The Wounded Muse

(Originally published here in South China Morning Post on October 29, 2019.) The bluster around US Vice-President Mike Pence’s China speech last week drowned out another China speech in Washington, which was more subtle but no less important. In a keynote address honouring the 75th anniversary of the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), [...]

(Originally published here in South China Morning Post on September 17, 2019.) In the US Democratic debate last week, Beijing should have taken note that the only candidate who appeared willing to negotiate an end to trade tensions with China, Julián Castro, is polling far behind the front runners. The rest voiced support for punitive [...]

(Originally published by South China Morning Post on August 20, 2019.) It’s both funny and tragic to see Donald Trump’s messaging about the unrest in Hong Kong shift so quickly. Funny because his duplicity is about as subtle as the script of a low-budget sitcom, and tragic – mostly for himself – because it reveals that even [...]

(Originally published by South China Morning Post on August 6, 2019.) US diplomats and politicians talk endlessly about American ideals.  When addressing audiences worldwide, many are so high on rhetoric, they can’t see how many eyes in the room they send rolling. Human rights and democracy, they will tell captive audiences from the four corners [...]

(Originally published in South China Morning Post on July 22, 2019.) America sees reciprocity differently from China, an official from Beijing told a group of former diplomats and foreign policy experts in New York last week. “When it comes to specific issues, you want reciprocity, but in general you want to stay on top of [...]

(Originally published in South China Morning Post on July 8, 2019.) The spectacle of warplanes roaring over the Lincoln Memorial for Donald Trump’s “Salute to America” on July 4 – less than a week after the president squabbled with the United States’ strategic allies and made light of Russian election interference with his buddy Vladimir Putin at the [...]

Pride is in full swing in several cities. Perhaps not be the best time to bring up literature, but if you find yourself in a more intimate setting – away from the pulsing dance music and trying to pick up someone more cerebral – this might give you a talking point. It’s about gay subject [...]

(Originally published here by South China Morning Post.) In the great Sino-American rift that opens wider by the day, the word “civilisation” is already overdone. The C-word now occupies the debate around the current United States-China trade war in the same way that vape pens have become a fixture of adolescence. Both trends are equally [...]

(Originally published here in South China Morning Post.) If it was US President Donald Trump alone calling the shots from above during last week’s negotiations with Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He, we’d be reporting this week about the preparations for a summit with President Xi Jinping next month. That meeting looks doubtful since the latest round of [...]

(Originally published here by South China Morning Post.) Former White House adviser Steve Bannon made a splash in Washington last week with his call to brand those who have profited from business relationships with China as traitors. The audience at the event erupted in cheers, not surprising given that it was comprised mainly of members [...]