China Summit

 China Summit

 

I have always disliked Communism, its principles and its practices. As a child I recognized that while we may have all been born equal, we did not develop equally either in the classroom or the playground. As I grew up, my studies and experience revealed that Communist regimes were among the most murderous in history, and that their atrocities were directed not just at foreigners but at their own people. 

 

Although not on a par with such brutal oppression, one of the worst things about Communists was the way in which they betrayed the hopes and dreams of their most ardent supporters. After all, there is something noble about Communism, despite its sordid history, that attracted and still attracts millions of idealistic supporters all over the world. Slogans from a bygone day like, “Workers of the world unite, you have nothing to lose but your chains” really resonated. 

 

There are countless examples of young idealists going to fight for Communism. I think of George Orwell, an English writer, whose political convictions led him to fight with the Communist backed Republicans against the Fascists during the Spanish civil war in the 1930s. His own experience in Spain led him to realize that in practice Communists were just as bad, if not worse than the Fascists.

 

Older readers will remember Orwell’s political fable “Animal Farm” about a rebellion of oppressed farm animals against the farmer who profited from their labor. The farmer and his men were driven off the farm that then was to be worked by and for the animals. A banner was raised proclaiming, “All Animals are Equal.” All would share equally in the work and rewards of the farm. 

 

Unfortunately, things soon took a wrong turn. The wily pigs took over with the aid of fierce attack dogs and soon lorded it over the other animals. One day the animals noted that the revolutionary banner had been altered to read: “All Animals are Equal, but Some are More Equal than Others.” 

 

The book ends with a very touching scene. One night the ordinary animals stand out in the cold peering through the window of the restored farmhouse. They behold the prosperous pigs enjoying a fine dinner. Their guest is the farmer. The revolution had been betrayed.

 

The above thoughts came to mind while I watched some of the ceremonies of President Trump’s recent visit to China. As Xi Jinping, the leader of the Chinese Communist party, descended the stairs in front of an enormous palace I could only think that he was the latest in the long line of Chinese Emperors. True, he preferred Western business attire to Imperial robes, but it is obvious that the People’s Republic of China is long gone.

 

The Communist Party in China is the largest in the world, but its one million members make up a small minority of China’s 1.5 billion population. Interestingly, workers in China are not allowed to unite. Labor and trade unions are prohibited. Communists and Communist sympathizers in the United States have to willfully blind themselves to the realities of Communist rule wherever it has triumphed. Whether Soviet Russia, China, or Cuba some animals were more equal than others.

 

Nevertheless, I hope the summit does achieve some good results. If President Trump somehow managed to convince the Chinese leader that it would not be in his best interest to invade Taiwan, that would be a huge success. If the trade deals work out, that would also be a major accomplishment. Actually, I think that President Trump understands that trade, rather than military force, is our best weapon in dealing with the Chinese empire.

 

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