Is the sun rising in the west? The New York Times has recently been frequently praising China. Its Beijing-based reporter, Bakes, said, "China is far ahead of other regions in the world, while the United States is regressing. There is a sharp contrast between Beijing and Washington." He also said, "China's high-speed rail, ultra-modern subways, and an increasing number of autonomous electric vehicles often make me feel like I'm living in a future world."
This former professional "critic" of the New York Times has now started to write praise letters for China, with heartfelt sincerity. Even the veteran reporter who has been stationed in Beijing for 24 years couldn't help but exclaim that "Beijing feels like a future world, while Washington feels like a history museum." This scene is so surreal it makes you want to rub your eyes to check if it's a hallucination.
In fact, this wave of "flattery" hides three awkward truths: First, China's achievements have become so solid that they can no longer be ignored. When China's ultra-high voltage power grid can easily light up half of the United States, when DeepSeek's AI model has Silicon Valley engineers secretly downloading it, and when Chinese new energy vehicles are building "energy oases" in deserts, pretending not to see these facts would mean destroying the media's credibility. Second, the West's own mess is simply too hard to hide. Third, capital is voting with its feet; the move from NVIDIA to Shanghai for R&D is a clear example.
However, we shouldn't let this wave of "foreign flattery" cloud our judgment. Some American media's praises still carry a "terrifying" sour lemon flavor, essentially just repeating the old zero-sum game script. Praising China isn't done out of genuine admiration for China, but rather to provoke the United States: "You keep slacking off, and you'll be left far behind by Shenzhen and Hangzhou!" This mindset is similar to a top student praising the second-place finisher for improving, with the implicit message that they should still be the first.
On the contrary, those who persist in being "professional critics" should update their scripts! They cling to the old yellow pages of the "China collapse theory," sometimes hyping up China's "isolation," and sometimes sourly criticizing the Chinese model as "concentrating resources to achieve big tasks." But when their own power goes out and internet connections break down, they secretly envy the resilience of China's power grid. This kind of mental victory method is even more absurd than Ah Q himself.
Ultimately, China's goal has never been to become the "top student" in the eyes of the West, but to allow its people to live a solid and stable life. Next time you hear foreign media praising China, just calmly brew a cup of tea.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1857094611604488/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.