The "noneconomics" don't help on China, because the economics are doing just fine

OP-ED: "It's a Win-Win on U.S.-China Trade," by Wu Yi, Wall Street Journal, 17 May 2007, p. A21.

TECHNOLOGY JOURNAL: "Why China Relaxed Blogger Crackdown: Registration Plan Was Dropped in Face of Tech-Industry Protests," by Jason Leow, Wall Street Journal, 17 May 2007, p. B3.

Vice Premier Wu Yi notes that the U.S. and China were completely cut off from each other until Nixon goes ... in 1972 and now 35 years later we are both each other's largest trade partner.

But the Chinese Communist Party still rules, so James Mann sees complete failure, due to his painfully myopic definition of freedom inside China.

Wu wants less interference from "noneconomic" issues in our burgeoning bilateral economic ties.

Is the ballooning connectivity enough? Does it have effect? Does it encourage freedom?

China was to force all 20 million bloggers there to register themselves by their real names. You know the drill and the intent.

But China's tech industry balks at the incredible regulatory burden, saying it will retard China's tech industry and hamper its development both at home and abroad, thus harming competitiveness and thus limiting economic growth and thus threatening the party's legitimacy as overseer of economic expansion.

So the party backs down, choosing the economics over the politics.

Not enough for Chicken Little Mann, but I just saw 20 million bloggers win their freedom--yet again. First time was when the connectivity emerged. Second was when their courage emerged. Third was when the party decided it couldn't bear the costs of a crackdown.

That list will go on and on, as will the growing freedoms.

But yeah, the Party ain't going anywhere anytime soon. If that's your only definition of freedom, China will confound you much like South Korea did for decades, Japan did for decades, Mexico did for decades, Singapore has done for decades, Russia will do for ... not quite sure on that one because the tides switch back and forth with such speed there--in historical terms (although such yo-yo-ing is common in Russian history).

But I see no useful political freedom unless it's undergirded with economic freedom, and that cannot come about without wealth creation, and that cannot come about without connectivity.

Comments

[Bill Millan]

I think one reason that the left is so hot for "Democratic" freedom is that they oppose economic freedom. They don't want to open that can of worms. "Vote like mad, but we will tell you how to run your hot dog stand."

[Hugh]

I'm surprised that the CCP folded so quickly and easily on the blogger registration. That is similar to a freedom of the press amendment. Their reckoning with democracy is closer than you think, they are surrounded by Asian Polands. Although it may differ from ours, it will be Chinese in definition.