One flaw in the Pottinger essay is that he understates the role of economics/commerce in the competition equation. 商場就是戰場. As early as the 1980s, Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan strait were saying that the 21st century would be the “China century”. I think they meant that more in an economic sense than a military one. As for the popularity of the CCP, the Chinese have always been able to accept an authoritarian government AS LONG AS it delivered the stability required to allow commerce to flourish. 安局樂業. I agree the Chinese could care less about American democracy but if you think they do not aspire to the US standard of living then you do not understand the Chinese mindset. Of course the US has made mistakes these past 50 years but the Chinese have also been the largest beneficiary of Pax Americana and being allowed into the international trading system and into North American schools. This is a fact the Chinese usually fail to mention in their daily diatribe.