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World on the Brink

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World on the Brink

How America Can Beat China in the Race for the Twenty-First Century

Public Affairs,

15 min read
9 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

China is a formidable foe — but the United States can thwart its dangerous ambitions.

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8

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Recommendation

According to national security expert Dmitri Alperovitch and historian Garrett M. Graff, US politicians and citizens need to come to terms with the reality that China poses a global threat. Beijing is a bully that seeks dominion over the world’s economy and ideology. America spent decades believing China was an ally and hoping global trade would encourage it to become more democratic. Meanwhile, the authors argue, China’s leadership has remained unwavering in its view that America is an enemy to vanquish. This eye-opening analysis is required reading for global executives and students of foreign policy.

Summary

Relations between the United States and China have long veered between hope and disappointment.

The United States views itself as an exceptional place — a nation shaped by Enlightenment principles and the desire to avoid what its Founders perceived to be Europe’s gravest flaws. China, meanwhile, developed in a more insular fashion. For over 2,000 years, it saw itself as the hub of civilization. Unlike America, its traditions and systems did not stem from — or develop in response to — another culture. Despite these core differences, the two nations’ histories are deeply intertwined.

American colonists dumped Chinese tea into Boston Harbor in the lead-up to the American Revolution. Trade with China helped build American wealth but contributed to a steady decline in China’s autonomy and power from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. By the late 19th century, immigrants from China made up one-third of the residents of Idaho and Montana, and 10% of the population of California. Though these migrant workers helped build railroads across the United States and revamped American agriculture, they faced harsh racism. During...

About the Authors

Dmitri Alperovitch is a cofounder and chairman of Silverado Policy Accelerator, a national security think tank. He is also the cofounder of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. Garrett M. Graff is a journalist and historian, and the author of several bestselling books on politics and national security.

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