Common sense in an incoherent land of fear

August 28, 2025

When reading John’s articles, I often find myself admiring their pith and substance, but naggingly wondering whether that is because he so frequently accords with my own views. I comfort myself with the thought that common sense can be a relatively common antidote to ideological incoherence.

China has, since 1978, consistently acted upon a foreign policy guided by their five principles of peaceful co-existence. They are mutual respect for each others’ sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each others internal affairs, equality and co-operation for mutual benefit, and peaceful co-existence.

More than any other country on the planet, the Chinese have been consistent in their adherence to these principles over at least the last 40 years. At the same time, the US, by contrast, has been breaching every one of these principles continuously over the same period.

The inherent racism that is a part of colonialist countries like the US and Australia has shaped our ideas about the “lesser races” and their place in a hierarchy that supports those racist prejudices. China cannot possibly be smarter than us, despite the vast accumulation of facts that they are. Our only responses are fear and aggression!