#State Chairman Xi Jinping

[hale-nathan]

Trump Weird News - Spring And Winter Of Trump

Springtime For Hitler & Trumpie

Or Is It The Winter Of Trump?

I Like Strongmen

Strongmen: Powerful political figures who rule "by the exercise of force or violence."

Dictators: Rulers who are "unconstrained by law."

[octuscle]

Studying has been so stressful lately ? Have you got something to help me relax ?

Thursday morning, 8:00 a.m. You park the old Toyota Prius that you took over from your mother in the student parking lot. Thank God it's the weekend soon, you think. But you don't feel like going to the microeconomics lecture right away. Integration of AI in the pricing of inhomogeneous markets. Unfortunately, you're not one of those nerds who can jerk off to the lecture notes. But you have to go through it now. Before you go in there, you surf through Instagram a bit. An ad for Chronivac TimeTravel pops up. It looks silly… Kind of like a role-playing game. You have to choose a character. You think about how your dad always raves about his college days. Maybe it would be cool if it was 1983. And if you were a bodybuilder. A stupid meathead. You choose that as your character. You'll worry about the rest later. Your lecture is about to start. And you still have to fight your way through the group of activists protesting against the climate policy.

The lecture is really too complicated for you. AI is a complex subject. But in combination with microeconomics? Whoever came up with that… You breathe a sigh of relief when the lecture is over. As well as you can with your face mask on. This pandemic is really exhausting. But it's good that at least there are lectures in presence again. This videoconference crap is really not mature yet. Next lecture is Spanish for Business. That's more your thing. The professor is really hot. Good motivation to go back to the workout later. You've been spending every free minute in the gym for two months, and you're starting to see results.

During the lunch break you sit with the lads from the wrestling team. Wrestling is not your thing. But the lads look like bulls. And you like that. You talk about the legalization of cannabis in Canada. That would be a cool thing here too. You've pretty much given up smoking and alcohol since you got into bodybuilding. But you don't think there's anything wrong with a little weed now and then.

At 4:00 p.m., university is over for you for the day. You sit down in the five-year-old VW Jetta that you took over from your mother. It's really embarrassing. You feel ashamed every time you drive it to the gym. Let's see, maybe you can at least put a cool matte black finish on it…

The workout was awesome again. You totally forgot the time. You're back in your car at 9:00 p.m. and drive to your dorm. You turn on the news while you prepare your dinner. China's Vice President Xi Jinping is appointed vice chairman of the Communist Party's military commission. The 57-year-old is seen as a potential successor to state and party leader Hu Jintao. Boring stuff… You certainly don't have to remember that name.

The alarm clock rings at 5:00 am. Breakfast. And off to the gym. The car radio is talking about a possible invasion of Iraq. Many of your buddies from the gym were in the army or navy… Their nerves are on edge. You can understand if you still have friends or family who might have to go to war. But 09/11 must be avenged!

Before university, leg training is the order of the day. You are proud of your colossal thighs. Many of your buddies only work out the upper body. You have the best proportions here. You've only been lifting iron for two years. But for you it's not a leisure activity, for you it's a religion.

You're just in time for your lecture. Game theory. You take your pad and pen and start taking notes. A laptop would be really cool right now. But you know four or five people on campus who have one. It's just incredibly expensive… But you won't need much longer for your bachelor's degree in sport management. Then you will hopefully be able to afford something like that. And hopefully also a new car. Your Jeep Wrangler is a cool car. But it's also eleven years old. Built in 1980… At least it gets you to the gym at 4:00 p.m. reliably.

Some dumbass turned on CNN instead of MTV on the workout floor. Some shit with the Soviet Union. Apparently everything is falling apart there and the former Soviet republics are forming a new union. Boring shit. Fortunately, someone quickly switches back to MTV. Good Vibrations with Marky Mark. Cool guy. But quite a weakling. You do a double bicepz pose in front of the mirror. You've been here every free minute for almost three years. Maybe you should be in one of those music videos.

After your workout, you wanted to go straight to bed. But it's Friday night. 10:00 p.m. The lads ask if you'd like to go to the late show of the new film with Michael J. Fox. Back to the Future. Why not. The movie's pretty funny, too. Time travel. Strange conception… But you like the idea…

Saturday morning, October 22, 1983. At 10:00 you're back at the Gym. On the way here, you've been listening to the radio about peace demonstrations in Europe. The Russki is once again threatening nuclear war. And we are stationing Pershings in Germany. Bonnie Tyler's "total eclipse of the heart" is playing from the speakers in the gym. Fuck the Russki and fuck the Germans. You're all about getting your muscles burning. At 2:00 p.m., your shift at the counter begins. Tonight you and your pals are going to wrestling. That would be a cool alternative. You as the new Hulk Hogan! But until that happens, you help out at the gym on weekends. And during the week, you'll drive a backhoe on a construction site. Hey, it's a cool life. You don't want any other!

[argumate]

Chinese President Xi Jinping has given important instructions on the rescue and disaster relief work after a fatal expressway collapse in south China's Guangdong Province.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, attached great importance to the disaster, instructing that every effort be carried out for on-site rescue, treatment of the injured, and properly handling the aftermath.

Efforts should be made to repair the damaged roads and restore traffic order as soon as possible, said Xi, adding that all regions and relevant departments must adhere to bottom-line thinking, consolidate work responsibilities, strengthen monitoring and early warning, improve emergency plans, promptly investigate and deal with potential risks in key areas and key sectors, and ensure the safety of people's lives and property and the overall social stability.

Li Qiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and premier of the State Council, has given instructions to spare no effort in rescuing the injured, carry out follow-up work, do everything possible to search and rescue trapped persons, and strictly guard against secondary risks.

Li emphasized that the ongoing May Day holiday is the peak of tourism prime time, accompanied by widespread rainfall in some areas, necessitating all-out efforts to prevent accidents and disasters.

Following Xi Jinping's instructions and Li Qiang's request, Zhang Guoqing, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice premier of the State Council, led officials in charge of relevant departments to the scene to guide the rescue and disaster relief work.

I don't know how Global Times is so good at capturing the editorial voice of The Onion in articles like this, they must be making all-out efforts

[mariacallous]

If the citizens of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) were asked, “Are you more hopeful for the future now than you were before Chairman Xi came to power?” the answer for most, if they were able to answer freely, would likely be a resounding “no.”

China’s economy is facing its gravest challenges since the Maoist era amid a collapse in public confidence. Growth has slowed, the unemployment rate is high, and the housing market is tumbling. But at the recent Third Plenum, a meeting of top Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials held roughly every five years and centered on economic policy, President Xi Jinping made clear that he has decided to stay the course and is doubling down on state control of the economy. At the same time, Xi has been baselessly claiming that the economic reform goals set at 2013’s Third Plenum were met.

Xi believes in the central role of the CCP in everything—including the economy. The CCP has taken an increasingly direct hand even in private businesses, and using this leverage, his government has pursued a policy of prioritizing the expansion of manufacturing capacity through massive subsidies, embracing an export-driven economy rather than one linked to expanding domestic consumption in China. With this excess capacity, Xi hopes to gain market share by driving foreign competitors out of business through dumping the subsidized goods below cost.

Xi’s plan has alarmed foreign political and business leaders while leaving the Chinese public and even local officials resigned to the fact that they have no ability to impact central policymaking. By doubling down on this policy, the Third Plenum crushed any lingering hope that the PRC would be able to break out of sputtering growth or address long-standing economic imbalances that leave it increasingly at odds with the rest of the world.

Since the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, the CCP has maintained its power not only through force, but also through an implicit compact with its citizens that the party would deliver economic growth as long as its primacy remained unquestioned. With the current slowdown, the CCP is failing to uphold its end of that political bargain. Protests in China over labor issues and housing have become more frequent as the unemployment rate ticks up; meanwhile, the PRC has seen the largest exodus of high-net-worth individuals from the country in its history.

The path to strengthening the PRC’s economy and restoring confidence in increasingly skeptical Chinese consumers is clear: loosen the CCP’s political stranglehold over the economy, acknowledge the severe problems that China is facing, and offer a realistic plan for addressing the needs of the Chinese people. Instead, Xi has chosen to tighten his grip, consolidating powerful state-owned enterprises, elevating CCP ideology, ignoring the drivers of demand and consumption, and prioritizing his political control over China’s prosperity.

The Third Plenum painfully confirmed what we already know: The PRC under Xi lacks the ability to self-correct because Xi does not allow it. Xi’s centralization of power has minimized opportunities for expert dissent and public discourse, sharply curtailing considerations of alternative economic policies. The results of the Third Plenum made clear that Xi believes China’s economic policies are already on the right track and that better results will come when officials better implement his directives.

According to one recent analysis, party cadres and economists were demonstrably less willing to speak up and provide comments during this Third Plenum drafting process for the conference’s central “decision” policy document than they were at the Third Plenum held in 2013. Xi was also less willing to listen. According to the Asia Society Policy Institute, there were 25 percent fewer written suggestions submitted for the text by cadres during this year’s session than in 2013, and of those suggestions, only a meager 12 percent were accepted in the final document as 88 percent were rejected.

One of China’s most loyal “wolf warriors” and CCP propaganda insiders, former Global Times editor Hu Xijin, was recently banned from Chinese social media for incorrectly interpreting the Third Plenum decision as signaling more support for the private sector. In this environment, why would any official stick their neck out to propose significant reform, no matter how necessary they believed it to be?

Xi believes that China must dominate the advanced technologies of the future, and he remains committed to that priority, even as it comes at the expense of the public good. In Xi’s economic vision, social welfare programs, which would decrease the current trend of Chinese people saving more than a third of their income, would divert resources away from the PRC’s pursuit of technological dominance that would support its military capacity.

In Xi’s worldview, national security is based on political security, which means the security of the party. As an unfortunate result, we should expect the CCP’s grip to tighten. Xi will continue to view the economy through the lens of national security even at the expense of the PRC’s sagging economy and the wealth of its people. It also means that Xi will double down on nationalism, censorship of discontent, and international bellicosity to distract from domestic challenges.

[falseandrealultravival]

Xi Jinping's eulogy for Daisaku Ikeda: Komeito and the Chinese Communist Party (Essay)

Religious leaders： Daisaku Ikeda（deceased）

In November 2023, Daisaku Ikeda, honorary chairman of the Japanese religious organization "Soka Gakkai," died of old age. To my surprise, Xi Jinping, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, sent a eulogy. This connection was unclear at the time. But after a year, the mechanism behind it has become clear.

Soka Gakkai is the parent organization of the political party "Komeito." In Japan, there is a principle of separation of religion and state, but it is common sense that these two are inseparable. There is a bipartisan organization called the "Japan-China Parliamentary Friendship League," in August 2024, the chairman of the Komeito Party made a pilgrimage to China. He seemed to be very friendly with the Chinese Communist Party.

The LDP presidential election will be held in September 2024, and the Komeito Party will take remarkable action here. The Komeito threatened to not cooperate with the LDP in the election if the LDP chose Sanae Takaichi, who China does not want, as the president of the LDP. The current LDP cannot maintain power without the Komeito. Perhaps that is why the president of the LDP decided to be Shigeru Ishiba, who is friendly with China, instead of Sanae Takaichi.

Perhaps Daisaku Ikeda wanted to make Chinese people members of the Soka Gakkai. However, the "Hunter became the hunter," and the Komeito was absorbed into the Chinese Communist Party. Perhaps Xi Jinping mourned the death of his loyal subordinate with a special favor. Poor.

Rei Morishita

2024.10.19

習近平から池田大作への弔辞：公明党と中国共産党（エッセイ）

２０２３年１１月、日本の宗教団体「創価学会」名誉会長・池田大作が老衰のため死んだ。驚いたことに、中国共産党主席・習近平が弔辞をよこした。この繋がりは当時不明だった。だが１年を経て、そのカラクリが読めてきた。

創価学会は政党「公明党」の母体である。日本には政教分離の原則があるが、この２つが不即不離なのは、日本では常識である。「日中友好議員連盟」という超党派の組織があるが、２０２４年８月に、彼らに混じって公明党委員長が中国詣でをしていた。よほど中国共産党と仲良しと見えた。

２０２４年９月に自民党総裁選があり、ここで公明党は顕著な行動に出る。中国が望まぬ高市早苗を自民党総裁にしたら、公明党は、自民党に選挙協力しないと脅したのだ。今の自民党は、公明党なしには政権が維持できない。それもあってか、自民党総裁は高市早苗ではなく中国と仲の良い石破茂に決まった。

たぶん池田大作は、中国人を創価学会会員にしたかったのだろう。ところが「ミイラ取りがミイラになり」、公明党が中国共産党に取り込まれたというわ��だ。たぶん習近平は、忠実なシモベの死を、特別な思し召しで悼んでくれたということなのだろう。お粗末。

[redpenship]

can you tell me abt the political structure of rural chinese farming communities. also i hate sonic the hedgehog and this ask is the furthest thing from sonic-related please do not mention him 🙏

During the Reform Era (which began after Mao's death in the late 1970s), the Chinese government was forced to reckon with a lack of state capacity to supervise and legislate China's some 700 000~ villages. State capacity refers to a state's ability to govern its territory, which in nearly all large countries tends to be reduced in remote communities far away from urban centres. The government needed a solution to deal with budding rural problems, such as the inability of local authorities to properly allocate funds to infrastructure/farming projects as well as allegations of corruption due to a lack of transparency around land rentals to enterprises. There was a lot going on and the central government simply didn't have the resources to handle it on their own.

It is worth noting that farm land in China is collectivized, meaning that farmers do not own the land they work on. Families typically lease the land from local authorities for periods up to 30 years, but this land can be redistributed on an as-needed basis. What the land is used for and how it is allocated to villagers is decided by local authorities.

To deal with their inability to address these problems, the CCP/CPC (whatever you want to call it) decided to experiment with grassroots democracy in villages. Rather than spend money to install more offices and allocate more resources to the villages, they allowed open elections so village committee members would be held accountable to the local population. This removes the burden of supervision from the state and places it on the villagers.

The village committee is responsible for nearly all village issues. They deal with land allocation, economic policies, social services, and all that stuff. So, they are effectively the local government. Its members and chairman (head) are voted for in each election.

The election process is pretty standard. Candidates may be nominated by the village committee, local Party officials, or even by themselves. Votes are conducted via secret ballot. The CCP/CPC provides some guidance and oversight over the electoral process, and you can allege that electoral interference is possible, but it is worth noting that the government actually wants these elections to work in order to maintain social stability. The villagers need to be able to vote out officials they don't like so the central government doesn't have to investigate them on its own time. Besides, the village cadre (which is made up of members appointed by the CCP/CPC) is there to work with the elected committee to ensure party policy is enacted in the villages.

There's a bit of a debate among political scientists over what these elections mean for China. Some argue that they could lead to bottom-up democratization, while others argue that this kind of grassroots democracy will only be allowed to exist in areas with low state capacity. I don't have much of an opinion on it because I'm not an expert. However, it would be very cool if Xi Jinping would stop being a fucking loser and let factions exist in the party again. Who needs multi-party democracy when you can have a one-party state with opposing internal factions who advocate for different policy approaches? Smh!!!!!

[methed-up-marxist]

BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on Thursday.Xi noted that Dr. Kissinger has recently celebrated his 100th birthday and has paid more than 100 visits to China over the years. "These two 100s give this visit special significance."Xi said that fifty-two years ago when China and the United States were at a crucial inflection point, Chairman Mao Zedong, Premier Zhou Enlai, President Richard Nixon and Dr. Kissinger, with their extraordinary strategic vision, made the right decision for China-U.S. cooperation and launched the process of normalizing the China-U.S. relationship. The decision delivered benefits to the two countries and changed the world.The Chinese people value friendship, said Xi. "We never forget our old friends, nor your historic contributions to promoting the growth of China-U.S. relations and enhancing friendship between the two peoples."Xi emphasized that the world is undergoing momentous transformations unseen in a century and the international landscape is going through major shifts. "China and the United States have once again come to a crossroads, which requires another decision by the two sides about where to go from here."Looking ahead, China and the United States can help each other succeed and prosper together, and the key is to follow the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, he said."China is ready, on this basis, to explore with the United States the right way for the two countries to get along and take their relations steadily forward, which will be good for both sides and deliver benefits to the world," said Xi.He expressed the hope that Dr. Kissinger and other people of foresight in the United States could continue to play a constructive role in restoring China-U.S. relations to the right track.Kissinger expressed appreciation to President Xi for meeting him at Villa 5 of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, the venue where he had met Chinese leaders during his first visit to China. He stressed that the U.S.-China relationship is essential to peace and prosperity of the two countries and the wider world.Under the current circumstances, it is imperative to maintain the principles established by the Shanghai Communique, appreciate the utmost importance China attaches to the one-China principle, and move the relationship in a positive direction, Kissinger said. He expressed his commitment to making continuous efforts to facilitate mutual understanding between American and Chinese peoples.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a Monday interview that he believes Randi Weingarten, the head of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) union, is the “most dangerous person in the world.”

In an interview with Semafor, Pompeo, who is thought to be eyeing a potential 2024 White House bid, said that education is one of the central issues that Republicans should focus on, noting his criticism of Weingarten and the current teaching curriculum in U.S. school systems.

“I tell the story often — I get asked ‘Who’s the most dangerous person in the world? Is it Chairman Kim, is it Xi Jinping?’ The most dangerous person in the world is Randi Weingarten,” Pompeo said.

“It’s not a close call. If you ask, ‘Who’s the most likely to take this republic down?’ It would be the teacher’s unions, and the filth that they’re teaching our kids, and the fact that they don’t know math and reading or writing,” the former top U.S. diplomat added.

“These are the things that candidates should speak to in a way that says, ‘Here’s the problem. Here’s a proposal for how to solve it. And if given the opportunity, these are the things I will go work on to try and deliver that outcome that fixes that problem,'” Pompeo concluded. “Pretty straightforward stuff.”

In a thread on Twitter, Weingarten said she didn’t know if the remarks should be considered “ridiculous or dangerous.”

“At the state department, Pompeo defended Middle East’s tyrants & undermined Ukraine. He was more focused on pleasing Trump than fighting 4 freedom, national security & democracy. To compare us to China means he must not know what his own department says,” she wrote.

“Maybe spend a minute in one of the classrooms with my members and their students and you will get a real lesson in the promise and potential of America.”

Education was one of the issues Americans cited as the most important during the 2022 midterm election cycle, as many GOP-led states implemented laws that prohibited the teaching of critical race theory — a college-level theory that posits racism underlies American institutions and public policies — or LGBTQ perspectives in classrooms.

Florida’s state legislature earlier this year passed its Parental Rights in Education bill, commonly known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The law prohibits educators in the state from talking about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools, and parents are able to take legal action against school districts they believe have violated it.

Weingarten, who has been AFT’s president since 2008, told USA Today in August that “extremists on the right wing” despise teachers unions and their commitment to creating a safe and welcoming environment for every student.

“Our job is about what kids need, what communities need,” she said at the time. “Because when you’re doing that, you’re also doing what your members need.”

“But it’s never been as bad as right now — where it’s not just political, it’s cultural,” Weingarten said. “People had a different view of how to do education, but there was not this attack on people’s basic humanity. This is really new.”

The Hill has reached out to AFT for comment.

[beardedmrbean]

International Criminal Court judges should “watch the skies,” according to a top Kremlin official who threatened a violent response to the arrest warrant issued against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"I’m afraid, gentlemen, everyone is answerable to God and missiles,” Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev, who held the title of Russian presidency under Putin from 2008 to 2012, said on Monday. “It’s quite possible to imagine how a hypersonic Oniks fired from a Russian warship in the North Sea strikes the court building in The Hague. It can’t be shot down, I’m afraid.”

XI ARRIVES IN MOSCOW FOR MEETING WITH PUTIN

ICC officials issued an arrest warrant for Putin and another Russian official last week, one day after United Nations investigators accused Moscow of perpetrating “a war crime” against Ukrainian children deported into Russia. Kremlin officials dismissed the warrant as “null and void,” but Medvedev added his own provocative touch.

“And the court is just a pathetic international organization, not the people of a NATO country,” Medvedev said, per state media. “So, they won’t start a war. They’ll be scared. And no one will be sorry.”

The former Russian president issued that retort on the same day that Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Moscow. Xi and Putin will discuss how the two countries “can jointly promote strategic coordination and practical cooperation” and “practice true multilateralism” together, in the words of a Chinese diplomat who opened his press briefing with a rebuke of the ICC.

“The ICC needs to take an objective and just position, respect the jurisdictional immunity of a head of state under international law, prudently exercise its mandate in accordance with the law, interpret and apply international law in good faith, and not engage in politicization or using double standards,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.

Xi embarked on his visit to Moscow just weeks after unveiling a “peace proposal” that calls for a ceasefire and the lifting of Western sanctions on Russia but does not urge Putin to withdraw his forces from Ukraine. Xi has prioritized ties with Putin as both leaders seek to challenge the U.S.-led alliance network in the vicinity of their historic empires. The Chinese leader’s trip to Moscow bookends a visit from Putin to Beijing last year, when they issued a statement calling for a "transformation of the global governance architecture and world order” — just weeks before Putin launched his attempt to overthrow the Ukrainian government.

"Ukraine is closely following the visit of the President of the People's Republic of China to Russia,” Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said Monday. “We expect that Beijing will use its influence on Moscow to force it to stop its aggressive war against Ukraine.”

Neither China, Russia, nor the United States has signed the treaty that established the ICC, but Ukraine’s parliament issued a call Monday for the treaty signatories “to take all possible measures” to haul Putin before the court.

“The crimes are carried out on the direct orders of the senior political and military leadership of the Russian Federation and constitute a gross violation of the current norms of international law, which requires a decisive and effective response from the international community by bringing the Russian leadership to international criminal liability,” the parliamentary resolution said.

Medvedev condemned the ICC for daring to issue a warrant against “the president ... of a nuclear power that isn’t party to the ICC for the same reasons as the U.S. and some other countries,” and argued that the warrant will lead to a “collapse” of international law.

“The consequences for international law will be disastrous,” he insisted. “No one now will be turning to international institutions. Everyone will be making agreements between themselves. All the foolish decisions of the U.N. and other organizations will be bursting at the seams. A dark decline of the entire system of international relations is coming.”

[kneedeepincynade]

Is anyone surprised that the south of the world looks favourably at China and the CPC? To half quote a famous interview:when China comes to us,we get a hospital,when the west comes to us,we get a lecture

The post is machine translated

Translation is at the bottom

The collective is on telegram

⚠️ IL PRESIDENTE DELLA REPUBBLICA DEMOCRATICA DEL CONGO SI È RECATO IN CINA | VERSO IL RAFFORZAMENTO DEI RAPPORTI TRA CINA E AFRICA ⚠️

🇨🇳 Su invito del Presidente Xi Jinping, Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo - Presidente della Repubblica Democratica del Congo - si è recato in Cina, per una Visita di Stato 🇨🇩

🤝 Il Presidente Congolese incontrerà anche il Compagno Li Qiang - Primo Ministro della Repubblica Popolare Cinese, e il Compagno Zhao Leji - Presidente del Comitato Permanente del Congresso Nazionale del Popolo, dove verranno firmati - alla fine degli incontri - documenti sul rafforzamento della Cooperazione tra i due Paesi ✍️

💕 Cina e Repubblica Democratica del Congo godono di un'amicizia di lunga data, e si sostengono a vicenda negli interessi fondamentali 🤝

⭐️ Appena arrivato a Pechino, il Presidente Tshilombo si è recato in visita al Museo del Partito Comunista Cinese, guidato dal Curatore, dove ha appreso i risultati raggiunti dalla Cina sotto la Dirigenza del Partito Comunista, dalla Vittoria della Rivoluzione e l'Istituzione dei Congressi Popolari, alla Riforma e Apertura, potendo analizzare e comprendere al meglio concetti quali la Teoria delle Tre Rappresentanze, la Prospettiva Scientifica dello Sviluppo, i Due Centenari e il Pensiero del Presidente Xi Jinping 🚩

🇨🇩 Christophe Lutundula, Vice-Primo Ministro e MFA della RD del Congo - è stato intervistato dalla CGTN - China Global Television Network, dove ha affermato che il suo Paese non vede l'ora di rafforzare il Partenariato con la Cina, soprattutto nell'ambito della Nuova Via della Seta 🤝

🇨🇩 Il Ministro Congolese ha incontrato il Compagno Zheng Shanjie, Ministro della 国家发改委,l'Agenzia di Pianificazione Macro-Economica della Repubblica Popolare Cinese, per discutere di progetti infrastrutturali con la Cina e aumentare l'integrazione economica tra Africa e Asia 💕

🌸 Iscriviti 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

⚠️ THE PRESIDENT OF THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO VISITED CHINA | TOWARDS STRENGTHENING RELATIONS BETWEEN CHINA AND AFRICA ⚠️

🇨🇳 At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo - President of the Democratic Republic of Congo - went to China for a State Visit 🇨🇩

🤝 The Congolese President will also meet Comrade Li Qiang - Prime Minister of the People's Republic of China, and Comrade Zhao Leji - Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, where - at the end of the meetings - documents on strengthening cooperation between two countries ✍️

💕 China and the Democratic Republic of the Congo enjoy a long-standing friendship, and support each other's core interests 🤝

⭐️ As soon as he arrived in Beijing, President Tshilombo visited the Museum of the Communist Party of China, led by the Curator, where he learned about the achievements of China under the leadership of the Communist Party, since the Victory of the Revolution and the Establishment of Popular congress at the Reform and Opening, being able to better analyze and understand concepts such as the Theory of the Three Representations, the Scientific Perspective of Development, the Two Centenarians and the Thought of President Xi Jinping 🚩

🇨🇩 Christophe Lutundula, Deputy Prime Minister and MFA of DR Congo - was interviewed by CGTN - China Global Television Network, where he stated that his country is looking forward to strengthening the Partnership with China, especially in the scope of the New Silk Road 🤝

🇨🇩 The Congolese Minister met with Comrade Zheng Shanjie, Minister of 国家发改委, the Macro-Economic Planning Agency of the People's Republic of China, to discuss infrastructure projects with China and increase economic integration between Africa and Asia 💕

🌸 Subscribe 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

[hale-nathan]

Trump Weird News - Dictator Wannabe

Strongmen: Powerful political figures who rule "by the exercise of force or violence."

Dictators: Rulers who are "unconstrained by law."

[ultrajaphunter]

Emergency injunction and tribunal order was served to WHO and all Criminal Defendants

BREAKING NEWS:

Emergency injunction and tribunal order was served to WHO and all Criminal Defendants listed below to immediately cease and desist a criminal conspiracy to commit war crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity and to arrest and incarcerate these criminal defendants.

All Constitutional law enforcements officers worldwide are being served starting with Interpol and constitutional law enforcements in everyone of the 194 member nations under Writs of Mandamus ordering them to carry out their duties to arrest and incarcerate these criminal codefendants for unlawful and Genocidal acts in connection with the WHO Pandemic preparedness response and changes to the international health regulations.

Tribunal Writs of Mandamus is defined as:

“The lawful term writ of mandamus refers to an order by a court to a lesser government official to perform an act required by law, which he has refused or neglected to do.

This type of court order is a remedy that may be sought if a governmental agency, public authority, or corporation in service of the government, fails or refuses to do its public or statutory duty.”

This has been ordered by the Tribunal Under Articles 6 (Genocide) and 7 (Crimes Against Humanity) of the International Criminal Code.

List of Criminal Defendants 2009-2023 Lockstep Vaccination Genocidal Pandemic Criminal Co-conspiracy, including and not limited to individually and collectively:

Bill and Melinda Gates individually and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

World Health Organization (WHO) and Officers, Directors, Employees, and Agents Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus WHO Director General, Anthony Stephen Fauci.

World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab and Officers, Directors, Employees, and Agents. Michael Bloomberg, David Rockefeller Jr, Warren Buffett, George Soros, Ted Turner, Oprah Winfrey, Rockefeller Foundation, Global Business Network (GBN), Peter Schwartz, Chairman GBN.

Convicted Vaccination Genocidal Pandemic and Neural Monitoring Governmental Executive Defendants: Xi JinPing, General Secretary of the Communist Party.

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of the Russian Federation. Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America. Joseph R. Biden 46th President of the United States of America.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel. Boris Johnson, Prime Minister of the UK. Matt Hancock, UK Secretary of State for Health.

The Crown Corporation and any and all of its Subsidiaries including and not limited to Serco. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada. Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia. Jacinda Arden, Prime Minister of New Zealand.

Stefan Löfven Prime Minister of Sweden. Minister of Heath Lena Hallengren. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India.

Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron, President of France. Edouard Phillipe, Prime Minister of France.

Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany.

António Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations Organization.

European Union, and President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. President of the Parliament, David Sassoli. President of the European Council, Charles Michel. Michael Ryan, WHO CEO's at GCHQ-UK, NSA-USA and Bilderberg Group, all CEOs, Monarchies, and Members.

Convicted Defendant Pandemic Vaccine Programs: Global Alliance Vaccine Initiative [GAVI], The Vaccine Alliance, including and not limited to its Pandemic Vaccine Program.

Pandemic Vaccine Program United States of America, Operation Warp Speed and successor Pandemic Vaccine Program.

World Health Organization COVAX, Pandemic Vaccine Program. Pandemic Vaccine Program People's Republic of China, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control.

Russian Federation, Rospotrebnadzor.

Convicted Genocidal Vaccination Entities: Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson, The Pirbright Institute.

02/24/23 Judge Pascal Najadi:

They will all be arrested as soon as possible, Military and law enforcement worldwide are preparing for this to happen. Godspeed.

[argumate]

Online discussion of the unanimous vote was tightly censored. Searches for the hashtag #2952#, the number of votes Xi won, returned the following message: “According to the relevant laws, regulations and policies, the page is not found.” On Sunday evening, searches for “2592” only returned results from verified state- and Party-affiliated accounts, colloquially known as “Blue V’s.” Searches for the term, “the People’s choice,” which Party outlets used to celebrate Xi’s election, similarly only returned results from Blue V accounts. Party mouthpiece People’s Daily censored its own 2011 essay in which it warned: “If the people’s will continues to be hijacked through ‘unanimous elections,’ it will fuel public resentment.” In 2003, Xi Jinping himself warned against the unanimous election of cadres. And just yesterday, one netizen’s attempt to turn an image of Xi’s unanimous re-election as President and chairman of the Central Military Commission into a graphic design for a t-shirt landed them in hot water. The Taobao retailer they contacted to produce the shirt said it was “not possible to print,” and the netizen later discovered that their Alipay account had been suspended. 

the unanimous people's choice

[mariacallous]

The removal of Qin Gang from his post as China’s foreign minister after a weeks-long disappearance fostered a few zesty rumors. Talk of affairs, conspiracies, and corruption has bounced around the net even as other policymakers have been replaced. But whatever sparked Qin’s fall, the impact on Chinese foreign policy and governance will be insignificant—as many of the purges party rule tends to invite are.

The former foreign minister’s fall surprised many observers. Qin had enjoyed a successful career: rising through the ranks, including at multiple positions focusing on Western Europe and the United Kingdom, and gradually building his public profile. There were few apparent blemishes on his record. In 2021, Qin was promoted to ambassador to the United States over the Foreign Ministry’s preferred candidate after being favored by Chinese President Xi Jinping himself. Xi was believed to appreciate Qin’s ability to ardently defend his perception of China’s interests without the same abrasiveness of lesser lights such as notorious—and now bureaucratically exiled—wolf warrior spokesman Zhao Lijian. We still don’t know why Qin was toppled, or what his fate will be, but it came out of the blue. He was only appointed to lead the Foreign Ministry at the end of December 2022.

For several reasons, however, Qin’s removal is unlikely to cause so much as a ripple in China’s foreign policy. The first reason is the nature of the role of foreign minister within the Chinese party-state. Foreign ministers generally do not serve within the Politburo, the 24-member Chinese Communist Party (CCP) body responsible for deliberating and setting major policies for the party-state. Qin was not a member of the Politburo. Zhou Enlai, Mao Zedong’s second, once held considerable sway as both premier and foreign minister; but since the beginning of the reform movement, foreign ministers have not had the same significance in China that they do in parliamentary democracies or that the secretary of state does in the United States.

Formally, the foreign minister is not even the highest diplomatic position within the party-state; that distinction goes to the director of the General Office of the CCP Central Committee Foreign Affairs Commission. Wang Yi, who now holds the strange distinction of being Qin’s both predecessor and successor as foreign minister, has also retained his position leading the General Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission. In the political structure of the People’s Republic of China, positions within the Communist Party are above state positions within the hierarchy of power. As such, in leading the General Office, Wang outranked Qin while Qin was still foreign minister. Moreover, major foreign policy decisions are all made by the president and Party chairman (who leads the Foreign Affairs Commission and the Central Military Commission), a practice that has only intensified under Xi Jinping.

One of Qin’s key roles on his way to leading the Foreign Ministry was his time as foreign ministry spokesperson, from 2005 to 2010. He also led the Foreign Ministry’s Information Department. Under Xi, a premium has been placed on personnel who defend the CCP’s version of China’s interests most vigorously. Many caustic comments that ruffled feathers abroad met with approval from superiors in Beijing. Wang harangued a Canadian reporter for what he called her “prejudice against China” and “arrogance” and was subsequently promoted. Zhao made numerous inflammatory remarks and was promoted to being Ministry spokesperson, before his subsequent demotion. And Qin himself castigated a reporter for bringing up the crimes against humanity taking place in China’s Xinjiang province, claiming they were “fabrications,” before his promotion to foreign minister.

While foreign ministers play major roles in most governments and can even come to lead governments in parliamentary systems, in China the foreign ministry’s most politically relevant charge is arguably public communications regarding diplomatic issues. The role it plays in strategic decisions is often more ancillary. As such, while the office of foreign minister is prominent, its occupant is disposable.

Wang himself is another reason Qin’s dismissal is unlikely to cause major changes. Wang is an experienced figure. There is no reason to believe he will not toe the line or perform similarly to Qin. He speaks with Qin’s same fervency but largely avoids major pitfalls. Both men have taken an interest in supporting foreign authoritarian forces, such as Myanmar’s junta. Wang already served above Qin and is therefore unlikely to enact major policy changes while he occupies both offices.

A further reason there will be no major shifts in Chinese foreign policy following Qin’s downfall is that the demotion bears few signs of factional strife. If the Foreign Ministry changed hands and factions were to blame, that would be significant. But after more than a decade of power consolidation by Xi, as far as can be told from the outside, few forces that could rise to the level of being considered factions remain. While “wolf warrior diplomacy” has become the common term for diplomats who brashly defend the CCP’s perception of Chinese interests abroad, it is not a true faction but more a style that has been in favor with leaders during the Xi era—and so has been adopted by diplomats who took a more conciliatory tone in earlier times. Both Wang and Qin have occasionally displayed elements of the style but not to the point of separating them from their peers. Some foreign ministry officials may be happy at the chance for advancement that Qin’s rapid departure provides, but there is no sign of any faction looking to take Chinese diplomacy in a radically different direction.

Qin’s dismissal comes at a fraught moment for Chinese power. A corruption purge is ongoing in the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force—a military branch that would be essential in any future Chinese military action. Further purges and bureaucratic maneuvers silence critical thought within the party and tighten Xi’s powerful vise. Most importantly, the engine of Chinese economic growth that spurred China’s expansive ambitions for decades is sputtering. Unemployment is growing and the risk of deflation is real. Foreign investment in China is plummeting. The colossal property bubble that more than a decade ago was called the largest in history is popping. And public statistics likely offer a more sanguine view than the actual economic reality.

While Qin’s fall matters little individually, coming during new purges that continue to roil the governance structure, it does speak to Xi’s unwillingness or inability to settle on a loyal inner circle that can help perpetuate his reign. This is not always the case in authoritarian countries. Sergey Lavrov has been Russia’s foreign minister for more than 19 years. Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla has been Cuba’s minister of foreign affairs for 14 years. Xi has consistently promoted loyalists, yet those once deemed devoted insiders, such as Qin and former Vice President Wang Qishan, have often found themselves sidelined after their moment in the sun.

While such changes may not always be purposeful, with disloyalty and corruption emerging and interrupting careers, the rotating cast around Xi likely advances his absolutism by preventing the formation of large factions and power bases beyond Xi himself, ensuring that power radiates outward from Xi alone. With few figures able to permanently access Xi, foreign intelligence services are also likely forced to change targets more frequently than in a more placid power structure. Still, the perennial purges maintain a sense of uncertainty within the Chinese government as well as in those countries that engage with it. When former officials are punished through their professional and familial connections, current officials are surely more wary of forming productive working relationships. When Xi first came to power, the corruption investigations and purges helped him consolidate power. Now they are a way of life.

News articles and public discussions of international affairs often focus on relationships and personalities. The rapport between leaders and policymakers often makes more engaging reading and discussion than the enduring structural factors that circumscribe those leaders. Questions of deportment and rumors of intrigue and conspiracy have always played a role in diplomacy. Such matters are magnified within an opaque governance system such as that of the People’s Republic of China. But while the drama of Qin’s disappearance and departure makes for good reading, it’s unlikely to shift Beijing’s policy.

[bopinion]

2023 / 15

Aperçu of the Week:

"The forest was shrinking but the trees kept voting for the axe, for the axe was clever and convinced the trees that because of his handle was made of wood he was one of them."

(Turkish proverb)

Bad News of the Week:

The European Union is actually well positioned in terms of foreign policy. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President Charles Michel are internationally recognized and have long been involved in the G7, for example. And Josep Borrell, formerly a Spanish minister and President of the European Parliament, as "High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy," is also an internationally recognized personality, the EU foreign minister, so to speak.

Nevertheless, each nation state likes to cook its own soup, a classic political power game. By this I don't even mean guys like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who regularly has to make it clear who is the master of the house by refusing to agree on common terms (not to say blackmailing). No, I mean, at least this week, French President Emmanuel Macron. He has been dreaming of being the "leading European" since the departure of Angela Merkel. Or as it is called in Washington DC, "the one to call when you want to talk to Europe."

All right, Macron is undoubtedly a committed European. And France, as the EU's second-largest member state, is a central power on the continent. With that comes the responsibility to appear wise, balanced and, above all, coordinated in awareness of one's own position. And that is precisely what Macron is not doing. The most recent example was his visit to Xi Jinping at Easter. Where he preferred to make his own mark and put France's economic interests first. As French head of state, he is allowed to do that, no question. But not under the European flag.

People on the old continent rubbed their eyes in amazement at his announcement that Europe should act more independently in the conflict with China over Taiwan. Explicitly delineated to the USA. If that would not happen, Europe would be in danger of becoming a vassal between the United States and China, even though it could be a third pole. "The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans should be fellow travelers on this issue and adapt to the American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction." Excuse me?

Criticism came from all sides. Manfred Weber, chairman of the conservative EPP as the largest group in the EU Parliament, for example, said that the EU states were making themselves untrustworthy "if on the one hand you demand sovereignty for Europe and then conclude every economic deal you can with China. (...) The Chinese leadership will not respect the Europeans like that." Or U.S. Senator Marco Rubio: If Europe does not side with China or the U.S. on the Taiwan issue, then perhaps the U.S. should not side with either in the Ukraine conflict. The unanimous opinion: a foreign policy disaster for Europe.

German Foreign Minister Annlena Baerbock showed in Beijing yesterday that there is another way. She demanded not only no Chinese arms deliveries to Russia, but also no so-called dual-use goods such as IT or chemicals that could be used militarily. She called for de-escalation on the Taiwan issue. She requested fair economic conditions. She denounced eroding human rights and discrimination. In short, she showed more balls than Macron. And she never forgot her role as a German politician. Not once did she presume to speak for Europe. Good girl.

Good News of the Week:

Germany's last nuclear power plants will be shut down today. Forever, please. Because that was the plan of the German government, which not coincidentally includes the Greens. But the wailing is loud: Is our energy supply really secure? Aren't nuclear power plants cleaner than coal-fired power plants? What can be bad about a form of energy on which neighbor Poland (announced just this week) is betting its future? Why shut down safe nuclear power plants here, when next door in the Czech Republic, decrepit Soviet-era plants are crumbling away? And isn't this just a symbolic debate by the Greens?

No. And once again, in all clarity: No! Nuclear energy is and remains Pandora's box of energy sources. Three-Mile-Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima are already forgotten? If the technology of a photovoltaic system, a wind turbine or - yes, for gods sake - a coal-fired power plant fails, you simply shut it down. That's it. This is not possible with a nuclear reactor. Because the nuclear isotopes don't give a shit if mankind doesn't want them anymore. They just keep on reacting. Until eternity. That is their nature.

Just to remind you: the half-life of uranium 235, the isotope most commonly used in fuel rods, is 703,800,000 years. And it takes ten half-lives (yeah, that means over 7 billion years) before it is no longer highly harmful to humans. So the stuff is still reacting after a period of time before mankind even existed - because the prehistoric man Homo habilis emerged just a comparatively paltry 2 million years ago in East Africa. And still there is no secure final disposal for the nuclear waste. Not because the relevant authorities would not make an effort. But simply because the inconceivably long time in which the waste could enter the groundwater, for example, is beyond the imagination of material science and geology. By far.

So: any nation, any country, any government that decides not to add an additional risk to the one that already exists should be commended. Period. So, at this point, also a "Thank you, well done!". And, dear Mr. Macron, if you are already looking for your place in the history books: don't bet on a special role in Taiwan policy (see above), rather put an end to the madness of your country's energy policy. Unbelievable: sometimes even Germany is suitable as a role model for France. And I don't even have to put an ironic emoji behind this statement - at least in this case....

Personal happy moment of the week:

For over 30 years, I have hardly changed physically. Okay, the connective tissue is weakening and I have already shrunk by 4 cm. The only difference that really stands out, besides less and grayer hair, is my belly. Of which I thought it knew only one development: bigger and thicker. Last Wednesday I had to get out of the house early and wanted to let my wife sleep in. So I put my clothes out the night before. And then realized the next day that my pants were too baggy for me. And had to keep pulling them up all day to the amusement of my colleagues. And still thought that was pretty good. Because after all, that means nothing other than that my belly has been more fatty before.

I couldn't care less...

...about the leakage of top-secret US documents. How can a 21-year-old National Guardsman, who is barely old enough to buy a can of bad beer, already have access to such explosive information? This is simply a flaw in the system.

As I write this...

...I'm still full to bursting from a brunch with friends. The second time this week after Easter Monday. This could directly become my favorite meal. Especially if my wife makes a quiche for it. It just tastes good every time.

Post Scriptum

In 1938, farmer Earl Silas Tupper had a brilliant idea when he learned about polyethylene plastic at the DuPont chemical company: at a time when refrigerators were not yet a standard in every kitchen, food would keep longer in an airtight plastic bowl. Tupperware was born, the rest is history. Tupper parties have already taken place at my house, too, and certainly three dozen pieces are to be found in various cupboards and drawers for years - and in the refrigerator, of course.

Now Tupperware Brands Corporation is threatened with insolvency as sales and stock have plummeted. Since this can hardly be due to the product, especially in times when disposable packaging is being abolished, it must be the marketing and distribution. Because until 2018, at least in Germany, the products were only available at these legendary Tupperware parties. Now there is an online store, but still no sales in stationary retail. Allegedly, "promising talks" are currently taking place, one reads. I hope this happens quickly enough. I would really miss this brand.

[princetonuniversitypress]

The curse of long-ruling autocrats

By Yuhua Wang

In October 2022, during the 20th Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping was “reelected” as the party’s chairman, paving his way for a third term as China’s top political leader. This will make Xi the longest-reigning head of state in the history of the People’s Republic—even longer than Mao Zedong, the founder of the regime, who was head of state from 1949 to 1959.

Are long-reining rulers a blessing or a curse to the country?