Exit Stage Right — Hu Jintao’s staggering departure from China’s political scene

Xi Jinping’s Empire of Tedium Appendix XIX 臺上臺下   In ‘China’s Political Silly Season’ we quoted an anonymous petition calling on Xi Jinping to retire at the Twentieth Party Congress. It read in part: From the Eighteenth Party Congress [in November 2012, the former Party General Secretary] Hu Jintao magnanimously ceded all of his positions and handed control over the party-state-army to you holus-bolus.… Read

A Hosanna for Chairman Mao & Canticles for Party General Secretary Xi

Xi Jinping’s Empire of Tedium
Chapter XX 咒   The 16th of October 2022 marked the day on which, 1332 years earlier Wu Mei (武媚 624-705 CE), formerly the empress consort of the Emperor Gaozong) of the Tang and, after his death, empress dowager, ascended the throne as the Empress Regnant Wu Zhou 武周皇帝 of Zhao 曌.… Read

From One to Ten and Back Again — 10 October 2022

Xi Jinping’s Empire of Tedium Appendix XVIII 雙十   The following essay originally appeared on 5 October 2019. As we preciously observed: ‘The 5th October marks the half way point between the 1 October National Day of the People’s Republic on the Chinese mainland and the 10 October celebration of Taiwan’s Republic of China.… Read