What Really Happened in Wuhan: Investigating the Chinese lab leak theory

[Ellanjay]

Has China’s panda diplomacy lost its sparkle?; China’s lockdowns risky for investors: Expert​

China In Focus

For half a century, giant pandas have served as China’s most cuddly ambassadors. Yet those days may be numbered. A top U.S. intelligence official reiterates America’s stance, saying China is America’s greatest challenge. Protests erupt in Shanghai. Authorities are pushing an unprecedented approach to quell virus spread in the city, but it has many residents fearing for their safety—even in their own backyards. Beijing sets new goals for Shanghai. The original goal was to have the city cleared of outbreaks by Wednesday. But with that falling through, will the situation adhere to Beijing’s instructions? Chinese state-owned shipping carriers could put small American companies out of business, and soon.

 

[Ellanjay]

Inside China’s Draconian Lockdowns and Tuidang, the Underground Movement That’s Disintegrating China’s Communist Party From Within​

Video

American Thought Leaders
JAN JEKIELEK

“They want to control everything. They want to not only control resources, they want to control the behavior of the people, they also want to control the mind, control people’s thoughts.”
In this episode, we take a look at one of the largest grassroots movements in the world. For the past two decades, millions of Chinese have been secretly renouncing their affiliation to China’s Communist Party and its affiliate organizations. The movement, called Tuidang, or Quitting the Chinese Communist Party, has recorded nearly 400 million such renunciations.
I sit down with Sen Nieh, vice president of the Global Service Center for Quitting the Chinese Communist Party. He’s also a professor at the Catholic University of America.
“It’s about how Chinese people try to break out of the bondage of communism,” says Nieh.
We discuss this movement and we also take a deeper look at the draconian lockdowns in China. It’s a decades-old playbook, Nieh says.

 

[Ellanjay]

373m Chinese under full or partial lockdowns; US bans anti-satellite missile tests​

China In Focus

How many people are under lockdown orders in China? A new report found the number covers more people than the entire U.S. population. Under Beijing’s “Zero-Cases Policy,” those who test positive for COVID-19 are sent to quarantine centers. But what happens to their pets? Photos and video of one incident paint a grim picture. Energy independence vs. climate concerns—the issue marks a fine line for the United States as Washington struggles to find a balance. But the most controversial part of the issue might be coming from somewhere else. China will soon send more astronauts into orbit, despite getting blocked from using the International Space Station. A group of Chinese companies is suing the Israeli government. We zoom in on the dispute and its apparent ties to the United States.

 

[Ellanjay]

Will China Ever Reach ‘Zero COVID’?; Why Omicron Is the Hill to Die on for the Communist Party​

China Insider

We explore why China will continue lockdowns even as they prove ineffective against Omicron. At the same time, we take a look at how Shanghai’s COVID-19 response has become a political blockade against Chinese leader Xi Jinping on his quest to get a third term in power. As the humanitarian crisis in Shanghai and other cities continues—including starvation, misery, and more—what lies behind the Communist Party’s brutal draconian enforcement?

 

[Ellanjay]

APRIL 20, 2022 BY ADMIN

China Threatens the Breakup of Europe​

The Ukrainian flag flutters alongside the European Union flag outside the European Parliament headquarters to show their support for Ukraine after the nation was invaded on Feb. 24 by Russia, in Brussels, on Feb. 28, 2022. (François Walschaerts/AFP via Getty Images)

China Threatens the Breakup of Europe​

Europe and America should respond with tripwire troops in Taiwan


Anders Corr
April 20, 2022
News Analysis



https://forums.canadiancontent.net/javascript:void(0);
As Russian President Vladimir Putin escalates the war in Ukraine to that of nuclear threats, massacre, and the systemic rape of children in cities like Bucha, China continues its diplomatic support of Russia, including now by threatening the breakup of the European Union.
China’s state-controlled Global Times mooted the idea under the guise of a friendly warning on April 18, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukrainians are prepared to fight a ten-year war against Russia. Such a war, warned this most nationalist of Beijing mouthpieces, could lead to the breakup of Europe and its control by the United States.
“It is exactly due to the continuous flow of economic and military aid from the US and NATO that has prolonged the military conflict, cheering Ukraine up to fight a 10-year war,” according to the anonymous Global Times author.
After a “bleeding decade” of war over Ukraine, “Europe, being entangled in a war, will completely lose its security autonomy and become fully reliant on the US umbrella. It will have to confront a 10-year crisis on energy, food, refugees and inflation. Social turmoil will surface. The [EU] bloc may even split on the issue.”
Despite Beijing and Moscow’s “no limits” partnership, meant to deter the United States, they clarified recently that the violence in Ukraine is apparently entirely the fault of our evil capitalist country and its NATO lapdogs.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) thus seeks to divert blame and use threats and scare tactics against Brussels to separate it from Washington. It’s not hard to understand why.
Together, the two democratic superpowers and their allies in places like Japan and Taiwan, from an economic and increasingly military standpoint, are the world’s best hope for defending the international system against the plans of Beijing and Moscow to expand territorially and create a “new type” of international relations.
If Ukraine and Xinjiang are any indication, this “common destiny” envisioned by Beijing will be no walk in the park. At best, it will be totalitarian developmentalism of the sort that creates ghost cities and failed property developers in loan default. At worst, genocide and civil war will emerge on every continent, as the citizens of formerly democratic countries resist the kind of neocolonialism doled out by the CCP to Uyghurs in Xinjiang. It could be one and then the other. We all need to wake up and mitigate the risk of any of the above.
In the short term, Beijing wants the European Union to cave to Russian demands and pressure Zelenskyy into conceding control of all of Ukraine to Moscow. This would strengthen the credibility of Beijing’s threat against Taiwan, and make forced unification of the island democracy more likely, and with less effort.




Chinese leader Xi Jinping and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speak via video conference with European Council President and European Union foreign policy chief during an EU-China summit at the European Council building in Brussels on April 1, 2022. (Olivier Matthys/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

It would also relieve a major source of diplomatic discomfort in Beijing, which is increasing attention to its failure to denounce the Russian military’s egregious violence.
But Moscow and Beijing badly miscalculated the unity and commitment of Washington, Brussels, and London to protecting Ukraine from Putin’s bloody assault. We aren’t fools.
As noted by Didi Tang in The Times of London on April 19: “Beijing is trying to sow division in the West by exploiting any differences between European and US policy in support of Ukraine. Beijing is worried that a united front will damage its ambitions to rival Washington.”
Increasingly, news reporters like Tang are flatly reporting Beijing’s divide and conquer strategy to achieve global hegemony. It’s refreshing but insufficient to stop the CCP.
Beijing is already taking notes on Ukraine and revising its plans to invade Taiwan accordingly. According to a Chinese military source quoted by Nikkei Asian Review on April 20, China’s military planners expect to invade Taiwan within the seven-day period that it would take U.S. Marines stationed on Okinawa to obtain permission from Washington to land in, and militarily reinforce, the island democracy. To deter this, given the demonstrated power of U.S. and allied defensive weapons used against Russian invaders, Beijing is increasing its nuclear arsenal.
In other words, the CCP plans to threaten nuclear war against the United States to keep it from protecting Taiwan. Russia is hinting at a similar threat now, to stop the influx of military supplies to Ukrainian forces.

Beijing and Moscow are thus trying to use their nuclear weapons as not only a deterrent force, but a compellent force. They want to compel the world’s democracies into following their wills, and if given half a chance, they will do so.
All this to say that democracy, of which the United States, the EU, and allies like Japan are the world’s biggest defenders, relies on the unity of these countries, and more, in keeping up the pressure of economic sanctions on Moscow and arms shipments to the brave defenders of Ukraine.
But let’s think beyond the war today. After all, Ukraine is an object lesson in the failure of weak deterrence. Ukrainians will ultimately win the war, but only after losing millions of citizens and dozens of cities to Putin’s bombs.
Democracy also depends on effective deterrence, which can only be achieved through strength. Deterrence in Taiwan is currently weak, thus inviting an attack by Beijing. To forestall that sad eventuality, and protect democracy on a global level, thus requires increasing the defense of Taiwan by preemptive emplacement of defenses. These can and should include tripwire troops and nuclear weapons.

Anders Corr has a bachelor’s/master’s in political science from Yale University (2001) and a doctorate in government from Harvard University (2008). He is a principal at Corr Analytics Inc., publisher of the Journal of Political Risk, and has conducted extensive research in North America, Europe, and Asia. His latest books are “The Concentration of Power: Institutionalization, Hierarchy, and Hegemony” (2021) and “Great Powers, Grand Strategies: the New Game in the South China Sea” (2018).

China Threatens the Breakup of Europe

News Analysis As Russian President Vladimir Putin escalates the war in Ukraine to that of nuclear threats, massacre, ...

www.theepochtimes.com

 

[Ellanjay]

China Is “Controlling Thirst For Freedom” (No Singing Allowed!) | The Beau Show

Shanghai, China’s largest and most thriving city, has been locked down for weeks, with food shortages, anxious citizens, and draconian measures, putting a bruise on its economy. Drones and robodogs patrol streets enforcing lockdown measures, but the citizens seem to be waking up to the reality of the CCP’s political game.

 

[Ellanjay]

‘If we lose those satellites, there’s no putting Humpty Dumpty back together’​

China In Focus

In this special episode, we sat down with #BrandonWeichert, author of “Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower,” and Rick Fisher, senior fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center. They spoke about China and Russia’s growing space ambitions, what would happen if America loses its edge in space, and what steps could be taken to stem the tide.

 

[Ellanjay]

A transit officer, wearing protective gear, controls access to a tunnel in the direction of Shanghai’s Pudong district in lockdown on March 28, 2022.(Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)


We Followed the Directives of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China



Steve Keen

April 20, 2022

Commentary

The horrific scenes in Shanghai in the last few weeks, as residents face starvation because of the way China’s Zero-COVID policy is being enforced, reminded me of my first trip to China over forty years ago, when I ran a conference between Australian and Chinese journalists in November 1981.

Figure 1: A photo of the participants in the “Sino-Australian Press Seminar” that I organized on behalf of the Australia-China Council and the All-China Journalists’ Association. I’m the young man with a beard in the front row. (Steve Keen)

The seminar itself was a fascinating experience, but the key issue which today’s catastrophe brings to mind was a bizarre pair of economic statistics. Just before the Australian delegation departed for Beijing, China announced that light industry output had risen by 17 percent in the previous year—but heavy industry output had fallen by 7 percent.

This pair of numbers simply didn’t make sense. Light industry—bicycles, lights, consumer goods in general—requires inputs from heavy industry—steel, cement, etc. How on earth could light industry rise so much while heavy industry fell? Getting to the bottom of this conundrum was a key objective for the seven Australian journalists who attended this conference.

Our Chinese counterparts at the seminar couldn’t give a satisfactory explanation, but the subsequent tour finally provided an answer; one which I believe is relevant to the heavy-handed way in which China is enforcing its anti-COVID lockdown today.


To every question we asked of virtually anyone, the first answer was the quote that headlines this article: “We followed the directives of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.” If you asked someone what they had for breakfast, that’s what they’d first say, before mentioning Congee or Dòujiāng. This obsequious reply became key to my understanding of the China that Mao created.

The answer to our statistical conundrum was provided by an official whose title was translated to us as the “Economic Boss of Shanghai.” He gave us that stock standard answer to our question: “We followed the directives of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.”

After it, one of the journalists asked him “But what does that mean?” He elaborated that “the Central Committee sent out a directive to promote light industry.” Someone else followed up with “So, what did you do?” His answer, translated for us by our wonderful guides, remains etched into my brain over four decades later: “We stripped heavy industry factories and turned them into light industry.”

Good grief. That is no way to manage an economy. Why on earth was that done?

It came down to how one survived a totalitarian regime when one was actually part of it. The Central Committee of the Communist Party was all-powerful, but it was also factionalized. One faction would be dominant, and its orders would be transmitted from its 300 or so members to the 30 million members of the Communist Party itself as a slogan—like “promote light industry”—rather than a detailed set of plans, because communications were primitive, as were the education levels of the recipients of the orders.


These orders would inevitably lead to catastrophes, and the only way that the hapless enforcers of these orders could protect their butts from the inevitable backlash was to carry them out to the letter. Then, if you were to be punished, so would be the people who gave them to you—the dominant faction in the Central Committee itself. As an underling, you would survive, while the consequences of the failure would play out in the endless factional battles within the Central Committee.

So, if the directive was to “promote grain,” local officials would order the peasants to pull up legume crops and plant grain instead. One year later, there would be bountiful grain, but not enough protein, and children would be born with Kwashiorkor, the protein deficiency disease—as we observed in Sichuan province on that tour. The consequence of the dominant Central Committee faction being pro-grain was not a balanced emphasis upon legumes, but local officials ordering peasants to dig up legume crops and planting grain instead.

The peasants, who had no choice but to obey the “promote grain” orders, would rise up when their newborn children paid the consequences, the revolt would percolate up the Communist Party system, the dominance of factions would swap, the new directive would be “promote legumes,” grain crops would be dug up and replaced with legumes, and a year later there would be a famine.

This crazy cycle of command, catastrophe, and reaction is what ultimately led to Deng Xiaoping’s pragmatic overthrow of the Gang of Four. But the dominance of the Central Committee remains, and with it, the same excessive adherence to its directives seems afoot in Shanghai. So, because the Central Committee has decided upon a zero tolerance approach to COVID, doors are welded shut rather than locked, and all because the best defense to criticism when the policy causes catastrophe continues to be that “We followed the directives of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.”

Figure 2: The Australian journalists stroll through Tiananmen Square in November 1981. (Steve Keen)

Professor Keen is a distinguished research fellow at University College London, an author, and has received the Revere Award from the Real World Economics Review. His main research interests are developing the complex systems approach to macroeconomics and the economics of climate change. He has entered politics as the lead candidate in New South Wales for the new Australian political party The New Liberals. His main research interests are developing the complex systems approach to macroeconomics, and the economics of climate change. In an unusual step for a retired academic, he has entered politics as the lead candidate in New South Wales for the new Australian political party The New Liberals.


https://www.theepochtimes.com/we-fol...a_4407750.html





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Pandemic Reflection: The Destructive CCP Model(II)
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[Ellanjay]

Columbia rejects Chinese student for hate speech; Survey: foreigners plan to leave Shanghai​

China In Focus

Strict lockdown rules are driving foreigners out of Shanghai. A survey shows many of them plan to leave—or are debating the option. A top supplier for Apple and Tesla faces widespread infections at its factory in Shanghai. Three workers reveal the situation inside. Photos capture empty shelves in Beijing, as panic buying begins. Residents there say they’re worried about another possible lockdown to stem COVID-19 infection rates. A university in New York rescinds its acceptance letter to a Chinese student, all because of a post on Chinese social media following a recent shooting. As part of the deal in an unusual agreement between the Wuhan lab and its partner at a U.S. university, they are asking one another to erase secret files.

 

[Ellanjay]

COVID Theater’ in Shanghai Leads to Starvation and Misery; What Happened in Beijing April 25, 1999​

China insider

Shanghai’s dead stop on COVID-19 failed. Will American businesses change their view of China? If the lockdowns continue, what happens to the global supply chain? On April 25, 1999, 23 years ago, a large group gathering in Beijing was twisted by Chinese state media. The Chinese communist regime then launched a massive persecution against Falun Gong, a spiritual meditation in China. I have Erping Zhang to talk about what happened that day, and why is the communist regime so afraid of Falun Gong.

 

[Ellanjay]

US gave Chinese firms $1.8B in subsidies; FCC commissioner targets Apple over China App Store​

China In Focus

U.S. state and local governments gave billions in subsidies to #ChineseFirms. This–despite China being a major U.S. competitor. We hear from an FCC commissioner about his letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook. He accuses Cook of hypocrisy and #Censorship. Does the cure cost more than the illness? In Shanghai, locals are sharing stories of people who’ve died–amid the city’s draconian lockdown measures. From witnessing a historic appeal in China, to making American goods through slave labor, a Philadelphia resident explains why one day in April holds special importance to him. And for those watching our full episode— The FBI Director talks about America’s greatest threat. And it isn’t Moscow, despite its war on Ukraine. Instead, the official singles out a country with an “unprecedented level of espionage.”



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[Ellanjay]

The Hill Publishes Huawei-Sponsored Content; Beijing to Lockdown?​

China Insider with David Zhang​

Huawei is mad that it can’t do business in the United States anymore. So what did it do? It vented on Twitter after Elon Musk bought the social media company and spent money advertising in The Hill. We break down how Huawei’s latest move to win over sympathy won’t work. And I speak with David Santoro, president of the Pacific Forum, on the state of U.S.-China nuclear competition. He gives a stark warning about the outlook for the near future. We also discuss the soon-to-come lockdown in Beijing. Would the communist officials allow lockdowns to happen to themselves? We discuss this.

 

[Ellanjay]

Retired ICE Agent Warns Open Border Ultimately Benefits Cartels and China​

China Insider

Special agents are under pressure to defend America at the southern border as the country is hollowed out by illegal immigration, cartel-run traffick rings, and fentanyl precursors from China. What must be done to stop it? I speak with Victor Avila, author of “Agent Under Fire,” to discuss the border situation and why it needs to stop.

 

[Ellanjay]

PART 2: Behind China’s Lockdown Madness—Gen. Robert Spalding on a Looming Taiwan Invasion, the Russia-Ukraine War​

Video

American Thought Leaders
JAN JEKIELEK

“They’re going to go element by element through their economy and see which of those is still open to attack from the West … to seal those up prior to invading Taiwan.”
Previously, in part one of my interview with retired Brigadier General Robert Spalding, he broke down the Chinese regime’s strategy of unrestricted warfare, which is detailed in his latest book “War Without Rules: China’s Playbook for Global Domination.”
Now in part two, we discuss what’s really going on behind China’s new round of draconian lockdowns. Is it potentially related to Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan?
“The Chinese Communist Party doesn’t do things willy-nilly. It’s very deliberate,” Spalding says.
How can the United States effectively counter the Chinese communist threat to Taiwan and the rest of the free world?

 

[Ellanjay]

Living Shanghai senior nearly sent to funeral home; Poll: 82% of Americans view China unfavorably​

China In Focus

More news emerges from under Shanghai’s lockdown. Workers there were busy loading a filled body bag into a vehicle destined for a funeral home—when they discovered it was still moving. A wave of tragic suicides hits Shanghai. Driven by starvation and the absence of medical care, more residents have been found dead after struggling under the city’s draconian rules. Over 80 percent of Americans say they don’t like China. More specifically, they don’t like China under its current communist rule. China’s Huawei sees a revenue drop. U.S. sanctions on the telecom giant have led to a poor first-quarter performance. A new report shows China is losing foreign capital. Curiously, the report came from a top Chinese research firm.

 

[Ellanjay]

Jeffrey Tucker: US May Not Know Alternatives to Lockdown, China’s Zero-COVID Strategy

Video

China Insider
David Zhang

What has the lockdown situation in Shanghai taught the rest of the world? Is the method and invention by a totalitarian regime, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), proving to be correct? Has public health gone too far going into politics? We discuss these questions with Jeffrey Tucker, founder and president of the Brownstone Institute, as well as his view on why China invented the lockdown for COVID-19 and why the world adopted the method. Plus, we discuss the CCP regime and it’s nature amid the humanitarian crisis in China.

 

[Ellanjay]

US-China ‘Most Dangerous Period in History’; Who Is Trying to Throw China Overboard?​

China Insider

Chinese tech companies may get a temporary breather after Beijing relaxes its clampdown for a while. But not if Beijing wants to get an ownership stake in the companies. What could be the reason? Is China’s economy at too much of a loss? And what about the man-made COVID-19 crisis and the lockdowns? I speak with Gordon Chang, Gatestone Institute distinguished senior fellow and author of “The Coming Collapse of China,” on what’s at the stake in the China-U.S. relationship as China faces crises on multiple fronts.

 

[Ellanjay]

Shanghai locals protest extended lockdowns; Disinformation board and vaccine passports​

China In Focus

Protests erupt in Shanghai. Residents there say they’ve had enough of the city’s restrictive lockdown rules. Experts explain how vaccine passports and a cashless society could change the West for good. We look at how the Chinese Communist Party is connected. Could China strike the United States without firing a single shot? We hear from a retired U.S. general about how it could happen, through unrestricted warfare. We zoom in on China’s economy for a look at real estate, supply chains, and predictions from a prominent Chinese economist recently silenced on social media.

 

[Ellanjay]

Samuel Chu On Hong Kong’s Future:’Once People Have Tasted Freedom, You Can’t Tell Them to Forget It’​

China Insider

Hong Kong’s upcoming executive election has just one candidate. This Sunday, the city will “choose” its next chief executive. Meanwhile, the Chinese communist regime continues to clamp down on the ever-shrinking freedoms in the city. Why do the people of Hong Kong continue to fight for change? I speak with Samuel Chu, a Hong Kong American activist and founder of Campaign for Hong Kong. We discuss the upcoming election in the city, the Hong Kong democracy movement, and the Communist Party’s goal to kill freedom—as well as his personal journey defending the rights of the people of Hong Kong.

 

[Ellanjay]

Examining Other Marvel Movies Censored in China; Chinese Media’s Reaction to Epoch Times, Explained​

China In Focus

NTD’s sister media, #TheEpochTimes, briefly appears in Marvel’s latest superhero movie. And one Chinese state-run media outlet isn’t pleased. But the newest film isn’t the only one facing #Chinesecensorship. “Spider-man: No Way Home” and others were also blocked from Chinese releases. What does the United States really know about Beijing’s space development goals? A top #NASA official says it’s not much. Fire breaks out under Shanghai’s lockdown, leaving residents in one residential building locked inside. The Ukraine war enters its sixth week. U.S. officials say they’re keeping a close eye on China to make sure it doesn’t help Moscow bypass sanctions.