LIFTING THE VEIL OF HYPOCRISY

 

LIFTING THE VEIL OF HYPOCRISY

 

“Keep your seatbelts fastened as this entire flight is subject to persistent turbulence.”  The above line pretty well characterizes the current topsy-turvy prevailing mode of the planet; one big atmospheric disturbance; whether it is political, economic, environmental or social, nothing appears to be free of worry and upset.  One of my favorite lines is the following: too many people, too many voices and nobody is listening.  We appear surrounded by chaos and where do you even begin?  Turmoil is a bit like the weather.  We’re lucky if it produces a gentle breeze, but if it turns into a cyclone or a hurricane all bets are off and we’re running for shelter.  Our thinking caps don’t work well when we’re confronted by extremes and keeping more than 8 billion people happy and fed is a daunting task in the face of adversity.  There are too many converging lines of conflict in play and putting on a brave face, chin up and a stiff upper lip, is not restricted to those of British heritage, it’s a human thing.  We’re desperately looking for culprits to blame.  Who is rocking the boat?  Who or what is making our lives so miserable?  I always like to point out that basically all of us are to blame; our wishes, our demands, entitlements and expectations and that unsavory habit of ours to always want more than others.  Sharing, caring, consensus building, diplomacy, working together, all of them great sentiments and goals, but easily discarded when human discord and discontent once more reach a boiling point.

Find a target and shift the blame

Donald Trump threw a monkey wrench in the usual baiting and blaming game by blaming friend and foe alike for all of America’s misery and tribulations.  His rather skewered and unorthodox approach to diplomacy and trade has shifted the focus away from the usual culprits: Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.  When Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State went as far as describing Brazil as a potential threat to American security I initially put this down to a bad day at the office, but perhaps this was not as farfetched as they now represent the B in BRICS: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.  I wouldn’t go as far as describing BRICS as an imminent threat to Western might and hegemony, but as a predictable political alignment which due to their disparate ways of governing and cultures won’t be a significant threat anytime soon.

Nothing signifies hypocrisy better than our attitude towards China.  So, let’s take a peek beneath that particular veil and how our perceptions have formed and changed over time.  Chinese culture and historical significance predates ours by thousands of years.  They were cultured, educated and sophisticated when we still floated around on logs and lived in mud dwellings and crude shelters.  China, other than a few forays into establishing business relations with Asian countries, South America and Africa, has always maintained a basic isolationist stance.  In their eyes they were the most advanced and cultured empire in the world and they felt no need to associate with others.  Under the command of Admiral Zheng He (1371-1435), the Chinese were routinely sailing as far as the coast of Africa, decades before explorers like Columbus set out to discover the world.  Around 1433, the then Ming emperor, Zhu Zhanji, ordered the destruction of the Imperial fleet.  The Chinese felt they had everything they needed and there was little benefit in extending trade:  no political or financial advantage.  China has always treasured its inward look.  Why rely on others when you don’t have to?  They had everything.  Land, resources and plenty of people.

Shifting fortunes

With the discovery of the Americas, European powers all of a sudden leapt forwards in gaining new and immense territories, in wealth accumulation and in controlling trade routes.  Wealth and investments led to an expansion of potential and opportunities.  For over four hundred years the West has enjoyed a comfortable lead over all others which has led to western dominance and prosperity.  The rest of the world paid a hefty price because it was colonialism, slavery, the occupation of major foreign cities and ports and economic blackmail and coercion that paved the way to power and wealth.  Definitely not a recipe for global peace and harmony.  As a species we have never transitioned to well-planned and sustainable global economies and practices.  Our approach to life and living has not changed one iota.  Sharing the world with others, with compassion, inclusion and tolerance, has never been tried.  We’re as greedy and selfish as ever and continue to use the conflict model as our guiding principle.  Great at sharpening the knives, not dulling them.

Trade hypocrisy

Why did we go to China in the first place?

Why did the Chinese invite us in?

In the 1980s and 90s America started to replace its manufacturing base with the pyrotechnics of stock market speculation.  Increasingly they eyed emerging nations and economies as potentially new markets and money making opportunities.  Hello China, here we come!  China has a huge population, plenty of resources and increasingly, with a highly educated workforce, was eager to leave an agrarian past behind in exchange for industrial development and increasing its wealth and status on the world stage.  Modernization and industrialization was seen as the way forward.  Cheap labor and exporting a plethora of cheap products created a consumer nirvana for the West and nobody complained.  Greed and stupidity can induce a narcotic-like state that make us impervious to consequences.  As long as China behaved and we got what we wanted, all was well with the world.  The West continued to treat China as an obedient servant, consistently ignoring that as a nation they were flexing their muscles, their power and influence in the region.

Memories linger

Not that long ago Russia invaded Manchuria.  The Japanese invaded and conquered China during World War II and the rape of Nanking is still fresh in the minds of the Chinese.  We can’t forget the opium wars and how China was treated at the hands of European colonial powers.  The occupation of strategic cities and ports by the Germans, the British and the French.  And why would they forget and ignore the derogatory comments made by Western leaders and the western media: Commie China, the Yellow peril and ‘Made in China’ was for a long time synonymous with junk and garbage.  Slowly the tables have been turned and not only has China emerged as a superpower, increasingly we find ourselves at the receiving end of trade hostility and demands.

It’s payback time

Steadfastly holding on to our western arrogance we continue to blame China for business practices we have participated in for centuries.  We blame them for stealing our technology and innovations, conveniently omitting the fact that all nations have participated in proprietary theft since the dawn of mankind.  We are a predatory species and have always acted upon the principle of might makes it right.  Trump 101! 

We are greedy and selfish.  As soon as World War II ended all conquering parties rushed in to snap up German scientists and engineers.  We’re constantly looking for a leg up, an advantage.  The world is run along lines of spheres of influence and power and if the West can do it through organizations like NATO, why not the Chinese through BRICS? 

The Chinese rightfully point at regularly held military exercises in the South China Sea by western powers as a provocation.  The Chinese are not holding similar exercises along America’s west coast, near San Diego or Seattle.  And who are we to condemn China’s political system when ours is leaking like a sieve and contaminated by political rot and purchasing political offices with hefty cash contributions.  We’re desperate to hold on to a favorable position that is steadily slipping away through our fingers.

The hypocrisy of business

Business pretends that all they care about is global trade access and market expansion.  They, and they alone, are responsible for the continual creation of jobs and wealth and they bemoan the political spats and shenanigans that only serve to undermine business and global stability.  There is a substantial disconnect in this scenario.  Business is not the innocent victim of political pandering and grandstanding.  They are constantly lobbying governments for economic advantages; from decreased taxation to tax loopholes, financial inducements and concessions and receiving lucrative government contracts.  If we are allowed to engage in these kinds of practices, if we can do it, why not China and other emerging nations?  There is that old saying—what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.  We are a predatory species and measuring everything and everybody with the same yardstick has never been part of the equation. 

The hypocrisy of politics

Less than 20 percent of the world population enjoys the benefits of a true democracy.  The West stubbornly persists upon holding up democracy as a model of governance that everyone in the world should follow.  Who are we to determine what level or model of governance is acceptable in order for us to treat them as equals.  Who do we support and who do we condemn?  Saddam Hussein gassing his own people and starting a war with Iran was deemed acceptable, but not his decision to invade Kuwait.  Handing a black eye to Iran made up for the embarrassment of the Tehran hostage taking incident, but taking the oilfields of Kuwait was a definite no-no!

The world is run along spheres of influence, not along spheres of mutual cooperation.  We have been painting China as the bad guy for a very long time.  Under Bush junior it was described as the axis of evil, replacing Reagan’s yellow peril.  Media reporting on the subject has always been highly suspect as critical assessments are never welcomed.  Fanning the flames of discontent, fearmongering and paranoia is not the sole domain of characters like Trump.  We have engaged in this particular practice just as long as we have engaged in proprietary theft and spying.  Pretty well forever!

For over four hundred years the West has enjoyed a favorable and comfortable lead.  Did we ever give thought to what it would be like if we were at the receiving end of low wages, constant foreign interference and demands?  We’re in the crosshairs of the shifting sands of empire.  Some like the US are crumbling under mountains of debts and others like China are emerging.  Before every major global conflict the characters involved engage in the weirdest contortions and befuddling activities and actions.  Too many converging lines of conflict are in play to make any accurate predictions whether we will regain solid footing anytime soon.

Communism is a self-destructive form of governance because it destroys the freedom of individual choice and replaces it with a straitjacket of enforced compliance and conformity.  However, not a single system of governance is safe as has been demonstrated by the recent US election.  A number of elected psychopaths have taken an indiscriminate, autocratic sledgehammer approach to a much celebrated democracy by dismantling negotiated civil rights and freedoms, government programs and institutions with a speed that is mindboggling and thus far, nothing or nobody is stopping this avalanche of reckless abuse and billionaire cronyism.

Humanity: at our very best we are a beacon of hope and potential, but at our worst, we do the worst.  My biggest concern is with a predatory species that has never walked back from a conflict or a fight.  And yes, that will be you and me.  Earth is our lifeboat and all of us are its passengers.  No exemptions!  This is but one small peek under the veil of humanity.  A veil stimulates the mind and imagination, because it gives a hint as to what is hidden, but never a clear picture.