In the 46 years I’ve been following U.S.-Chinese relations (since being posted to Hong Kong in January 1979 and serving in Beijing from 1981 to 1982), this strikes me as the most complex, high-stakes moment. The Chinese are fueling conflicts in Ukraine and Middle East against American and NATO allies. They are expanding influence around […]…
Category: blog
This way lies madness–misinformation madness
As this article (below) in today’s New York Times reveals, the Trump Administration’s moves to shut down the government’s anti-disinformation operations is beginning to have disastrous effects. One example cited in the article in the tiny country of Moldova, which is scheduled to hold an election soon. At stake is whether Moldova can leave the […]…
The Chinese are not just listening to our government agencies–they are trying to influence outcomes
We know that the Chinese government and government-supported actors have penetrated America’s telecommunication systems and the IT systems of many government agencies and companies. My assumption was that they were listening and trying to anticipate decisions that were in the process of being made. But this report from the House Select Committee is the first […]…
A.I. Is Wearing Down Democracy
On the front page of today’s New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/26/technology/ai-elections-democracy.html?searchResultPosition=1 It can no longer be denied or ignored–Artificial Intelligence, whether used by China and Russia or domestic players, is having a negative impact on the very concept of democracy. The Big Tech billionaires rushing to create ever more powerful AI tools are doing it for […]…
