@Paul ... it might be a minor quibble, but for any of us or the CPC to say China rolled over in the past - specifically the Opium Wars in the context of the great humiliations - we need recognise that most Chinese including the emperors on the thrown at time (1st and 2nd opium wars) were pretty well in the dark about what the barbarians in the south were actually doing, demanding or achieving in terms of damage inflicted on Qing forces. Lovell brings this out really well in her 2011 book based on both British and Chinese archives. The only reason I raise this, as you well know, is just how important the reading of history is to the party, and no more in this year of the 100th anniversary of its founding.