Should the U.S. Be Happy When China is Unhappy?

China and the U.S. are giving each other the cold shoulder. This does not make China happy, and especially not Chinese nationalists. The U.S. is also unhappy, especially working-class Americans.

The reason Chinese nationalists are so unhappy is that the U.S. is too overbearing and has been using China as a punching bag, constantly pushing China’s buttons and crossing the line in U.S.-China relations: meeting the Dalai Lama, interfering with issues regarding Taiwan, and getting other countries to gang up on the RMB, forcing it to appreciate. Since China has already tightened its policies, adopting methods to appreciate the U.S. dollar would be like kicking a dog when it is down, stifling China’s manufacturing industry, toppling over China’s capitalist and real estate markets, and attacking China’s economy and employment situation.

Working-class Americans are unhappy because the U.S.’s financial imperialism has created so much conflict and is trying to cause the downfall of China’s low-priced, high-quality goods, which would put even more pressure on the lives of working-class Americans. If China’s RMB appreciates to a large extent (and actually the appreciation of the U.S. dollar has already caused a subtle appreciation of the RMB), products from other emerging countries will start to flood into the U.S. The average American already clearly understands the severity of this situation — a flood of imported goods from other emerging countries will not bring Americans more employment, but more pressure. In addition, Americans, who are used to low-priced, high-quality Chinese goods, will be much more worried now about seeing sudden price increases.

Deep down in their hearts, working-class Americans all know that it is the fat cats of Wall Street that have thrown their lives into turmoil and disrupted the global economy. No matter how eloquent the elite members of Wall Street are, and no matter how American politicians shirk responsibility and change the subject, they are even more afraid of Europe and Japan than they are of China.

People in the same line of business are enemies: Europe, the U.S. and Japan produce goods that are of similar quality, so these three countries are competing, not helping each other. In contrast, Chinese and American manufacturing complement each other. Therefore, we can see that, recently, the U.S. has been killing Europe, whose sovereign debt crisis is a warning sign for Americans. Also, Japan’s manufacturing crisis is just the result of an unconventional move by the U.S.’s financial and industrial imperialists.

China’s leaders are not happy that the U.S. will not let China save face, which is so important for the Chinese. For the Chinese, a few slaps in the face are more shameful than a heavy punch. China’s leaders have constantly warned the U.S. not to meet with the Dalai Lama and not to sell arms to Taiwan. However, even after punching China in the face, Americans are still unwilling to let up. Making the Chinese suffer in silence will undoubtedly anger Chinese nationalists. The Chinese people are not happy, but we all understand that, as long as economic disputes do not escalate and involve core interests or issues of sovereignty, these problems can be solved appropriately by sitting down and talking through our differences. However, if there are any extraordinary disputes, outright retaliation is in order. The Chinese people have a strong sense of dignity, which cannot be negotiated. Restraint can often turn into impulsiveness in just one moment; therefore, the American imperialists should not always pick fights and provoke people.

China has decreased its purchases of U.S. bonds, but the Wall Street Journal did not admit this fact. This is a very delicate issue because it seems time for China to strike back, but the U.S. is comforting itself by saying that China wants to buy more U.S. bonds and maintain the stability of the U.S. national debt. The message from America is obvious: Do not panic. The whole world wants to have faith in the U.S. national debt. Publicizing a strong U.S. dollar is the old tune of the supporters of the U.S.’s strategic interests. If the time comes though, another group will let out a little secret and say, “The U.S. dollar is ours, but the problems are yours.”

On the Internet, there are many posts and articles venting anger against American imperialists. China’s anger has already reached the point of explosion. American politicians, under the control of Wall Street, are still continuously creating conflict and some have truly gone too far. Some American scholars, who have started to see the right path, are using their positions of authority to continuously incite a feeling of American nationalism. This is a battle of public opinions.

U.S.-China relations should cool down, as should the battle of public opinions. It seems more appropriate to solve problems with a cool head rather than a hot one because the U.S. and China cannot be attacking each other. The cooperation of these two countries would be beneficial to both parties and to the whole world. A thin layer of frost covers the surface of U.S.-China relations, but underneath are surging heat waves. The people’s economic activities will not cease due to political divisions; instead, they are more intense.

After the financial crisis, China was not willing to assume the lead role in this historical period because this is against China’s strategy of remaining low-key. Therefore, China does not like the Western media making statements about China and the U.S. ruling together and also does not like being sensationalized in the Western media. What is more, China does not hope to assume responsibility for that which it is not yet ready. China still has a lot of its own problems that need to be solved. To put it shortly, China is very unhappy, and Americans should not necessarily be happy either. There are many delicate issues hidden even within problems that look small.