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Post by Admin on Mar 2, 2018 19:26:33 GMT
Matt is administrator this week  |
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Post by Matt on Mar 5, 2018 2:09:50 GMT
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Post by Olivia Girdwood on Mar 7, 2018 1:35:20 GMT
Xi Jinping’s proposed removal of the two-year term limit could lead to the rebirth of dynasties. If he as the current leader holds office for the rest of his life, what is holding him back from selecting his successors to be children or relatives, those who are like-minded to Jinping? Nothing really at all. It could become like the situation in North Korea where the public is hidden from events occurring in the world as well as Western views and new technologies and advancements. Only different from the North Korea situation, “Strong, stable, predictable leadership in China is key for [Western countries]. And to achieve this, at least as far as they are concerned, he can rewrite as many parts of the Constitution as he wants” (CNN). The world cares about the situation in North Korea, otherwise they would not be trying to make peace, whereas in China they do not really care because the Communist party is stable. Being stable keeps mostly every relation China has with other countries stable as well. Nothing will change between China and other countries will not make any changes to their agreements and treaties unless something other than the non-two-year term plan is passed. Countries cannot qualify anything in the case of disasters or advancements. Each country has its own internal and external problems as well as mindsets and ways of doing things; not one situation is the same. Overall, Jinping already has a ton of power, this new law if passed will just allow him to have it for longer. The Winnie the Pooh censorship was a little overboard though, so many people get memes made of them it just needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Just the fact alone that Jinping put his own personal political thought into the constitution while still in only his first term in office should tell others of his power, constitutions cannot just be changed at the snap of a finger (Time). Assuming this new law passes, Jinping would be free to do almost anything he wished to; the future of the country is literally going to be controlled by one man.
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Post by Maddy Crighton on Mar 7, 2018 22:36:16 GMT
The Chinese government, mostly their President, Xi Jinping, has made an attempt to change the presidential term from being the most of two five-year terms, to being in power for as long as one would like. This could cause an abrupt change in China’s stability or also seen as a sign of weakness (CNN). If the term change is actually passed, Jinping will have the power to do whatever he wants.He already has censored images that he deems insulting and has banned social media networks. He claims that he will be more assertive internationally which may cause China to become more like North Korea as a nation and may cause countries to withdraw their agreements. In addition, he is also setting himself up for blame and vulnerability. If the country was to experience an economic disaster or a foreign policy crisis,the citizens will have no one else to blame but him since he is the only one in control now (CNN). It’s kind of ironic that Jinping is attempting to have a one-man rule because Mao Zedong did the same thing but ultimately after the loss of thousands from civil war, he moved towards a consensus system. Could this be a situation of man repeating himself? “Lifelong supreme rule and tyranny are inseparable and will surely bring great disasters to the country and its people” was a quote from CNN and describe how one-man rule will affect China. Some disasters may include civil war like Mao’s era, rebellions, etc. The country may fall into old traditions like those of dynasties. The list of possibilities is endless. The end result is that China is making a mistake with the one-man rule and is bound to experience conflicts.
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Post by maddy Crighton on Mar 7, 2018 22:42:19 GMT
@olivia I love that last sentence you included, I didn't really think about it like that. I know he would be in control but to think that he literally will be able to do anything with just the snap of his finger is scary. I wonder how the citizens of China feel about the whole situation. Do they like their president enough to have him in control as long as he wishes? Also, why do the political parties not really have a say in the situation?
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Post by Meghan Miller on Mar 8, 2018 21:04:20 GMT
China’s government is an interesting pseudo democracy, with elected officials but only a single party. This structure of government allows for decisions, such as ending term limits, to pass through their government. The term limit change will not lead to a traditional dynasty structure, because dynasties were based on the idea of a divine ruler, and that faith system does not seem to present in modern China. If China did regress into an empire, there are enough unhappy “peasants” that would sight the mandate of heaven to challenge Xi Jinping’s rule. A social media user said that "Argh, we're going to become North Korea", demonstrating their criticism of the government’s changes (News Sky). China’s government morphing into a similar system as North Korea seems equally as unlikely. According to World Atlas, “The President serves as a ceremonial head of state for a 5-year term and has little power within the government”. In North Korea, Kim Jong Un is the supreme rule of the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea. If China were to have a similar system as this would have to amass power for many years, probably more years of work than a 64 year old wants to do.
Countries that have treaties or trade agreements with China probably will not change their agreements for fear of being iced out. China is important to global economic institutions and is becoming more important as its president signs “his signature Belt and Road Initiative — a trade and infrastructure network tracing the ancient Silk Road though Eurasia and Africa — stands to radically boost China’s geopolitical clout”, ultimately expanding their trade power and influence (the Times). Unless countries are trying to strengthen ties with China, then there will be no change because they are too economically powerful. Outside countries also cannot decide if some legislation should or should not be passed in a county based on what disasters are assumed to happen. China had a checks and balances system and has a organized government that can pass its own laws and regulations. Other countries do not decide what is good for the United States, so why should outside countries worry about China’s change (which does not give anymore power to their aging president).
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Post by Laura Gutauskas on Mar 8, 2018 23:26:22 GMT
Eliminating the term limit only gives Xi Jinping less limitations regarding the capabilities of his control, making it quite possible for him to become an emperor in the future. Typically, a son takes the throne afterwards and Jinping only has a daughter (Xi Mingze) which could mean leadership would pass onto one of his three brothers in the event of this actually happening. The big difference between North Korea and China is that China hasn’t recently been directly controlled by another nation that led to their adoption of communism after breaking away. Their similarity is that China is still following communist ideas for the most part, but their days of being a puppet to another country are over. To clarify: not having that odd transition period brought upon by an outside force means that if China converts back to dynasties, then they’d be doing it all by themselves which means that preventing it from happening may not be an option. This also means that it’s unlikely for other countries to worry about any changes with their relationship to China since, “Most international observers will have been baffled the restriction was ever there in the first place. … In their hearts they know they need a country which is stable and predictable -- even if it is a stable and predictable autocracy” (CNN). If a disaster was brought about because of this new version of stability, it would have to start affecting outside countries before they start caring. The proof of his overwhelming amount of power lies in just how critical he is towards who is allowed to share a portion of control with him; “The purging of senior officials during Xi’s first term demonstrated that he was not a leader to be crossed. Now that his personal dogma is enshrined in the nation’s charter, challenging him could even be considered seditious” (Time). Basically, his supporters can’t even change their minds if they decide Xi has taken things too far, not even if it has to do with jokes about him online. Despite him being similar to Mao, there is one key difference that I distinguished between the two. Not only did Mao bring about transformative change to China, but in the process I noted that, “The failure of the Leap led Mao to turn many responsibilities over to other leaders (Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping, etc.) and to withdraw from active decision making” (AFE). Although Xi has the National Assembly, it’s quite improbable that he would just hand over a part of his power to them because of a single failure. It’d be more likely that he’d continue to take parts of their duties in order to further his control. Separate article used: time.com/4994618/xi-jinping-china-19th-congress-ccp-mao-zedong-constitution/ |
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Post by Barbie Cessar on Mar 9, 2018 1:55:51 GMT
China’s president, Xi Jinping will soon turn into a dictator if the 2 five year term is abolished. As a leader who will remain in power as long as he desires, Xi Jinping will take as much control as possible. China’s censorship on social media is a small fraction of the actions that he will take to control his centralized power. Looking into the broader picture Bisley from time.com states, “Because if he’s happy to do this at home, then boy is he going to be happy to do it abroad.” Xi Jinping is definitely a ruthless leader to look out for but this has nothing to do with trading or treaties with other countries. He is willing to do whatever he can to purge political enemies or anyone critical of the government.Therefore other nations might disagree with the way that the government functions but if they are still reaping benefits from trade then their relationship will remain the same. Xi Jinping is one of the strongest leaders for generations since Mao in the 1970s. Xi Jinping opened China’s first overseas military base in Djibouti, repaved the ancient Silk Road through a trade and infrastructure network across Eurasia and Africa, and added his own personal philosophy to the constitution. China, now second in global trade (behind the U.S.) awaits a “new era” something that is different than previous centralized democracies and dynasties.
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jonah
New Member
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Post by jonah on Mar 9, 2018 2:16:56 GMT
President Xi Jinping is not so much a president but more of a dictator or authoritarian. More times than not that is what happens in a communist republic or country. With Jinping’s censorship of the winnie the pooh meme is not just to show the power of his reign. Jinping probably felt under attack and did that it wasn’t necessary. Also the country is primarily communist so fun is always a no no. With the change of term limit China will not “go back to old values and become a self-sustaining nation.” If they take away term limits it leaves one man in charge most likely til death. And per the CNN.com article that will make them weaker than ever. With removal of presidential term limit China will need the world now more than ever before. The economy will most likely decline and trade with our countries might be more limited. Countries with treaties with China most likely won’t revoke their trades or treaties in China because of assets but instead might start limiting ties with China. They will start limiting ties because of disagreement with government system but will most likely get over it in a few months. I do not think that the removal of the 2-term limit will bring back dynasties in China. Xi Jinping will have his fun for the next 5-10 years and people will get tired of him and overthrow him or possibly even kill him. Thus resulting in another civil war over power. On the bright side maybe they might get an ideal government structure in and have a long term sustaining government for the first time since….. Ever.
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Post by Brooke Gentile on Mar 9, 2018 2:36:16 GMT
China's government has proposed to eliminate the two-term limit for a president. This term limit on officeholders they are trying to eliminate has been in place since they were included in the 1982 constitution. This move "would allow Xi Jinping, the party leader, to rule as president beyond 2023"(Time). If this were to happen, Xi Jinping would most definitely rule the country however he wanted to because at that point he would fear no competition. This leader seems to be extremely confident in his status, almost as if he is persuading his people into thinking that he is the most powerful man that has ever lead China by cementing his status as "the most poweful Chinese leader since Mao in the 1970s at last years twice-a-decade Communist Party Congress"(Time). As stated by CNN "what initially seems like a demonstration of absolute power could actually be a sign of weakness, with Xi apparently unwilling to allow the rise of a potential political rival" Xi Jinping wants to control China all by himself, which may lead to a government much like North Korea's. Already we have seen Xi Jinping censor items from the internet that portrayed him anything other than a "good" guy. As his people were voicing their opinions over the internet regarding this possible two-term elimination by saying things like "We're following the example of our neighbor" and "Argh, we're going to become North Korea"(News) instead of addressing the situation professionally, all messages were removed blocking any posts which included he phrase "two-term limit". This seems to be just the beginning of all of the censoring and blocking there will be in the near future as to what Xi Jinping wants his people to view. Who knows, maybe in a few years China will be unable to access the internet and will be brainwashed just like the people of North Korea.
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Post by Brooke Gentile on Mar 9, 2018 2:44:22 GMT
When you started of by saying "China’s president, Xi Jinping will soon turn into a dictator if the 2 five year term is abolished." I really liked how it sets all of this into perspective. Xi Jinpng is quickly becoming a dictator, and is slowly but surely already dictating his people with them no even aware. He is blocking posts off of the internet about him, and not letting his people let their voices be heard. I guarantee that there are many other circumstances in which Xi Jinping has limited the access as to what his people read and hear throughout their daily lives. I completely agree with you Barbie that Xi Jinping, if not already, will soon turn into a dictator.
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Post by Brooke Gentile on Mar 9, 2018 2:45:36 GMT
@barbie ^
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Post by Maya Borland on Mar 9, 2018 2:53:29 GMT
I believe that if Xi, president of China is trying to make the presidential terms go away then he will make himself the new emperor. Right now Xi Jinping is grasping at straws to keep his power. But ending the two-term law he could keep his power for as long as he wants. Some people think this is ruined by fear of losing his power and having to live a more Simple Life. Others believe Xi is a power-hungry dictator that wants triad to revert back to its old traditions of dynasties. I believe that president Jinping is not a cruel dictator but a scared man. If he was a cruel dictator all these Winnie the Pooh memes would not be carrying on. I mean dictator would have ruled out the problem and made a spectacle of the people responsible. Xi is not doing that he has tried to make this meme unknown to the rest of the world by taking it off the internet. That will not stop the Muse for coming out though or from people seeing them. If the dynasty come back into the Chinese tradition then surely Jiping who passed down the role of Emperor to his heir. In the 20th century today the world will not understand at China's revert back to the Empire ways. Some countries that trade and interact with China might want to withdrawal there interaction and trade with China due to its new regime. If the rest of the world no longer wants to interact with China I believe that they will revert back to their self-sustaining ways and lose all contact with the rest of the world. This can make the Chinese look very similar to North Korea. After North Korea lost all contact with the outside world their people are very sheltered. They live under a very strict dictatorship and know nothing of the outside world. If China revert back to their old ways what happens in 20 years from now will they look like North Korea?
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Post by Maya Borland on Mar 9, 2018 2:54:09 GMT
I believe that if Xi, president of China is trying to make the presidential terms go away then he will make himself the new emperor. Right now Xi Jinping is grasping at straws to keep his power. But ending the two-term law he could keep his power for as long as he wants. Some people think this is ruined by fear of losing his power and having to live a more Simple Life. Others believe Xi is a power-hungry dictator that wants triad to revert back to its old traditions of dynasties. I believe that president Jinping is not a cruel dictator but a scared man. If he was a cruel dictator all these Winnie the Pooh memes would not be carrying on. I mean dictator would have ruled out the problem and made a spectacle of the people responsible. Xi is not doing that he has tried to make this meme unknown to the rest of the world by taking it off the internet. That will not stop the Muse for coming out though or from people seeing them. If the dynasty come back into the Chinese tradition then surely Jiping who passed down the role of Emperor to his heir. In the 20th century today the world will not understand at China's revert back to the Empire ways. Some countries that trade and interact with China might want to withdrawal there interaction and trade with China due to its new regime. If the rest of the world no longer wants to interact with China I believe that they will revert back to their self-sustaining ways and lose all contact with the rest of the world. This can make the Chinese look very similar to North Korea. After North Korea lost all contact with the outside world their people are very sheltered. They live under a very strict dictatorship and know nothing of the outside world. If China revert back to their old ways what happens in 20 years from now will they look like North Korea?
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Post by Maya French on Mar 9, 2018 3:54:22 GMT
To any outside countries, disaster in China is much different than what the people of China would consider to be a disaster. After all, China has a large effect on the global market and it the second largest growing economy in the world (CNN). Due to this, disaster in China, to the rest of the world, would have to include disruption of the production coming out of China. If Xi Jinping changes the term limit and continues to act with such an extreme sense of power then that could threaten not only the Chinese economy but also China’s relationship to outside countries. According to Charlie Campbell, for Time, “Xi is brazenly prepared to rewrite four decades of political orthodoxy at home means he would have few qualms about tearing up the rulebook abroad”. Such “tearing up” could include foreign policy or possibly pertain to trade in general, which would severely harm the global market. Many other countries have markets that practically rely on the Chinese export, such as we have in America. Whether all citizens agree with this process or not, most of America’s imports have a “made in China” label. In January of 2018 alone, America spent 45,788.00 on imports from China. (United States Census Bureau) To the Chinese citizens, American exports are likely the last thing on their mind right now. Disaster to them would be the total uprooting of their constitution and governmental system. James Griffith wrote for CNN “Jon Sullivan, director of the China Policy Institute at the University of Nottingham, said Xi remaining as President and head of state, ‘negates the institutionalization of power transitions that have served the Party well for 35 years, enabling it to avoid damaging schisms that have plagued other Communist regimes.’” Most scholars, outside of Japan, forsee the downfall of the Chinese Communist Party, showing their concern for the repercussions. Scholars within China are not allowed to speak their own opinion or predictions, showing that their concern lies in simply their basic rights.
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