Abstract:Americans and Brits have in common that their language is the Lingua Franca. They don't feel a strong need to learn a second language. That is not just causing issues in proper communication, but also in cultural flexibility.

Cultures are bound to die  

Cultures are living creatures, they are, in the same way as humans and all life on earth, bound to follow the laws of nature.

Ook culturen moeten sterven

https://www.dwarsliggers.eu/index.php/2016-04-03-02-23-40/onze-nieuwsbrieven/282-nieuwsbrief-kerstessay

Joseph A. Tainter: The Collapse of Complex Societies

legend

China’s growing self-confidence:

Liu He – Robert Lighthizer.  Cards on table!

Lingua Franca

Americans and Brits have in common that their language is the Lingua Franca. They don’t feel a strong need to learn a second language. That is not just causing issues in proper communication, but also in cultural flexibility.

The French have many centuries faced a similar issue. The time that French was the Lingua Franca in the west is long over. That loss of Lingua Franca has caused a lot of anger, envy and frustration in France.

The United States in decline

China is convinced that the USA is losing, it’s up to Washington to show whether they’re wrong.[1]

The consequences of the presidency of Donald Trump will be debated for decades to come—but for the Chinese leadership, its meaning is already clear.

China’s rulers believe that the past four years have shown that the United States is rapidly declining and that this deterioration has caused Washington to frantically try to suppress China’s rise. Trump’s trade war, technology bans, and determination to blame China for his own mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic have all confirmed the perception of Chinese policy elites that the United States is bent on keeping their country down.

To be sure, the idea that the United States seeks to stymie and contain China was widespread among Chinese officials long before Trump came to power. What many Americans see as disruptive effects attributable only to Trump’s presidency are, to China’s current rulers, a profound vindication of their darkest earlier assessments.


[1] Julian Gewirtz “China Thinks America Is Losing;  Washington Must Show Beijing It’s Wrong”, foreign Affairs Magazine, 13.10.2020 https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2020-10-13/china-thinks-america-losing?