From: lic@physics.usc.edu (Li Chen)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Small boat in a turbulant occean
Date: 13 Apr 1992 16:57:06 -0700
Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: physics.usc.edu
Summary: where are we going


	If any body thinks that the decomposition of Soviet Union have finally
bring world the peace, he is wrong. The turbulance is far from over. There are
still those suppressed nations like Iraq want the world to hear their voice.
Moreover, the dispute between Azebijan and Amenina is just a start. Larger
war between independent nations is just lying ahead. Both Muslin and Christian
nationas are of very aggressive nature. On the other side, Chinese are non-
aggressive. Chinese are self-content. Chinese always look for harmonies. Due
to these natures, we have been roled over by barbarians, who are much more
backward than us, twice in the past 1,000 years. In the past 150 years, we
have been beaten numerous times by imperists and the size of our country
have become smaller and smaller. It is Mao who first bring the independence
and dignity to our country. But what he left is also a static, closed and
poor country. For these historical reasons, our country is a nation in
changing. Moreover, the pace and direction of change is very unpredictable.
Under these kine of circumstances, we naturally ask ourselves: what is good
for our country?

	I belong to those category of people who dosen't believe any party.
I don't believe communism; I don't believe those demoncratic fighters;
I don't even believe in God. What I believe is pragmatism, because that
enable me to think indepedently without the obligation to any party. I
believe only progmatism will bring future to our nation and ourself. Here
I would like to discuss some of my viewpoint with you.

1) Human nature should be freed. In other word, people should get freedom
to do what ever they like to do. I believe this is much more important than
political or press freedom. I grown up in a small city in a southeast 
province. People there were really poor. The average living standard per
person was around 10 Yuan per month. The youth from high school have to
go to the mountain area in the northern province to be "re-eduacated".
Even the stongest laborer there has a hard time to earn him enough food
at that time, not mentioning any other thing. I was lucky that I entered
a college, a 4% chance for youth in my province. After that, I was lucky
again that I did well enough to come to US to study. I see those chances
very valuable. I am very happy to see that my high school classmates also
get good chances because of reform, special economic zone and joint venture.
I was scared like hell to see those peoples chance get taken away if the
MFN is revoked. On the other side, I look very highly on the bill that
allow thousands of Chinese J-1 to convert to F-1, because it give people
change and choices. As I can see, that is the only bright spot in the
entire sad story of 6/4 incidence. I also firmly believe the main critiria
for the success of reform if whether is can offer people more chances and 
opportunaties, not the system or route. A true political freedom will only
come when human's mind are freed.

2) Chinese should grow and evolve in a steady way. In this evolution,
some people should get chance to grow faster, but the entire society
should advance in a steady way. No part of the society should be hurt
or feel their actual living standard is lowered. Otherwise the caos may
begin. I say the CMFN bill that IFCSS support is a bad bill because it
gurrantee to hurt innocent people while it can not gurrantee to save those
people it intend to save. On the contrast, I say that Chinese goverment
has done a good job in its economic policies in the past few years. They
have been considerate and cautious in unfreezing the prices. They have
avoid the inflation that could be much worse and the living standard
of most people is actually gradually improved. But I should also say
they could have done much better. As I can see, Chinese goverment
should establishing a coperation law that allows privitization of 
state own industry. This will first enable those troubled
state own industry to be sold so the state don't have to face that huge
liability to workers. State should also allow the free flow of the labour
force which is my first point. Upon doing this, the state then will have 
the option to drop the food, housing and medical subsidary to
those work force employed in a joint ventured (it could be with foreign
investors or with domestic investor in the form of stock) because then it
is up to their employ to pay enough to attract their workers. The state
should remain above subsidaries to work force in state own industries because
these peoples are usually underpaid. Upon that, the state should have
freed enough fund to invest in some public constructions such as superhighway,
power plant as well to invest in education and strategic technology such as
electronics, composite material and biomedical product.

3) About progmatism. Our Chinese student here in US should have learn that
US is one of the most progmatic country. In 70's, they abandon Twaiwan
against their idealism. In 90's, despite China has evolved a long way to
closer to western starndard from cultural revolution, the Sino-US friction
has increased. Because US dosen't need China to balance Soviet anymore.
We should have learn this pragmatism from them. Our foreign policy (include
the task of Chinese student in US) should be as simple as that let's do
business. Because that's mutual beneficial. Chinese should not encourage
US to interfere Chinese politics. That is not just idealism. I bet you
still remember that some US military officers (include their embassadars)
repeatly insulted Chiang Kai-shek in 40s. We should not let is
happen again. On the otherside, Deng Xiao-ping has for a long time been
praised as the progmatic man in China by western people. What western
people fail to understand is that the decision of crackdown in 6/4 is another
aspect of Deng's pragmatism. Here one should note crackdown is not massecur.
Crackdown is a problem of decision and massecur is a problem of execution.
The save of system has, in a long run, much more beneficial to a ordinary 
people's life than letting the system simply fail because it has done to the
living standard of most of people the second point that I mentioned.  
Administration is an art and science. It is not simply idealism. If Russian 
people are hungry, western society will help because they are afraid of 
reversal of Russian. If Chinese people are hungry, no one will give a damn. 
I am afraid few people will appreciate what I said. I wish history will 
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china