If the perception of your country falls below that of a suppressive, authoritarian dictatorship then you are either a despicable asshole country or a dictatorship yourself.
Or both.
USA us now classified as chaotic evil. Never know what wacko stuff is going to happen today.
China is more lawful evil. It has its own logic so you can at least anticipate on what it's gonna do and work with it.
The PRC has a pretty clear ideological basis. Many of its leaders have written theoretical works about economics and governance. The direction might veer one way or another over the years but it's the same party running the show. So at the end of the day, one thing they have going for them is consistency. You can know what to expect. From an international perspective, they're an appealing trade partner.
The US ran a pay-to-win popularity contest to give the keys to a reality show failed-businessman backed by a weird mix of alienated mega-millionaire and billionaires who clearly have little idea of how the levers work, alongside the vicious selfish bigots who ally with them. It was already an inconsistent system for a long time, but now there's no more facade of professionalism to keep them half-rational. It's pretty much the 1930s all over again.
"Hegel remarks somewhere that all great world-historic facts and personages appear, so to speak, twice. He forgot to add: the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce."
If the US and China went BAND FOR BAND, as the kids say, in war crimes, terrorism, coups and overall destabilisation, who do you think would win? Do you even live in this world? America, a European colonial project that developed into its own monstrosity, has the blood of the world on its hands just like its forefathers.
The difference is that, with the evolution of the internet and with the waning power of the US (specially after their Middle Eastern neo crusades that showed America to be a bit of a paper tiger, and now with the incapability of NATO to defeat Russia), and as the majority of non-Western countries seek independence from neo colonial control (check Ibrahim Traoré out!), the narratives can be openly challenged. The only remaining bastions of consumption of American propaganda are America itself (it will only grow stronger there, I assume) and tiny spots of confused folks around the world (a coworker who's a bit of a schizo told me the other day "Trump will save us" and we're French! 🤷😅).
If the perception of your country falls below that of a suppressive, authoritarian dictatorship then you are either a despicable asshole country or a dictatorship yourself.
Or both.
USA us now classified as chaotic evil. Never know what wacko stuff is going to happen today.
China is more lawful evil. It has its own logic so you can at least anticipate on what it's gonna do and work with it.
The PRC has a pretty clear ideological basis. Many of its leaders have written theoretical works about economics and governance. The direction might veer one way or another over the years but it's the same party running the show. So at the end of the day, one thing they have going for them is consistency. You can know what to expect. From an international perspective, they're an appealing trade partner.
The US ran a pay-to-win popularity contest to give the keys to a reality show failed-businessman backed by a weird mix of alienated mega-millionaire and billionaires who clearly have little idea of how the levers work, alongside the vicious selfish bigots who ally with them. It was already an inconsistent system for a long time, but now there's no more facade of professionalism to keep them half-rational. It's pretty much the 1930s all over again.