October 22, 2005
Next Stop, Atlas Shrugged
Banana Oil! brings good new from China: a Chinese translation of The Fountainhead ("Howahd Lork!") it can only help:
This is absolutely awesome news!Also good is the cover design. I’m not speaking about the esthetics of it, but what it says about how the book will be perceived here. The two-tone, rather flat look to it is quite similar to the covers you see for books in the philosophy sections, and putting the author’s picture on the front cover suggests that this is an important person whom you should know. In other words, the publisher is putting this out as a serious book, not as a gaudy potboiler. Very, very good news indeed.
Posted by John Kranz at October 22, 2005 4:54 PM
An important point is that this is happening because of economic engagement. Boycotts or sanctions wouldn't get us this far.
Yup, I question the level of human rights and freedom in China, but we see progress. In Cuba, we have disengaged (though our pusillanimous European pals have not) and the march of freedom has stagnated.
Posted by: jk at October 23, 2005 11:49 AMI find myself thinking more and more that you're right on this one JK. If the allure of capitalistic freedom can move the mammoth Chinese society appreciably, imagine the liberating effect it would have on the hellacious house of cards known as the Cuban "worker's paradise!"
Posted by: johngalt at October 24, 2005 3:56 PMHow about Syria, North Korea, and Iran? Couldn't the same tactics work there?
Posted by: Silence Dogood at October 25, 2005 3:07 PMHmmm, let's see... have China or Cuba asassinated the prime minister of a neighboring state? Have they sold nuclear weapon technology or components to terrorists? How about financing the "insurgents" in Iraq, or vowing to anhillate the state of Israel and every Jew? No, I think the peaceful engagement of the states you list would amount to appeasement of unprovoked agression.
Posted by: johngalt at October 26, 2005 2:37 AMYou mean recently I assume, and not considering the firing of missiles into the Straits of Japan and threatening the leadership of Taiwan as aggressive? The North Vietnamese didn't completely fund and arm themselves remember. I am talking long term here, I have no illusions that a few Ipods and some Levis are going to change these regimes overnight. My point is that nothing is going to change them overnight and long term economic engagement and trade has a better track record than either sanctions or military intervention.
Posted by: Silence Dogood at October 26, 2005 10:55 AM | What do you think? [5]