Watch the fires burning across the river
Autocrats make blunders. Xi has made some, and Putin … well, ok. But Xi is not the isolated single decider that Putin appears to be. And China seems well-positioned to benefit from the Ukraine fiasco, regardless of outcome, if China simply keeps its head down, as best it can.So why …
Laser-like development focus …
Just a brief note -Speeches and policy documents are nearly always long. It is not uncommon for a leader to talk for an hour or two on one topic, with supremely bored listeners fastened to their seats and their cell phones, trying to pass the time. (The cell phone diversion …
Housing Affordability … and a bit more
A recent chart on housing affordability in major cities compared with incomes -Source: https://twitter.com/PlanMaestro/status/1472616369745281026Hangzhou, where we have an apartment, comes out looking better than Shanghai but a lot worse than New York or London. Great – I guess. One-data point comparisons are always suspect. On “city housing affordability” one has to ask, …
Politically Correct Biblical Language
Ya know, it gets harder and harder to distinguish right wing America from CCP. A couple of weeks ago, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law encouraging students to monitor and report on teachers who might be supporting “socialism factories” in universities. The recording of lectures could be used in lawsuits …
Monkey See, Monkey Do
History professor Heather Cox Richardson reporting a few days ago – “Not to be outdone, in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis today signed a law requiring that public colleges and universities survey students, faculty, and staff about their beliefs in order to make sure the institutions support “intellectual diversity” … Without citing any …
The Great American Cultural Revolution
Further to Xi, DJT, GOP, CCPAbout two years ago, I wrote a series of posts pointing out similarities between Mr. Xi and Donald Trump and their respective political parties. Now comes the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution – with American characteristics. We have a leader who promotes violence but keep his hands sufficiently clean …
