tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9049016329709213810.post298013454849093576..comments2023-08-22T06:32:37.855-04:00Comments on The Clothesline Report: Learning From the Comrades: What the Chinese can Teach AmericaJohn Elwoodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09144085078590610919noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9049016329709213810.post-28239350020103657432012-01-23T06:22:31.229-05:002012-01-23T06:22:31.229-05:00Good points. We must not dishonor the victims of ...Good points. We must not dishonor the victims of Tiananmen Square, or their forbears who perished in the Cultural Revolution or the Great Leap Forward, by acting like the Chinese regime has clean hands. But our own history is also marked by shameful episodes,including some that are ongoing, and may be again in the future.<br /><br />A good idea is good regardless of its source.John Elwoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09144085078590610919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9049016329709213810.post-12727602848069204582012-01-22T00:18:38.234-05:002012-01-22T00:18:38.234-05:00It's interesting that a country we so often se...It's interesting that a country we so often see as backward in this area has laid out such progressive goals. Of course, it remains to be seen if they will be met, but it's more than we have done.<br />It is also interesting to think that, just because we may differ ideologically from a government, party, country, or culture, it doesn't mean that they cannot have good ideas. It would be easy to say that, since this is a product of the Chinese Communist Party (of whom I tend to be pretty critical), it is inherently bad, dangerous, wrong, and should be ignored. But that would be reactionary, and not intellectually honest. This seems especially poignant in the current political climate - we, and our politicians, should be able to acknowledge that people of differing political persuasion have good and valid ideas without being attacked. As you say here, we can learn from each other, even if we disagree in important ways.<br /><br />Thanks for the thought-provoking post.Nathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11914590467877672606noreply@blogger.com