Before we look at the two-faces of Confucius, let us learn something from a New York Times Opinion piece by Eric X. Li, Counterpoint: Debunking Myths About China
Li says there is a common myth that because China does not hold elections that its rulers do not have the consent of the ruled.
However, “According to the Pew Research Center” Li says, “the Chinese government enjoys popular support that is among the highest in the world.The Chinese people’s satisfaction with the direction of their country was at 87% in 2010 and has been consistently above 80 percent in recent years.”
Compare the popularity of China’s government to that of the US government and its people, and we discover that, “Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress receive highly negative job ratings. Just 23% approve of the job Republican congressional leaders are doing, while 67% disapprove. Ratings for Democratic leaders are not much better: 30% approve while 61% disapprove…” Source: Pew Research Center
Common Misconceptions About China
Li also debunked the myth that China is an authoritarian state in which the party’s political power is concentrated and self-perpetuating.
He then tackled the myth that China’s restriction on freedom of expression stifles innovation. Li says, “Some of the most successful IPO’s of Internet companies on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq have been Chinese startups…” and “China’s share of scientific research papers published in recognized international journals went from 4.4 percent in the period between 1999-2003 to 10.2 percent in the period between 2004-2008, now just behind the United States.”
In addition, when it comes to claims that the Communist Party’s authoritarian rule leads to widespread corruption, “By Transparency International’s account [the lower the number the less corruption there is], China (78) ranks higher than India (87), Philippines (134), Indonesia (110), Argentina (105) and many more, and tied with Greece (78), barely below Italy (67) — all electoral democracies.
Apparently, China’s one-party system is less corrupt than many democratic countries.
In conclusion before moving on to the two-faces of Confucius in the next post, David Gosset in Common Misconceptions About the Chinese World says, “The level of individual freedom enjoyed today by its citizens has no equivalent in China’s past, and the effort to establish the rule of law will bring more social, economic and political improvements.”
Continued on December 15, 2011 in The two-faces of Confucius – Part 3 or return to Part 1
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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of The Concubine Saga. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. This is the love story Sir Robert Hart did not want the world to discover.
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I’d like to ask why so many worry about the government’s approval rating when Obama’s term is not yet finished? I believe 2 positive notes should be added, and ask not to be lynched for shooting out facts.
1) We’re officially done in Iraq.
2) At least the economy didnt continue to tank into an oblivion.
Business at the pizza catering seems better than before when I was put on temp leave and decided to run to China. Although, I dont know how 30 people buying pizza can give an accurate diagnostic of the American economy in comparison to having six whole pizzas sitting on the warmer with no takers in 2009.
I’d also like to ask if “corruption” includes fake documents and bribing police? If so, then maybe I would’ve been better having a poor run in the Philippines rather than China.
PRINCETON, NJ — A new record-low 11% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, the lowest single rating in Gallup’s history of asking this question since 1974. This earns Congress a 17% yearly average for 2011, the lowest annual congressional approval rating in Gallup history.
I heard on the CBS news last night that the approval rating of Congress is now down to 9%.