While waiting at the KL airport, I bought the book "Audacity of Hope" by Barack
Obama, the leading democratic candidate. I read the prologue and finally understood
why he managed to beat Clinton at Iowa. The simplicity and nobility of his ideas
sound real even after running through the cynical filter. Is America ready for a
black president? I don't know. Is America ready for a refreshing change after
the disastrous experimentation with right wing's views running a
superpower? The answer is yes.
I sat down and thought about the geopolitical faultlines and realize this
surprisingly simple truth. China's leaders may have become more cosmopolitan than America's.
The US' debates are about abortion, gene and cloning research, health insurance
scheme, education programmes and the Sept 11 misguided modern crusade against
terrorism, most of which are isolationistic, partisan in nature and tainted by religious beliefs. In
contrast, China is about long-term strategic interests, merchant princes and trade
tariffs, balancing between inner cities' stability versus coastal cities' phenomenal
growth, geopolitical positioning, global leadership and the usual scheming and
plotting that come with the mandarin intellectual class.
Think for a moment. The wrong stand on abortion issues can remove you as a potential candidate in the coming US election. The wrong implementation of economic policy will sideline you in China's top power echelon. In other words, the chinese understood and exercise real statecraft while the american leadership have to play the religion card and resort to sound bites to get elected and then excercise global statecraft. It will be interesting how both superpowers play out.
Another trait about the chinese is their strong belief in the harmony with the universe. Lin Yu-Tang, the chinese philosopher, scholar and author, who wrote the classic "The Importance of Living" espouses this belief in his writing. There is no need to create a storm (or a shock and awe) when one can ride the waves efficiently and quietly.
When Admiral Zheng He (Cheng Ho) set sail to South East Asia (Malacca) during the expansionistic phase of the Ming Dynasty, he came as a Muslim diplomat and naval admiral. . On board, he respects the customs of the chinese Sea Goddess (similar to patron saint to sailors) and on land, he observes the rituals of a Muslim. His conversion is both strategic and harmonious. Here is a one navy guy who wins friends and influences people by respecting the customs, honoring foreign religions and yet, carries a big gun. One wonders, in an alternate history, what would Admiral Shock and Awe do if he lands on the shoreline of the Malaccan Straits?
History has proven that the fate of nations seldom depend on religious views and insular thinking. The smart and quiet guys, who think long term and believe in harmony with the universe and exploiting its opportunities (the alignment of heaven's will, timing, location, resources and people) and yet willing to renew and change, usually win.
Even applying in the field of commerce, harmony rocks! Think Apple's iPod phenomenon- the world's most successful electronic product. The old perfectionist Steve Jobs would have insisted that the ipod only sync with the proprietary Mac computers. The new insanely great Steve Jobs gives customers what they really really want- an ipod that can sync with Macs and Windows PCs. Now, he has extended the same feature to Mac laptops and computers - you can run both Windows and Leopard OS X on them. It is no secret why Mac's market share has increased recently - consumers have run out of excuses NOT to purchase a Mac. When the new "Nano" Mac subnotebook launches in Jan 2008, the Apple supremacy will be complete. Businesses that are in harmony with customers' needs will always succeed. Entrepreneurs, take note.
Therefore, to prosper, a nation, a company, a product or an individual must be in harmony (or in the modern context, in sync) with its neighbors, customers and friends & partners. Bulldozing and stand-alone closed box thinking seldom work. Alignment is everything.
Whoever figures this out will rule in the 21st Century.
(Oh, and perhaps that is exactly why Obama found such resonance among the younger voters and may become the next President of the United States.)
Harold Fock
Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld
Talking is one thing and doing is another.
It is too early to write off Mrs. Clinton
and everything happening in the United States
is just real politik. Neither Mrs. Clinton or
Obama are not squeaky clean or competent as
they would like to claim to be.
Posted by: Aung | January 11, 2008 at 07:42 AM