How do you think people who support communism in western democracies reconcile the only reason hundreds of millions of Chinese were lifted out of extreme poverty in the last thirty years is because of trade with free market systems?
I'm an American. My whole life (im 52) America has been engaged some kind of military engagement around the world. If China is such a superpower, why havent they done the same thing?
Why are Chinese drone swarms not any attention? It seems to me that, seeing as Ukraine started doing markedly better in the Russo-Ukrainian war after becoming a world leader in drone technology, the fact the China could produce orders of magnitude more at the drop of a hat, powered by some of the most sophisticated AI in the world, seems like it would demolish any Taiwanese or possibly Western defences, as there is little we could do about it. Am I wrong?
Hi Frank, How should Australia respond to China increasing its naval presence across the Pacific, Does Australia need to think of the Pacific Islands not simply as neighbours, but as strategically important maritime partners?
Looking at China’s history, what does the West most often misunderstand about how Chinese leaders think about power, territory and national security?
I often credit Deng Xiaoping with China's economic miracle, am I wrong to do so? Did Deng Xiaoping actually represent a fundamental break with Mao, or were Deng's economic reforms ultimately a means of making the Communist Party stronger rather than weaker?
I heard Steve Keen make the argument that China benefits from public investments which wouldn't make sense for private capital investment- primarily because longer-term investments require borrowing at an interest rate which balloons the total capital required to offset the borrowing.
Is Keen wrong, or does China's tendency towards public capital investment in areas like energy give their investment class and commerce a huge comparative advantage compared to countries which go the privately provided energy route?
Of course, I'm also aware that state investment also led to huge misallocations of capital, particular in housing. Is the state investment observation only true in a very narrow sense?
I teach IB history in Hannover, Germany. Please send my regards to Mr Dikötter, whose books are a joy to read - despite their rather gloomy content. Chinese primary sources are hard to come by (https://chineseposters.net/ is of the few I know). Authentic sources are pedagogical gold. Can Mr Dikötter recommend websites that give access? IS there any chance any of the documents he mentions in his books can be accessed online? Are the Chinese archives being digitalized at the moment?
How confident is Frank, as an academic in Hong Kong, that there will not be "repercussions" for any comments/views he has which are not to the liking of the CCP?
Does he believe China is now under a “Benevolent Dictator” so therefore the average citizen is better off than the average Western citizen for it, or is it just a mean communist regime and therefore the average citizen is worse off compared to the average Western citizen?
China's current Criminal Law, Article 261, provides that a person who refuses to fulfil a duty to support an elderly person, minor, sick person, or another person unable to live independently, where the circumstances are serious, can receive up to five years' imprisonment, short-term detention, or non-custodial correction.
Which of these modern propaganda campaigns, in your opinion, is nearer the truth, i.e American or Chinese? Are China, the next biggest threat to the world, trying to eradicate Western philosophy and beliefs, or are they the new peace-loving benevolent socialists of world politics, spreading love and prosperity around the globe?
If China invades Taiwan, will the economic shock be so bad at a time when the US has bad economic posture (eg the debt) that it causes the US to slide from its Pax Americana position? Or would it be more comparable to 1929 where it wasn’t particularly pleasant at the time but fundamentally America escape unscathed.
I hope there's some discussion about economic growth in China. Sure, Deng made a huge difference but I understand that Xi has slowed things down a lot. Is that true?
How do people view the vast wealth and privilege of CCP leaders and relatives compared to the promise of communism? The wealth gap in CCP China is likely as bad or worse than in any Western country.
And another one (which may be a bit nerdy, but pleaaaaase ask it): You’re mentioning a mechanism in the persecution of enemies in Mao’s China that reminded me of the terms that are being used in connection with Nazi Germany, such as “cumulative radicalism” and “polycracy”. You were not commenting on this in your book “Dictators”, but I wondered whether the setting of quotas in Mao`s China does in fact resemble the practise of persecutio in Nazi Germany. What is your take on that?
How do you think people who support communism in western democracies reconcile the only reason hundreds of millions of Chinese were lifted out of extreme poverty in the last thirty years is because of trade with free market systems?
I'm an American. My whole life (im 52) America has been engaged some kind of military engagement around the world. If China is such a superpower, why havent they done the same thing?
Great question! Wish I asked it myself.
Why are Chinese drone swarms not any attention? It seems to me that, seeing as Ukraine started doing markedly better in the Russo-Ukrainian war after becoming a world leader in drone technology, the fact the China could produce orders of magnitude more at the drop of a hat, powered by some of the most sophisticated AI in the world, seems like it would demolish any Taiwanese or possibly Western defences, as there is little we could do about it. Am I wrong?
Hi Frank, How should Australia respond to China increasing its naval presence across the Pacific, Does Australia need to think of the Pacific Islands not simply as neighbours, but as strategically important maritime partners?
Looking at China’s history, what does the West most often misunderstand about how Chinese leaders think about power, territory and national security?
I often credit Deng Xiaoping with China's economic miracle, am I wrong to do so? Did Deng Xiaoping actually represent a fundamental break with Mao, or were Deng's economic reforms ultimately a means of making the Communist Party stronger rather than weaker?
I heard Steve Keen make the argument that China benefits from public investments which wouldn't make sense for private capital investment- primarily because longer-term investments require borrowing at an interest rate which balloons the total capital required to offset the borrowing.
Is Keen wrong, or does China's tendency towards public capital investment in areas like energy give their investment class and commerce a huge comparative advantage compared to countries which go the privately provided energy route?
Of course, I'm also aware that state investment also led to huge misallocations of capital, particular in housing. Is the state investment observation only true in a very narrow sense?
I teach IB history in Hannover, Germany. Please send my regards to Mr Dikötter, whose books are a joy to read - despite their rather gloomy content. Chinese primary sources are hard to come by (https://chineseposters.net/ is of the few I know). Authentic sources are pedagogical gold. Can Mr Dikötter recommend websites that give access? IS there any chance any of the documents he mentions in his books can be accessed online? Are the Chinese archives being digitalized at the moment?
How confident is Frank, as an academic in Hong Kong, that there will not be "repercussions" for any comments/views he has which are not to the liking of the CCP?
Does he believe China is now under a “Benevolent Dictator” so therefore the average citizen is better off than the average Western citizen for it, or is it just a mean communist regime and therefore the average citizen is worse off compared to the average Western citizen?
Hi. Should we embrace China further ( we already are for products and cars ) but also in wisdom and societal structure ?
China's current Criminal Law, Article 261, provides that a person who refuses to fulfil a duty to support an elderly person, minor, sick person, or another person unable to live independently, where the circumstances are serious, can receive up to five years' imprisonment, short-term detention, or non-custodial correction.
Which of these modern propaganda campaigns, in your opinion, is nearer the truth, i.e American or Chinese? Are China, the next biggest threat to the world, trying to eradicate Western philosophy and beliefs, or are they the new peace-loving benevolent socialists of world politics, spreading love and prosperity around the globe?
If China invades Taiwan, will the economic shock be so bad at a time when the US has bad economic posture (eg the debt) that it causes the US to slide from its Pax Americana position? Or would it be more comparable to 1929 where it wasn’t particularly pleasant at the time but fundamentally America escape unscathed.
Brilliant interview.
I learnt so much it would have taken me ages to research or even read to obtain this kind of information.
I cannot wait to read his book.
I'm Australian but pray America can remain and hold the balance of power in these very unstable times.
How important will Mandarin or other Chinese languages become globally? Are schools right to teach them or is it just a gimmick?
I hope there's some discussion about economic growth in China. Sure, Deng made a huge difference but I understand that Xi has slowed things down a lot. Is that true?
How do people view the vast wealth and privilege of CCP leaders and relatives compared to the promise of communism? The wealth gap in CCP China is likely as bad or worse than in any Western country.
And another one (which may be a bit nerdy, but pleaaaaase ask it): You’re mentioning a mechanism in the persecution of enemies in Mao’s China that reminded me of the terms that are being used in connection with Nazi Germany, such as “cumulative radicalism” and “polycracy”. You were not commenting on this in your book “Dictators”, but I wondered whether the setting of quotas in Mao`s China does in fact resemble the practise of persecutio in Nazi Germany. What is your take on that?