The Proud Chinaman In Me

I often used the term Chinaman to mock myself in front of friends when I wanted to admit inadequacies in my social etiquette. It was meant to convey a sense of humility to my audience. Until one day…

My university mate Chin Mee Poon hates this term and in one meet-up bluntly suggested that I should not use it at all. I immediately came to realization that indeed it was a very derogatory term to fellow Chinese, and I must stop using it henceforth.

But out of politeness, I still do not feel good to tell friends off if they use the term, even if the context was not appropriate.

Over dinner recently, I was explaining to a fellow “wise man[1]” the frustration I faced over the fact that a junior colleague was unwilling to rise to the occasion although he was given an opportunity. The responsibilities he has to assume would mean that he has to be relocated from Hong Kong to Singapore or Jakarta. But he was too much of a family man and a loving father that he did not want to cause any disruption to the lives of his wife and teenage daughter. My group colleague was very dismissive about this junior colleague and blurted out, “I tell you, this XX is a Chinaman through and through.” I really do not know what he takes the term to mean. But I guessed it was an “holier than thou” sweep, which I thought was not an appropriate description of this junior colleague in the context we were talking about him. Out of courtesy, I decided to switch topic!

This “holier than thou” attitude amongst we Chinese has bothered me quite a bit. Just a couple of days ago, a relative from Melbourne was in town and he and his wife were putting up with us. My wife and I are very deeply indebted to them for their care of our daughter when she was studying in Melbourne. They are also very fond of our son. They have been living in Australia since the 1990s. Of course, they have seen the ugly side of many fellow Chinese, especially those from mainland China, in Melbourne and during their visits overseas. The term “Chinaman” would immediately spill from his mouth, totally devoid of affinity or kinship, each time he described China and Chineseness. I felt very uneasy, but what could I do, unless I was prepared to sour the relationship?

People like my colleague and my relative from Melbourne share a common trait shaped over years by Western and the pro-West media. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, these media were pretty objective and even though many, like The Economist, had a great deal of misgivings about China, I always took their opinions or pointers as lessons that China ought to learn in going forward. But after the pandemic, all hell broke loose and these media would not let go any opportunity to bash China, even though it was based on misinformation or built on disinformation. Thankfully, we now have sources other than these media to help disseminate truths. I am particularly impressed by some thinkers in Taiwan who spend session after session to analyse today’s geopolitics. There are about ten to twenty of them; many of them are already in their fifties or sixties and hold PhDs or advanced degrees from top universities or are retired generals or admirals in Taiwan’s armed forces, or former legislators or diplomats there. Most of them are outright contemptuous of Biden and his team. China should groom more people to speak the way these Taiwanese thinkers do. (I was again dismayed by the performance of a Chinese Defence Ministry’s spokesman who in the press conference they often hold talked about the situations in the Taiwan Straits and and the waters around the Scarborough Shoal (which the Chinese called Huáng Yán Dǎo [黄岩岛], where a dilapidated Filipino ship has been anchored for years.) He was so stiff, so scripted and harsh in tone, which invariably conveyed the image of a hardline Communist to viewers. He destroys rather than helps build empathy. (I read that Xi Jinping has just called for efforts to promote high-quality development of the tourism sector. He pointed out that the nation has become the world's largest domestic tourism market and the country with the largest number of outbound tourists, and a major destination for international tourists. Hope all these subtleties are also part and parcel of his team’s vision.)

 

I am a man who is full of prejudices and with a long string of likes and dislikes. The only thing is, I do not openly give any traces of them in front of those whom I think have a low degree of tolerance. For instance, I have developed a deep antipathy or even outright repugnance each time I hear Biden or Blinken speak. Ditto when I hear Oliva Siong or Liz Neo over CNA. (I particularly deplore Yellow Bananas; my wife often hears my annoyances each time I access SCMP. The Yellow Bananas there often couch their anti-China, pro-western, stances with fake concerns or “as if they know better” patronising attitudes over China’s policies or developments there.) My eyes would also automatically close if Gina Raimondo or Katherine Tai appeared on the screen. So, when friends forward contents about their speeches or policy pronouncements to me, my natural reaction is: We already know their agendas; why give space to people like them AGAIN?) I would never touch Nikkei even with a 10-ft pole. (They often bombard my mailbox with $1 subscription offers; unfortunately, it is virtually impossible for me to unsubscribe, even though I had not done so in the first place. Its persistence is so distasteful! But make no mistake about it, I am an ardent admirer of their social graces! But I just cannot stand Nikkei and the current breed of Japanese leaders for their total subserviency to Biden and his team.)

 

People like me are not nationals of China. We must be loyal to the country where we are citizens of, principally to its Constitution and its laws. But we have the right not to align yourself political with the government of the day. That is to say if you are a Chinese American, we do not have to kowtow to Biden. (However, if any of his policy is to become law, of course, you are duty bound to observe it.) Loyalty to the country where you call home does not mean that you cannot be proud of China. Let us be real, without a strong China, Chinese all over the world will always be looked upon with a degree of apprehension by the less-exposed local populace.

 

Xi has finally ushered China into a new threshold. His grandfatherly demeanours and statesmanship have changed many in Global South to view China as a country that they can count on to help to improve their lot. (Even several leaders in Europe are also buying this.) Hitherto, America’s sheriff-style leadership was a source of fairness and hope to many. It brought down tyrants and settled disputes, even though there were more to them than met the eye, given the knowledge we now have. America’s undisputed standing no longer holds any more. Some may still insist that Ukraine has been unfairly invaded, but I am sure history will put much blame on America for the destruction that Ukraine is suffering today. The war has also caused the world to distrust America in the wake of its weaponisation of the US Dollar, confiscation of Russian assets, and threatening and sanctioning of countries that trade with Russia. The straw that broke the camel’s back, I suppose, is its hypocrisy in the Gaza genocide. (Unfortunately, the Palestinians are also being deemed as an inconvenient lot in the Arab world, where it is generally everyone for himself there!)

 

The latest rounds of visit by US leaders – first by Raimondo, followed by Yellen and then Blinken – have convinced the Chinese leaders that they must not place any hope on America anymore. Biden would probably go down in history as the America president who truly lost China. Historically, Chinese harboured a great deal of fondness for America – for the help American rendered during and after World War II (General Claire Chennault’s Flying Tigers and General George Marshall’s attempt to reconcile Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-Shek) and for Nixon’s visit which paved the way for China to return to the global stage, etc. On the other hand, Russians have always been viewed with suspicion – its annexation of many parts of China in the north, and for the abrupt withdrawal of much needed technical assistance by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in the aftermath of Mao’s refusal to play second fiddle in the Communist world. Biden has literally brought China and Russia to a realisation that they need each other to stay relevant and to do this, they have to usher in a new world order – a world order that cannot be totally dictated by America which no longer believes in free trade and thinks they must reign supreme come what may. (Remember in March 2021 Biden openly declared that under his watch he would not allow China to surpass the US? He had a huge opportunity to reset what was done wrong by Donald Trump; unfortunately, he succumbed to the wishes of the Deep State and became even more vicious. Remember Barack Obama's opinion of his deputy? Don't underestimate Joe's ability to fxxk things up!)

 

Putin visited Xi a couple of days ago. Many have missed this gesture of his: He laid flowers at a memorial to Soviet soldiers who died during the liberation of north-east China from the Japanese in the 1940s. He is sending a strong signal to Japan!

 

There are now three superpowers in the world – the US, China, and Russia. Watch out, Biden. China and Russia do not need to form an alliance; but their common cause is for all to see.

 

China has built a navy that is more than adequate to defend its eastern and southern waters. (It does not need one to go to the west coast of America; its intercontinental missiles, some of which are hypersonic, can certainly reach America in good time if it is attacked by the latter first.) Its nominal GDP will likely surpass the US by 2030. (In real terms, it has already overtaken the US.) Except for advanced lithography, China is virtually self-sufficient in every technological front. The US is not going to accept this fate and will continue to do everything possible to retard China regardless of who is the next president. But this trajectory is already unstoppable. And the world will enter into a more prosperous time again - if America is put in its proper place. 

 

What is important is for Yellow Bananas to stop thinking that they are not Chinese and want to help America retard China!

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[1] I am affiliated with a group that enlists older ‘corporate’ figures like me to sit on their boards or exercise oversights over their business or charitable outfits. We jokingly term ourselves “wise men”.