/1724972165634916838?s=20
“The US and China are in competition, noting that the United States would continue to invest in the sources of American strength at home and align with allies and partners around the world. He stressed that the United States would always stand up for its interests, its values, and its allies and partners”
“our one China policy has not changed and has been consistent across decades and administrations.”
“President Biden underscored the universality of human rights and the responsibility of all nations to respect their international human rights commitments. He raised concerns regarding PRC human rights abuses, including in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong.”
“the United States will continue to take necessary actions to prevent advanced U.S. technologies from being used to undermine our own national security”
Here’s a key source of ignorance, delusion, violence: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=loCXuMt9ukk
The Monster of Violence:
“President Biden reaffirmed that the United States, alongside allies and partners, will continue to support Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression”
“[The President] reiterated U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorism
See here for examples:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx5bmMu12Bk
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-gaza-hospital-babies-hamas-b2446440.html
“President Biden underscored the United States’ support for a free and open Indo-Pacific that is connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient. The President reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to defending our Indo-Pacific allies. The President emphasized the United States’ enduring commitment to freedom of navigation and overflight, adherence to international law, maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea and East China Sea, and the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”
Nuclear posture
https://lasg.org/MPF2/documents/Americas-Strategic-Posture-Commission-Report_Oct2023.pdf
- Conclusion: The scorpion and the frog:
Moral: The scorpion came to the frog because it needed the frog’s help crossing the river.This river, if you will, was the river of blood in Palestine and Ukraine that it had created. It needed help crossing it, so it could get to a certain island. We know the island. We know how this story ends.
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