George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 120

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Whether it’s the UN or any other organization, it’s true that within a capitalist system, money influences everything, but it’s not the sole driving force. I’m not referring to simple concepts like ‘love, friendship, or wisdom,’ but rather the ‘credit rating’ that’s assigned to everything in the world.

Of course, one might argue, ‘Isn’t money the same as credit in capitalism?’ But that’s not always the case. Take, for example, a dairy company in Korea. After a particular incident, its credibility plummeted. No matter how much they lowered prices or offered ‘buy one, get one free’ deals, people avoided their products. This rejection caused their stock value to crash, forcing them to rebrand their remaining flagship products, change the name, and endure the humiliation of distancing themselves from the parent company’s brand during production and marketing.

Credit rating affects even individual consumer behavior, so what happens when it’s applied on a national scale? The reason China didn’t immediately stage a ‘Tiananmen 2.0’ [referring to a similar crackdown on protests] in 2019 was because of this ‘credit rating.’ If China were to deploy troops in Hong Kong, its credit rating would plummet, and the Chinese Communist Party would be limited to trading based solely on ‘money,’ losing access to favorable credit terms and international trust.

Another reason China is treading carefully is the ‘Chinese Dream’ [a set of national ideals and goals promoted in China]. The Chinese Dream is a 21st-century form of neo-hegemony centered on China, and those who want to conduct business with China are watching the Hong Kong situation with intense scrutiny because Hong Kong serves as a reflection of their potential future under Chinese influence.

The reason China is busy posturing and pressuring neighboring countries, even while dealing with trade disputes, is to warn them against speaking out of turn. Conversely, isn’t it desperately trying to entice countries far away with the promise of the Chinese Dream? Thanks to this, French President Macron can boast about being warmly welcomed in China, all because of the situation in Hong Kong.

Anyway, returning to the discussion of China in Bush’s memory, the reason Bush is wary of a collapsing China is that the consequences of such a massive implosion are unpredictable.

Perhaps not the entire United States, but because the Bush administration forcibly extracted a considerable amount of money from China, many governments worldwide viewed Bush unfavorably, except for the United States and its allies or partners. These nations watched the downfall of those who opposed the United States and thought, ‘It’s fortunate that we have such a powerful ally on our side!’

“But why China specifically?”

“Diseases are rampant in various parts of China.”

“That’s not exactly breaking news, is it? Is that an issue that warrants UN intervention?”

“Well, if it were just any disease, I wouldn’t be concerned, but it’s the plague (Black Death).”

“Still not surprising. The plague occurs relatively often, even in our country. The plague is just a disease that can be cured if treated promptly, like any other disease.”

In other words, even if a few people die from the plague, it doesn’t mean that knights on pale horses will be swinging their scythes and decimating half the city’s population as in ancient or medieval times.

“But that’s exactly what happened.”

“What? Why?”

“To put it bluntly, it’s our fault.”

In other words, the United States strangled China’s economy and extorted money, leading to a gradual weakening of public authority and a decline in public safety. The Chinese government couldn’t tolerate this, so they reduced welfare programs, making them nominal or even eliminating them altogether. Normally, protests should have erupted at this point, but surprisingly, none occurred. Not a single one, and it wasn’t because people feared for their lives, but because all Chinese citizens knew that the United States was responsible for this predicament.

However, it’s not that there were no dissenters, but they were effectively suppressed by the recovering power of the Public Security Bureau. The main problem was the reduced welfare. While tightening their belts was one thing, they also targeted the medical sector. However, they didn’t simply reduce or eliminate services outright, but rather delayed medical insurance payments.

Since the introduction of the market economy, China’s medical system has been a social insurance system, divided into public and private healthcare. Like other sectors, they promoted joint-venture hospitals (合資病院) [hospitals co-owned by Chinese and foreign entities] to improve outdated medical technology. Simultaneously, they dismantled the existing, problematic public medical system.

The problems with the public medical system were as follows: employees of the numerous Sino-foreign joint ventures, Sino-foreign cooperative ventures, and wholly foreign-owned enterprises (the three types of foreign-invested enterprises) did not receive medical benefits. Since the employing company paid instead of the individual, individuals hardly bore any burden, leading to moral hazard [the tendency to take undue risks because the costs are not fully borne by the individual].

Therefore, the Chinese Communist Party ambitiously promoted the labor medical insurance system. This system included workers from the previously marginalized three types of enterprises, earning it their strong support. In rural areas, they operated a cooperative medical system, but this was also outdated, and its limitations were becoming apparent. Of course, China had a plan to address these issues.

“Until we, the United States, packaged China’s budget as debt from the Qing Dynasty [China’s last imperial dynasty, overthrown in 1912] and incorporated it into the federal congressional budget.”

“So, in other words?”

“Medical insurance didn’t function properly, and as a result, hospitals couldn’t operate effectively. That’s how various germs, including the plague, became rampant in China.”

The Chief of Staff finished speaking and pushed the related report onto the desk. It contained information about China’s population decline, the outbreak of diseases, and China’s response. However, all China could do was isolate those infected as much as possible.

“So, this is a topic that will come up at the UN.”

The reason this is an issue for the UN to intervene in is that the UN’s functions include humanitarian aid and human rights protection. No matter how much the UN is influenced by the United States, China is still a permanent member of the Security Council. China couldn’t simply be suppressed, and it was struggling to attract funds from any available source. Among the potential sources of funds, the UN was the most suitable for China’s situation.

“Shall we stop it?”

This meant whether to mobilize the UN to contain China.

“No, leave it alone.”

After saying that, Bush briefly wondered if he was leading humanity to destruction as he saw the world becoming increasingly chaotic with each intervention. However, he quickly realized that such philosophical contemplation was unproductive and stopped.

Thinking differently, when the Mongol Empire was expanding, global carbon emissions decreased, delaying global warming by 200 years. Perhaps this situation was similar. Of course, Bush was too conscientious to think that way.

“It will fracture on its own without us needing to use the UN to contain it. There’s no need to further dirty our hands.”

China was already gradually fragmenting. Li Keqiang was using every possible means to forcibly hold it together, but the military regions that constitute China today are like magnets with only repulsive force. When the adhesive weakens, they will soon fall apart. This is especially true because each military region contains China’s core areas. Even if a split occurs, the military regions would be able to survive as long as they adequately defend their core territories.

Furthermore, the United States was not going to intervene due to the credit rating issue mentioned earlier. In the international community, wielding excessive power and money leads to isolation. Bush wanted to ensure the success of the United States and its allies, not to initiate a new, reckless Cold War like ‘United States VS the entire world.’

“That’s that, and this is this. At the UN, we need to focus on Middle Eastern refugee relief, not China. And separately from the UN, we need to develop Afghanistan.”

“Regarding Afghanistan, some members of the Federal Congress are questioning continued support. There hasn’t been significant opposition yet because the budget is still sufficient for ‘securing influence in the Middle East,’ as the President mentioned. However, we can’t inject unlimited funds indefinitely.”

“Tell Congress about the Pottery Barn rule [the idea that ‘you break it, you bought it,’ implying responsibility for the consequences of one’s actions]. Actually, it’s not that different. Or is it?”

“Haven’t we rebuilt everything that was destroyed? If the goal is to exert influence, the current state seems sufficient.”

What the US military’s bombs destroyed was rebuilt at lightning speed long ago, and Afghanistan was prospering, all while absorbing the funds flowing from the US Federal Congress. Whether this should be called prosperity is debatable, but there’s a precedent in Korea, which evolved from a beneficiary country to a supporting country, growing like a tree nourished by American money.

“Besides, it’s not like we’re neglecting the domestic situation.”

“That’s true. But it’s difficult to proceed based solely on goodwill.”

The Chief of Staff believed that Bush’s concern for Afghanistan was a manifestation of his personal goodwill. This was the reason the Chief of Staff supported Bush and what enabled him to support him, regardless of how unconventional his actions were.

“It’s not just goodwill. It’s all for the future. As I said before, it’s to project influence permanently in Asia and the Middle East.”

“Is that really all?”

Having heard that much, Bush organized the reports he had received.

“There’s one more thing besides this: dismantling the neo-isolationism that’s prevalent in the United States.”

“Neo-isolationism?”

Why is neo-isolationism suddenly being brought up?

“Do you know what happens when you try to force ordinary people, not exceptional individuals like yourself, to study?”

Because the question was so unexpected, the Chief of Staff struggled to answer. However, just as he was about to respond, Bush cut him off.

“No need to answer. I’ll tell you. The answer is that no matter what you present, they quickly lose interest. The point is that even if we try to raise the awareness of the people, it will quickly fail if the target audience isn’t interested.”

Perhaps because he was thirsty from talking so much, Bush took a sip of tea and continued in a listless voice.

“Our country is strangely similar to the burning Central Plains [a historical region in China often associated with conflict and chaos] right now. They always considered themselves the center of the world and referred to themselves as China, defining all other countries as barbarians. They were justified in doing so at the time. But the consequences of being trapped in the world they created are now evident.”

“But what does that have to do with Afghanistan?”

“What I want to do is the first step in dismantling neo-isolationism. My job is to bring external events into the American consciousness. When everything becomes mundane, people tend to seek out interesting issues.”

It was a time when the news had become uninteresting. But sometimes, even accurate information can be exciting. Isn’t there a saying that reality is stranger than fiction?

“We must present to the people the necessity of intervening in foreign affairs with consistency.

And it’s not like isolationism is inherently bad. Sometimes it’s the right choice. But at least not now.”

“Wouldn’t that actually accelerate neo-isolationism?”

Even without this, neo-isolationism arose because the United States was so heavily involved in global affairs that people began advocating for less intervention and more focus on domestic issues. Therefore, continuing to intervene in Afghanistan will only strengthen their argument, as will the budget allocated to Afghanistan.

“What if it reaches a point where it can’t be done without the United States? What if we make them believe that this is a kind of destiny and duty?”

It wasn’t like the ‘white man’s burden’ [a racist justification for colonialism] that was popular in the 19th century. What kind of nonsense was this? But soon, the Chief of Staff realized what Bush was talking about. Bush was considering recreating the ‘American duty’ that was prevalent after World War II until the Vietnam War.

“Is that possible?”

“Since ancient times, there has been no more certain justification than moral superiority. Or is there?”