China's new Politburo Standing Committee members (from left to right) Zhang Gaoli, Liu Yunshan, Zhang Dejiang, Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Yu Zhengsheng and Wang Qishan, line up as they meet with the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing last month. Carlos Barria/REUTERS
Why China Won't Be The Next Great Superpower -- Ghaffar Hussain, The Commentator
China is and will be a power - but the next great superpower it is not nor ever likely to be.
All talk amongst global trend watchers these days is about the rise of China; how China is the next big thing, the new superpower, and how China's rise will change the world we live in. A closer look at trends within China, however, point to a different story.
In a recent interview with The Times, a young well-to-do Chinese couple discussed what life was like for the nouveau riche in China today. They spoke about their trendy new apartment, their designer clothes, and the first class private education their daughter was receiving. When asked what they wished for their daughter most of all, without any hesitation, they replied “Canadian citizenship”.
There are good reasons why most of China's new middle class are dreaming of a new life in the west.
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My Comment: I concur with this commentary's observations. The environmental/social/political/economic problems in China are enormous .... and this will be the focus for China's leaders today and tomorrow. If their problems at home were solved .... maybe China would look at playing a greater role abroad .... but for now their attention is on domestic issues and on international issues their focus is (and will be) on their relations/disputes with their neighbors.
1 comment:
I disagree. The US has it's own problems yet it is considered a Superpower. Granted they don't have the environmental issue that China does on that scale, but I would argue the US shares it's own burden of social issues and political scandals tied in with huge economic issues.
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