More on the China Protests

Well, this is certainly interesting. As Munin informs us, Japanese leaders, including the Emperor, have repeatedly apologized, acknowledged, or expressed regret for Japan’s wartime atrocities. All of this certainly does undercut the stated reasons for all of the protests again Japan lately–other than the Machiavellian ones, that is.

Philippe Roy has photographs of Chinese demonstrators acting like complete asses. Seriously, just what does it accomplish to smash the windows of Chinese-owned sushi restaurants?

The Dignified Rant has more evidence to suggest Chinese government coordination, but in a way that preserves plausible deniability. This e-mail, for example, would probably not have gotten far if it were circulated by the Falun Gong (HT: Banana Oil).

Publius, imho, does a good job of discussing the question of trade with China, explaining both the benefits of free trade and the self-injury of trading the with the enemy–and that is exactly how a realistic and detached observer should see Fascist China (well, it is):

Now I’m all for free trade, but when you do so with a communist government, we end up with a form of hostile economic warfare. China’s refusing to revalue its currency is just one example of this, but it is a large one with an even larger impact on our economy. China is effectively trying to assert its economic leverage in the face of potential political resistence from the western world. This, combined with its huge military buildup, is making a generally open Congress nervous.

The US Senate will vote no later than July on legislation that would slap across-the-board tariffs on imports of Chinese goods unless China agrees to revalue its currency.

The agreement, worked out by the Senate leadership on Thursday, is the strongest sign yet that Congress might pass overtly protectionist legislation if the US trade balance with China continues to deteriorate.

All of that is of interest to Korea watchers, as I mentioned here (human rights for North Korean refugees may well determine some of the votes on this measure). Of course, it could just as well be argued that the expansion of trade is only increasing China’s dependence on the United States, an argument which I think has merits, too. It’s often the case that two truths suggest opposite conclusions, which simply means you have to harmonize or balance them. Publius also suspects that the current Chinese regime is doomed, and that China’s economic liberalization is a big part of that. Toward the bottom of his post, he discusses the recent upsurge in riots in the Chinese countryside, which is where the real action is.

It’s a safe presumption that any expression of popular opinion in a society that strictly controls it is a stage-managed, state-sponsored manipulation for public consumption at home and abroad. Here I will lead you with The Dignified Rant, which nails it in a post entitled “The Last Refuge:”

The Chinese are pretending that their outrage against Japan is based on a lack of Japanes contrition for World War II. That is bull. The Chinese are worried about a lack of legitimacy from the demise of popularly believed communism and are falling back on general nationalistic xenopohobia. The new emperors in Peking are trying to recreate the Middle Kingdom where the surrounding barbarians pay homage to the center of the universe. . . .

And the assertion that the people were defying Peking rather than doing what the government wants them to do is ridiculous. Tiananmen Square should disabuse anybody of the foolish idea that the Chinese government is unwilling to suppress protests (like here). Instapundit has a post with photographs. One is interesting in that like protesters everywhere, it is written in English for our benefit.

Like I said . . .